pinwheels

verb

present tense third-person singular of pinwheel
as in rotates
to move in circles around an axis or center the kayaker had got sucked into the whirlpool, and his kayak was pinwheeling helplessly

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for pinwheels
  1. rotates
  2. revolves
  3. spins
  4. twirls
Verb
  • Investor attention is currently shifting toward a growing divergence within technology equities, as market capital rotates away from mega-cap tech giants and into the AI infrastructure supply chain.
    — , CNBC, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Traveling at roughly one mile per second, the LRO orbits from pole to pole every two hours as the moon rotates on its own course about 60 miles below the spacecraft.
    — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of rotates
Verb
  • Wilbon also has never shown an interest in becoming the singular personality around whom a show revolves.
    — Bobby Burack OutKick, FOXNews.com, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Earnings out in August could be the catalyst that decides whether this flag revolves higher in the near term.
    — Todd Gordon, CNBC, 29 July 2026
Definition of revolves
Verb
  • The camera spins on its own ketamine high as Peter (Firstman), party promoter extraordinaire and generous drug dealer, kicks off another evening.
    — Joshua Rothkopf, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Its storyline spins the futile, determined chase of Wile to one day capture Roadrunner as something admirable, and applies that underdog mentality to the average person trying to navigate a late capitalist landscape that values profits over people.
    — Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of spins
Verb
  • Inside, Benjamin Davalos twirls his measuring jigger and, with a turn of his wrist, releases a swallow’s worth of straight rye.
    — Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 14 July 2026
  • With smoke streaming from his mouth and nose, McTominay twirls the delighted older man around.
    — Ed Caesar, New Yorker, 16 June 2026
Definition of twirls
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.

Browse Nearby Words

pinwheeling
pinwheels
pioneer
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Pinwheels.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pinwheels. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of dissonant

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All