Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Spindle |
SpindleNoun1. (biology) tiny fibers that are seen in cell division; the fibers radiate from two poles and meet at the equator in the middle; "chromosomes are distributed by spindles in mitosis and meiosis". 2. Any of various rotating shafts that serve as axes for larger rotating parts. 3. A stick or pin used to twist the yarn in spinning. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "spindle" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1321. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
Electrical Engineering | That part of a rotor which carries other rotating members and which is supported by bearings in which it can rotate. Source: European Union. (references) |
| A shaft, such as the upward-projecting shaft on a phonograph turntable, used for positioning the record. Source: European Union. (references) | |
Food & Agriculture | All vertical -- to be. . . extra strong steel pipe. (Pen panels). . . . Panel and gate spindles are 1-5/16". . . steel pipes. . . (Catalogue Jutras, Victoriaville, Québec). Source: European Union. (references) |
Industry | A long, thin rod that is used on certain textile machines for twisting and holding textile fibers in manipulation from sliver form to spun yarn. Source: European Union. (references) |
Mechanical Engineering | The main shaft of a machine tool, usually hollow, on which the working energy is available. The spindle receives the workpiece or the cutting tool. Source: European Union. (references) |
| In machine tools, the main spindle or a screw spindle. Source: European Union. (references) | |
| A long transmission screw whose function is to produce a rectilinear movement; e. g. a lead screw. Source: European Union. (references) | |
Medicine | These movements are based on the attachment of each chromosome through some point along its length. . . to a double-poled spindle-shaped structure, the spindle. Source: European Union. (references) |
| An elongated structure which has tapered extremities and a thick central portion. Source: European Union. (references) | |
Mining | A. Shaft of a machine tool on which a cutter or grinding wheel may be mounted b. Metal shaft to which a mounted wheel is cemented. (references) |
Sports & Leisure | The center of a made mast. The main piece of a made mast. Also heart. Source: European Union. (references) |
Transportation | A vertical spar fixed in the ground or in the sea-bed or a river bed to show as a navigation mark. Source: European Union. (references) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
A spindle (or colloquially, a spike) was a device used to hold papers waiting for processing. The device used was utilized by placing a document on the spindle, this act being called "spindling" or "spiking." Early Hollerith cards bore the inscription, "do not bend, fold, spindle or mutilate," with spindling in particular being almost sure to lead to the Hollerith card's being misread.Spindling served the twin purposes of accumulating paperwork in a way that would not permit it to be blown about by the summer breeze common prior to the advent of air conditioning, along with the hole made by the spindle being indicative of some sort of processing when the paperwork is viewed subsequently.
OSHA-compliant safety spindles, with the last 1/2 inch or so bent at a 90° angle to reduce the likelihood of injury, have been available for some time. Many early spindles have bases that are quite decorative.
The spindle also makes an appearance in a short at the beginning of the film Monty Python and the Holy Grail where a room full of chartered accountants are transformed into pirates.
Another colloquialism arising from the use of this device was "spiking," which meant a de facto killing of a controversial newspaper article.
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Spindle."
Synonyms: SpindleSynonyms: arbor (n), mandrel (n), mandril (n). (additional references) |
| Synonyms by domain: spindling (transportation). |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Rotation | Axis, axis of rotation, swivel, pivot, pivot point; axle, spindle, pin, hinge, pole, arbor, bobbin, mandrel; axle shaft; gymbal; hub, hub of rotation. |
Sharpness | Adjective: sharp, keen; acute; acicular, aciform; aculeated, acuminated; pointed; tapering; conical, pyramidal; mucronate, mucronated; spindle shaped, needle shaped; spiked, spiky, ensiform, peaked, salient; cusped, cuspidate, cuspidated; cornute, cornuted, cornicultate; prickly; spiny, spinous, spicular; thorny, bristling, muricated, pectinated, studded, thistly, briary; craggy; (rough); snaggy, digitated, two-edged, fusiform; dentiform, denticulated; toothed; odontoid; starlike; stellated, stelliform; sagittate, sagittiform; arrowheaded; arrowy, barbed, spurred. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
| Domain | Usage | |
Movie/TV Titles | The Spindle of Life (1917) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
Books | |||
Periodicals |
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High Tech |
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Consumer Goods | |||
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | In vitro (tissue culture). Long-term cultured confluent AIDS-KS cells stained with Wright-Gimsa. Note the spindle shape and distribution of the cells in longitudinal fan-like arrays. Credit: Unknown photographer/artist. |  | Histopathology shows perivascular proliferation of spindle cells and adjacent lymphocytic infiltrates. Credit: CDC. |
 | A multiple spindle screw machine on 20mm fuse production in a plant that formerly made cash registers. National Cash Register Company, Dayton, Ohio. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Production of 20mm fuses is speeded by a multiple spindle automatic screw machine in a converted cash register factory. National Cash Register Company, Dayton, Ohio. Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | Dr. A.S. Barnes, "Ker-Feal", residence in Chester Springs, Pennsylvania. Spindle room, to fireplace. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Questers antique shop. Spindle back chair. Credit: Library of Congress. |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Health | The lesion is generally diagnosed using histologic criteria of architectural disorder with asymmetry, subepidermal fibroplasia (concentric eosinophilic and/or lamellar), and lentiginous melanocytic hyperplasia with spindle or epithelioid melanocytes aggregating in nests of variable size and fusing with adjacent rete ridges to form bridges. (references) | |
Business | The developments in machine tools over the past twenty years (such as advanced spindle, chip removal and guideway systems) allow metals to be cut at very high speeds. (references) | |
Economic History | Indonesia | Cotton imports for MY1999/2000 are estimated up at 3,000 tons from the previous year at 510,000 tons as spindle utilization started increasing as the country's political and economic situation began to stabilize. (references) |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| "Spindle" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 94.19% of the time. "Spindle" is used about 86 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 94.19% | 81 | 36,835 |
| Lexical Verb (base form) | 3.49% | 3 | 202,518 |
| Noun (proper) | 2.33% | 2 | 245,945 |
| Total | 100.00% | 86 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| The following table summarizes the usage of "spindle" based on a population census conducted in the United States. Ranks and frequencies are based on all names reported and classified. |
| Name | Usage/Gender | Usage per 100 million Persons | Rank in USA |
| Spindle | Last name | 130 | 67,630 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits. | |||
| Country | Name |
| Japan | Nihon Spindle Co., Ltd. |
| (more examples...) |
Source: compiled by the editor from Icon Group International, Inc.
Expressions using "spindle": common spindle tree ♦ Dead spindle ♦ Live spindle ♦ main spindle ♦ mitotic spindle ♦ Mitotic Spindle Apparatus ♦ parabolic spindle ♦ revolve on a spindle ♦ saw spindle ♦ screw spindle ♦ spindle cell sarcoma ♦ spindle horn ♦ spindle nose ♦ spindle pipe ♦ spindle shell ♦ spindle side ♦ spindle stromb ♦ spindle tree ♦ Tail spindle ♦ tailstock spindle ♦ tailstock spindle sleeve ♦ taper hole in the spindle ♦ thread spindle ♦ throat to centre of spindle ♦ winged spindle tree ♦ work gear spindle. Additional references. | |
| Hyphenated Usage | |
Beginning with "spindle": spindle-back, spindle-cell, spindle-disrupting, spindle-leg, spindle-legged, spindle-legs, spindle-shanked, spindle-shanks, spindle-shaped, Spindle-spanks, spindle-tree family, spindle-trees, spindle-whorl. | |
Ending with "spindle": multi-spindle. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Language | Translations for "spindle"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Albanian | shtylllë shkalle, njeri i lartë dhe i thatë (spindling), gisht (dactyl, digit, digital, finger, hand, stall, toe), bosht (Arista, axis, axle, axletree, bobbin, fulcrum, kingbolt, kingpin, pivot, shaft), aks (axis, pivot, shaft). (various references) | |
Arabic | محور (axis, center, centre, heart, hub, pivot, shaft, spin, spun), مغزل (spinning wheel), عمود دوران, ذراع (arm). (various references) | |
Bulgarian | чашкодрян (spindle tree), тънък човек (thread-paper), тънко нещо, шпиндел (shaft), вретено (bobbin, cop), вал (axle, billow, roller, shaft, tree), ос (axis, axle, axletree, kingbolt, pin, shaft, shank, stalk, tree), изтънявам се (elongate, taper), източвам се, издължавам се. (various references) | |
Chinese | 纺", 筳 (bamboo pole), 紡錘 . (various references) | |
Czech | stopka (peduncle, stalk, stem), vřeteno (bobbin, hasp), rùst (accretion, grow, grow up, growth, increase, plant, upgrowth, vegetate), puèet (bud, spring, sprout, strike out), přeslen (whorl). (various references) | |
Danish | aksel (axis, axle). (various references) | |
Dutch | spoel (bobbin, coil, spool), tap (electric plug, faucet, pivot, plug, stopper, tap), spil (axis, axle, pivot), as (arbor, ash, axis, axle, cinder, shaft). (various references) | |
Esperanto | ŝpinilo, ŝafto (arbor, shaft). (various references) | |
Faeroese | aksil (axis, axle), ásur (axis, axle). (various references) | |
Finnish | kara (main spindle, mandrel). (various references) | |
French | axe, pivot, fuseau, broche (spit). (various references) | |
Frisian | as (arbor, as, as if, as though, axis, axle, how, if, in a way, like, provided that, shaft, such as). (various references) | |
German | Spindel (arbor, newel), Welle (arbor, axle, billow, circle, craze, kink, light wave, ridge, shaft, stem, warp, wave, wavelength), Achse (arbor, axis, axle, center line, pivot, shaft). (various references) | |
Greek | κυρία άτρακτος (main spindle), κλωστήρας, στρεφόμενος άξονας (inner shaft, pivot, swivel), στροφέας (inner shaft, journal, journal for axial load, pintle, pivot, pivot-journal, plug, swivel), πείρος (axle, bung, cellar plug(California), dowel, pin, spile, wooden peg), πάσσαλος (pole, stake), άξονας σύμπλεξης, άξονας (axis, axle, shaft), άτρακτοσ (fuselage), άτρακτος (fuselage, nacelle), λεπτή συρματοειδής άτρακτος, αδράxτι, αδράκτι, αδράχτι (mandrel). (various references) | |
Hebrew | פלך (distaff), כישור (distaff, modiolus), כוש, כרכר (peg top), ציר (axis, axle, hinge, mandrill, pin, pivot, pole). (various references) | |
Hungarian | orsó (Arbor, arbour, bobbin, coil, hanger, quill, reel, roll, rotor, spool), vékony ember, tengely (axis, axle, axle-tree, centerline, centre line, pivot, shaft, spool), nyurga ember, inda (bine, offset, runner, stalk, stole, tendril, trailer). (various references) | |
Icelandic | öxull (axis, axle), ás (axis, axle). (various references) | |
Irish | feirste (of spindle). (various references) | |
Italian | perno (axis, axle, gib, gudgeon, hinge, hub, kingpin, mainstay, pin, pivot, stud, support, swivel), albero (arbor, mast, poplar, shaft, tree), mandrino (Arbor, chuck, holder, mandrel, mandril, pivot, punch, rod, shank), fuso (fused, melted, molten), asse (arbor, axis, axle, board, center line, plank, shelf, tree). (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 錘 , 紡錘 . (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | ぼうすい (make watertight, tarpaulin, waterproof), つむ (to become fine, to pick, to pile up, to pluck, to stack, to trim). (various references) | |
Korean | 스핀". (various references) | |
Manx | fess. (various references) | |
Norwegian | aksel (axis, axle). (various references) | |
Pig Latin | indlespay.(various references) | |
Portuguese | fuso (bobbin, screw), eixo (axle, center line, centre line, hub, kingpin, pivot, shaft), veio (axis, came, streak, vein). (various references) | |
Romanian | se lungi cã un fus, se întinde (elongate, extend, lie down, make, range, reach, recline, recoil, run, set off, sprawl, spread, stretch, sweep), pivot (cone, gudgeon, hinge, pintle, pivot, Spike, Trunnion), osie (Arbor, axis, axle, axle tree, shaft), fus (cone, hasp, journal, linchpin, mandrel, shaft, Trunnion), ax (Arbor, axis, shaft), arbore (Arbor, axle, tree), ac (goad, needle, pinnacle, spur, sting, style, switch). (various references) | |
Romany | katlì. (various references) | |
Russian | стержень (arm, bar, bolt, center, centre, core, peg, pivot, rod, scape, shaft, shank, stud), цевка (pirn, spool), шпиндельный, шпиндель (arbour), веретено, веретенный, веретен, валик (bead, bolster, mould, platen, torus), вал (arbour, bank, barrel, billow, bulwark, rampart, roller, shaft, tree, wall), ось (axes, axis, axle, axletree, axle-tree, bolt, center, centre, kingbolt, shaft). (various references) | |
Scottish | fearsaid (dart). (various references) | |
Serbo-Croatian | vreteno (arbor, mandrel, spill), vretenast (spindle-shaped), osovina (arbor, axis, axle, mandrel, shaft). (various references) | |
Spanish | huso (gore, mandrel, reel), eje (axis, axle, axletree, hinge, hub, linchpin, pivot, shaft). (various references) | |
Swedish | axel (axis, axle, shaft, shoulder), spindel (axis, axle, mandrel, mandril, pivot, spider). (various references) | |
Turkish | yoğunluk ölçer (pycnometer), mil (Arbor, axle, axle tree, cannon, gudgeon, mile, milliary, pin, pintle, pivot, probe, shaft, style, stylus, tree), kromozomların bağlandığı lifler, iğağacı, iş (activity, affair, appointment, assignment, ball game, billet, biz, business, calling, cause, commerce, concern, dealing, deed, doing, doings, employment, ergo-, function, gig, handiwork, job, metier, mission, occupation, occupational, operation, piece, piece of work, place, ploy, post, profession, pursuit, racket, regulation, shop, show, stint, task, things to do, trade, work, working, workings, works), iğ, eksen (axial, axis, axle, pintle, pivot, pivotal, rachis), dingil (Arbor, axle, axle tree, shaft), bir iplik uzunluk ölçüsü, asitmetre. (various references) | |
Turkmen | ik. (various references) | |
Ukrainian | веретено (bobbin), висока людина, витягуватися, насаджувати на вал, міра пряжі. (various references) | |
Vietnamese | có hình con suốt (spindle-shaped), có chân gầy như ống sậy (spindle-legged, spindle-shanked). (various references) | |
Welsh | gwerthyd (axle, bobbin). (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Sumerian | 3100 BCE-2500 BCE | bala. (various references) |
| Latin | 500 BCE-Modern | fusi, fusis, fusorio, fusum, fusus. (various references) |
| Italian | 900-Modern | fuso. (various references) |
| French | 1500-Modern | rochet. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Language | Date | Source | Proverbs Chapter 31, Verse 19 |
| Greek (transliterated) | 250 BC | Septuagint | TouV phceiV authV ekteinei epi ta sumferonta taV de ceiraV authV ereidei eiV atrakton |
| Latin | 405 | Vulgate | Ioth manum suam misit ad fortia et digiti eius adprehenderunt fusum |
| Middle English | 1395 | Wyclif | Joth. Hir hond she putte to stronge thingus, and hir fingris cayten the spindle. |
| Jacobean English | 1611 | King James | She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff. |
| Victorian English | 1833 | Webster | She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff. |
| Basic English | 1964 | Ogden | She puts her hands to the cloth-working rod, and her fingers take the wheel. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Language | Proverbs Chapter 31, Verse 19 |
| Cebuano | Ginabutang niya ang iyang mga kamot sa bilikan, Ug ang mga kamot nagapugong sa kalinyasan. |
| Chinese | 他 手 拿 ' 線 竿 ． 手 把 紡 線 車 ． |
| Croatian | Rukama se maša preslice i prstima drži vreteno. |
| Danish | Hun rækker sine Hænder mod Rokken, Fingrene tager om Tenen. |
| Dutch | Jod. Zij steekt haar handen uit naar de spil, en haar handpalmen vatten den spinrok. |
| Finnish | Hän ojentaa kätensä kehrävarteen ja käyttelee värttinää kämmenissään. |
| French | Elle met la main la quenouille, Et ses doigts tiennent le fuseau. |
| German | Sie streckt ihre Hand nach dem Rocken, und ihre Finger fassen die Spindel. |
| Haitian Creole | Li file koton, li koud rad li. |
| Indonesian-Bahasa Sehari-hari | Benang dipintalnya dan kain ditenunnya. |
| Indonesian-Terjemahan Lama | Maka dicapainya dengan tangannya kepada kisi-kisi dan tapak tangannyapun ada memegang rahat. |
| Italian | Stende la sua mano alla conocchia e mena il fuso con le dita. |
| Maori | Ka totoro atu ona ringa ki te mea takai miro, ka pupuri ona ringa ki te pou muka. |
| Norwegian | Hun legger sine hender på rokken, og hennes fingrer tar fatt på tenen. |
| Portuguese | Iode. Estende as mãos ao fuso, e as suas mãos pegam na roca. |
| Rumanian | Ea pune mkna pe furcq, wi degetele ei yin fusul. |
| Russian | рТПФСЗЙЧБЕФ ТХЛЙ УЧПЙ Л ТСМЛЕ, Й ЕТУФЩ ЕЕ 'ЕТХФУС ЪБ ЧЕТЕФЕОП. |
| Spanish | Su mano aplica a la rueca, y sus dedos toman el huso. |
| Swedish | Till spinnrocken griper hon med sina händer, och hennes fingrar fatta om sländan. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "spindle": spindled, spindler, spindlers, spindles. (additional references) | |
| |
"Spindle" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: pendle, Spiddal, spiddle, spindal, spinde, spindel, spindely, spintle. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "spindle" (pronounced spi"ndul) |
| 5 | -i" n d u l | bindle, Brindle, dwindle, swindle, kindle, rekindle, Windle. |
| 4 | -n d u l | bundle, candle, fondle, handle, manhandle, mishandle, panhandle, Rundle, sandal, scandal, trundle, unbundle, vandal. |
| 3 | -d u l | addle, alkaloidal, antipodal, astraddle, backpedal, beadle, Bedell, befuddle, Boodle, bridal, bridle, caboodle, caudal, caudle, Coddle, colloidal, cradle, cuddle, dawdle, Doodle, feudal, fiddle, genocidal, girdle, homicidal, huddle, hurdle, idle, idol, idyll, straddle, suicidal, supermodel, intermodal, intertidal, ladle, medal, meddle, middle, minoxidil, modal, model, mollycoddle, muddle, needle, noodle, paddle, pedal, peddle, Piddle, poodle, puddle, pyramidal, remodel, rhizoidal, riddle, Ruddle, saddle, Seidel, sidle, tidal, toddle, twaddle, Tweedle, twiddle, Waddle, Wedel, widdle, yodel. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
Direct Anagrams: splined. | |
| Words within the letters "d-e-i-l-n-p-s" | |
-1 letter: dispel, lisped, pensil, sliped, sniped, spiled, spined, spinel, spline. | |
-2 letters: deils, delis, dines, idles, isled, lends, lenis, liens, lined, lines, nides, peins, pends, penis, piled, piles, pined, pines, plied, plies, sidle, siped, slide, slipe, snide, snipe, speil, spend, spied, spiel, spile, spine. | |
-3 letters: deil, deli, dels, deni, dens, diel, dies, dine, dins, dips. | |
| Words containing the letters "d-e-i-l-n-p-s" | |
+1 letter: sandpile, spindled, spindler, spindles, splendid, splinted. | |
+2 letters: diphenyls, inclasped, insculped, palinodes, penalised, pinelands, planished, pleadings, plenished, sandpiles, spellbind, spindlers, spindlier, sprinkled, underlips, unspoiled, vilipends. | |
+3 letters: amplidynes, aneuploids, candlepins, depletions, despoiling, diplotenes, discipline, dispelling, displanted, limpidness, misplanned, misplanted, pallidness, philanders, placidness, planetoids, plenitudes, sailplaned, spellbinds, sphenoidal, spindliest, splendider, splendidly, splintered, unpolished. | |
+4 letters: anadiploses, besprinkled, delphiniums, depilations, depolishing, despoilment, disciplined, discipliner, disciplines, dispensable, dispeopling, displeasing, endoplasmic, indophenols, interpleads, lipreadings, mispleading, monopolised, palindromes, pedestaling, pentaploids, plentitudes, polyandries, replenished, spellbinder, splendidest, sprinklered, unpublished. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Images: Slideshow 7. Images: Photo Album 8. Quotations: Non-fiction | 9. Usage Frequency 10. Names: Frequency 11. Names: Company Usage 12. Expressions | 13. Expressions: Internet 14. Translations: Modern 15. Translations: Ancient 16. Bible Trace | 17. Derivations 18. Rhymes 19. Anagrams 20. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
