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twist |
5 definitions found From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Twist \Twist\, n. 1. Act of imparting a turning or twisting motion, as to a pitched ball; also the motion thus imparted; as the twist of a billiard ball. 2. A strong individual tendency, or bent; a marked inclination; a bias; -- often implying a peculiar or unusual tendency; as a twist toward fanaticism. From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Twist \Twist\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Twisted}; p. pr & vb n. {Twisting}.] [OE. twisten, AS twist a rope, as made of two (twisted) strands, fr twi- two akin to D. twist a quarrel, dissension, G. zwist, Dan. & Sw tvist, Icel. twistr the deuce in cards, tvistr distressed. See {Twice}, {Two}.] 1. To contort; to writhe; to complicate; to crook spirally; to convolve. Twist it into a serpentine form --Pope. 2. Hence to turn from the true form or meaning; to pervert; as to twist a passage cited from an author. 3. To distort, as a solid body, by turning one part relatively to another about an axis passing through both to subject to torsion; as to twist a shaft. 4. To wreathe; to wind; to encircle; to unite by intertexture of parts ``Longing to twist bays with that ivy.'' --Waller. There are pillars of smoke twisted about wreaths of flame. --T. Burnet. 5. To wind into to insinuate; -- used reflexively; as avarice twists itself into all human concerns. 6. To unite by winding one thread, strand, or other flexible substance, round another; to form by convolution, or winding separate things round each other as to twist yarn or thread. --Shak. 7. Hence to form as if by winding one part around another; to wreathe; to make up Was it not to this end That thou began'st to twist so fine a story? --Shak. 8. To form into a thread from many fine filaments; as to twist wool or cotton. From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Twist \Twist\, v. i. 1. To be contorted; to writhe; to be distorted by torsion; to be united by winding round each other to be or become twisted; as some strands will twist more easily than others 2. To follow a helical or spiral course; to be in the form of a helix. From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Twist \Twist\, n. 1. The act of twisting; a contortion; a flexure; a convolution; a bending. Not the least turn or twist in the fibers of any one animal which does not render them more proper for that particular animal's way of life than any other cast or texture. --Addison. 2. The form given in twisting. [He] shrunk at first sight of it he found fault with the length, the thickness, and the twist. --Arbuthnot. 3. That which is formed by twisting, convoluting, or uniting parts Specifically: a A cord, thread, or anything flexible, formed by winding strands or separate things round each other b A kind of closely twisted, strong sewing silk, used by tailors, saddlers, and the like c A kind of cotton yarn, of several varieties. d A roll of twisted dough, baked. e A little twisted roll of tobacco. f (Weaving) One of the threads of a warp, -- usually more tightly twisted than the filling. g (Firearms) A material for gun barrels, consisting of iron and steel twisted and welded together; as Damascus twist. h (Firearms & Ord.) The spiral course of the rifling of a gun barrel or a cannon. i A beverage made of brandy and gin. [Slang] 4. [OE.; -- so called as being a two-forked branch. See {Twist}, v. t.] A twig. [Obs.] --Chaucer. Fairfax. {Gain twist}, or {Gaining twist} (Firearms), twist of which the pitch is less and the inclination greater, at the muzzle than at the breech. {Twist drill}, a drill the body of which is twisted like that of an auger. See Illust. of {Drill}. {Uniform twist} (Firearms), a twist of which the spiral course has an equal pitch throughout. From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]: twist n 1: an unforeseen development; "events suddenly took an awkward turn" [syn: {turn}, {turn of events}] 2: an interpretation of a text or action "they put an unsympathetic construction on his conduct" [syn: {construction}] 3: any clever (deceptive) maneuver; "he would stoop to any device to win a point" [syn: {device}, {gimmick}] 4: the act of rotating rapidly; "he gave the crank a spin"; "it broke off after much twisting" [syn: {spin}, {twirl}, {twisting}, {whirl}] 5: a sharp strain on muscles or ligaments; "the wrench to his knee occurred as he fell"; "he was sidelined with a hamstring pull" [syn: {wrench}, {pull}] 6: a sharp bend in a line produced when a line having a loop is pulled tight [syn: {kink}, {twirl}] 7: a miniature whirlpool or whirlwind resulting when the current of a fluid doubles back on itself [syn: {eddy}] 8: a jerky pulling movement [syn: {wrench}] 9: a hairdo formed by braiding or twisting the hair [syn: {braid}, {plait}, {tress}] 10: the act of winding or twisting; "he put the key in the old clock and gave it a good wind" [syn: {wind}, {winding}] 11: turning or twisting around (in place); "with a quick twist of his head he surveyed the room" [syn: {turn}] v 1: to move in a twisting or contorted motion, (esp. when struggling); "The prisoner writhed in discomfort." "The child tried to wriggle free from his aunt's embrace." [syn: {writhe}, {wrestle}, {wriggle}, {worm}, {squirm}] 2: cause to assume a crooked or angular form "bend the rod" [syn: {bend}, {deform}] [ant: {unbend}] 3: turn in the opposite direction; "twist a wire" 4: form into a spiral shape; "The cord is all twisted" [syn: {distort}] [ant: {untwist}] 5: form into twists; "Twist the bacon around the sausage" 6: do the twist 7: twist or pull violently or suddenly, esp. so as to remove something from that to which it is attached; "wrench a window off its hinges"; "wrench oneself free from somebody's grip"; also metaphorically: "a deep sigh was wrenched from his chest" [syn: {wrench}] 8: change the meaning of [syn: {twist around}, {pervert}, {convolute}, {sophisticate}] 9: twist suddenly so as to sprain; "wrench one's ankle" [syn: {sprain}, {wrench}, {turn}, {wrick}, {rick}]
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