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spin

verb · noun

Simple meaning

To rotate, revolve.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

spin
US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈspɪn

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

verb

  1. ergative

    To rotate, revolve, gyrate (usually quickly); to partially or completely rotate to face another direction.

  2. transitive

    To make yarn by twisting and winding fibers together.

  3. Make up a story

  4. figurative

    To present, describe, or interpret, or to introduce a bias or slant, so as to give something a favorable or advantageous appearance.

  5. aviationof an aircraft

    To enter, or remain in, a spin (abnormal stalled flight mode).

  6. Form a web by making a thread

noun

  1. Rapid circular motion.

  2. A novel, creative variation of an existing thing or type; a twist.

  3. A distinctive interpretation (especially as used by politicians to sway public opinion)

  4. countableuncountablefigurative

    A favourable comment or interpretation intended to bias opinion on an otherwise unpleasant situation.

  5. A brief trip by vehicle, especially one made for pleasure.

  6. A single play of a record; especially, one broadcast by a radio station.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
B1 · Intermediate
Frequency
Common
Typical Use
Everyday English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: (ergative) To rotate, revolve, gyrate (usually quickly); to partially or completely rotate to face another direction.

Used this way, spin is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
No strong connotation
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use spin

  • “The President's spokesmen had to spin the story to make it less embarrassing.”verb

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

electron spinspin resonancespin systemspin axisspin statetotal spinspin densityspin relaxation

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Similar Words, What’s the Difference?

Close in meaning, but not always interchangeable.

  • twist

    To cause to rotate.

  • twirl

    To rotate rapidly.

  • whirl

    To rotate, revolve, spin or turn rapidly.

Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Inflected forms

Grammatical variations of the same word.

  • spinningnounInflected form

    Creating thread.

  • spinnernounInflected form

    Someone who spins (who twists fibers into threads).

Word family

Words built from the same root.

  • spinalnounDerived noun · specialist

    Anesthesia of the lower half of the body.

  • spinyadjectiveDerived adjective

    Having spines.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • spinning framenounCompound term

    Spinning machine that draws, twists, and winds yarn.

  • spinning jennynounCompound term

    An early spinning machine with multiple spindles.

  • spinning machinenounCompound term

    A textile machine for spinning yarn and thread.

  • spinning rodnounCompound term

    A fishing rod designed for casting a spinning lure.

  • spinning topnounCompound term

    A conical child's plaything tapering to a steel point on which it can be made to spin.

  • spinning wheelnounCompound term

    A small domestic spinning machine with a single spindle that is driven by hand or foot.

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.