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whorl

(wôrl, hwôrl, wûrl, hwûrl)

1. A form that coils or spirals; a curl or swirl: spread the icing in peaks and whorls.

2. Botany An arrangement of three or more leaves, petals, or other organs arising from a single node.

3. Zoology A single turn or volution of a spiral shell.

4. One of the circular ridges or convolutions of a fingerprint.

a. A small pulley that regulates the speed of the bobbin of a spinning wheel.

b. A small flywheel that regulates the speed of a hand-operated spindle.

[Middle English whorle, alteration of whirle, whirl, from whirlen, to whirl; see WHIRL.]

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whorl

whorls of leaves

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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