spindle
A rod used for spinning and then winding fibres (especially wool), usually consisting of a shaft and a circular whorl positioned at either the upper or lower end of the shaft when suspended vertically from the forming thread.
Other meanings
A rod which turns, or on which something turns.
“the spindle of a vane”
A rotary axis of a machine tool or power tool.
A kind of
- piece
Related words
- antispindle
- minispindle
- multispindle
- perispindle
- spindleful
- spindlehorn
- spindlelegs
- spindlelike
- spindlemaker
- spindlemaking
- spindleshanks
- spindletail
Word history
From Old English "spindle".
Where this comes from
This definition is adapted from “spindle” on Wiktionary, by its contributors; related-word lists use Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0, based on Princeton WordNet), published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.