spinning

verb

Definition of spinningnext
present participle of spin
1
as in rotating
to move in circles around an axis or center spinning on its axis, the Earth makes one complete rotation every 23 hours 56 minutes 4 seconds

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in swimming
to be in a confused state as if from being twirled around my head spun as I contemplated all the possible problems this restructuring could cause

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in twirling
to move (something) in a curved or circular path on or as if on an axis spun the child around until he was hopelessly dizzy

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of spinning Antetokounmpo also blocked a Noah Clowney dunk attempt a few minutes later, and then got the ball back for a spinning finger roll on the other end. — Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 15 Oct. 2026 Use one of the big red buttons to listen to whatever is spinning live on NTS Channel 1 and Channel 2, or scroll through a rotary dial to listen to one of 16 music-only radio streams. — Kevin Cortez, Time, 15 Oct. 2026 Hurricane Simon, currently spinning along Mexico’s west coast, is expected to make landfall there this week, and forecasters say there’s roughly a 90% chance of another cyclone formation in the next seven days. — Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2026 Bowman hit the back left side of Wallace’s car, spinning both of them out and ending each of their previously promising days. — Charlotte Observer, 11 Oct. 2026 Just a single Chrome browser tab would sometimes send them spinning up to a noticeable volume. — Joe Osborne, PC Magazine, 11 Oct. 2026 A week after Sony releases The Social Reckoning, Bleecker Street will open Musk, Alex Gibney’s head-spinning documentary, running close to four hours, about the rise and rise of Tesla titan Elon Musk. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 7 Oct. 2026 Spinnova and Tearfil signed a yarn development agreement in June 2023, choosing the Portuguese spinner’s Guimarães mill as the site for Spinnova’s research and development yarn-spinning line. — Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 30 Sep. 2026 And the midterms could bring yet another set of head spinning shifts, especially if Democrats take control of Congress. — Amanda Erickson, STAT, 29 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spinning
  1. rotating
  2. swimming
  3. twirling
  4. revolving
  5. whirling
  6. turning
  7. twisting
  8. swirling
Verb
  • But the spacecraft sets were too elaborate to recreate onboard, so Gosling performed on wire rigs, including a rotating harness.
    — Davide Abbatescianni, Variety, 18 Oct. 2026
  • There will be 48-hour flash deals rotating throughout the event, with specific categories up to 40% off.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of rotating
Verb
  • It’s estimated about 25% of the sunscreen people apply to their skin washes off while swimming or wading in the ocean.
    — Matthew Perrone, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026
  • For twenty years, McCarthy has been swimming against the current, writing novels that reflect, with unusual intensity, his disdain for the conventional underpinnings of literary fiction.
    — Max Callimanopulos, New Yorker, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of swimming
Verb
  • Schlittler sent his hometown Red Sox packing last October, striking out 12 while twirling eight scoreless innings in Game 3 of the 2025 Wild Card Series.
    — Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 27 Sep. 2026
  • At one point, he could even be seen lifting her up and twirling her around the beach.
    — Kimberlee Speakman, PEOPLE, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of twirling
Verb
  • Are members using overdrafts, payday-style borrowing or revolving debt less over time?
    — Anand Solanki, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Court papers filed in that lawsuit show that the loan was set up as a revolving line of credit that allowed Boston Finance Group to borrow chunks of money from CSNT over time.
    — Cristian Benavides, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of revolving
Verb
  • The whirling magnetic states arise in these non-Heisenberg compounds partly because the local atomic environment creates a strong crystal electric field.
    — Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 4 Oct. 2026
  • The combat scenes, frequently pitting Latif’s sharpened steel against more popular American weaponry, are staged with whirling verve, wit and, best of all, balletic coherence.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of whirling
Verb
  • The chaparral, meanwhile, burns hot, turning a small fire into an intense blaze.
    — Noah Haggerty, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026
  • So turning the lights on and off repeatedly actually may not be in your best interest.
    — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of turning
Verb
  • For each strip, pinch the ends, then gently stretch while twisting until 8 inches long.
    — Hali Bey Ramdene, Better Homes & Gardens, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The three-time NBA MVP stood behind a gaggle of teammates squished up against the CU bench, quietly surveying the madness from the 15-yard line while twisting the cap of his bottled water.
    — Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of twisting
Verb
  • With these conspiracy theories swirling, some researchers are now seeing the models more as competitors than tools—and the use of them as a betrayal.
    — Peter Hall, Scientific American, 13 Oct. 2026
  • And while there are questions swirling about Akayleb Evans and whether Evans will be replaced by Chau Smith-Wade, one player didn’t get the same scrutiny.
    — Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of swirling

Browse Nearby Words

spinners
spinning
spin-off
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Cite this Entry

“Spinning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spinning. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about spinning

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