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twist
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- pronunciation:
- twIst
- parts of speech:
- transitive verb, intransitive verb, noun
- phrases:
- twist (someone's) arm
- features:
- Word Combinations (verb, noun), Word Explorer
| part of speech: |
transitive verb |
| inflections: |
twists, twisting, twisted |
| definition 1: |
to bend or turn (a single thing) in opposite directions so that parts of this same thing are turned away from each other.
He twisted the towel to get the excess water out.Keep your hips facing forward and twist your body as you look behind you. |
| definition 2: |
to combine by winding (two or more threads) together in order to produce a single thread.
Machines twist wires together to make cable.- synonyms:
- intertwine, plait, splice, twine
- antonyms:
- untwist
- similar words:
- braid, entwine, interlace, interweave, knot
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| definition 3: |
to wind, coil, or weave (something) around something else.
She twisted her hair around her finger.- synonyms:
- coil, twine, wind
- similar words:
- lace, loop, roll, wrap, wreathe
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| definition 4: |
to make into a coil or spiral.
He twisted the wire into a spring.- synonyms:
- coil, curl, spiral
- similar words:
- bend, convolute, kink, roll, swirl, turn, twirl, warp, wreathe
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| definition 5: |
to turn in a circular motion.
She twisted the door handle and entered the room.You can twist the cap to open the bottle.- synonyms:
- rotate, turn
- similar words:
- pivot, revolve, spin, swivel, wind, wrench
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| definition 6: |
to alter the shape of; disfigure.
Grief twisted her face.- synonyms:
- contort, distort, screw, torture
- similar words:
- bend, deform, disfigure, misshape, mutilate, warp, wrench
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| definition 7: |
to misconstrue or deliberately distort the meaning of.
You twisted my words; you know that's not what I meant.- synonyms:
- distort, misconstrue, misinterpret, pervert, wrench
- similar words:
- bend, color, fudge, garble, gloss, misrepresent, slant, varnish, warp, whitewash
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| definition 8: |
to wrench or sprain.
I twisted my ankle.- synonyms:
- sprain, turn, wrench
- similar words:
- disjoint, dislocate, jerk, wrest, yank
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| related words: |
bow, buckle, cross, distort, doctor, gild, lock, loop, pull, strain, turn, weave, wring |
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| part of speech: |
intransitive verb |
| definition 1: |
to turn, sometimes repeatedly, so that part of one's body faces in one direction and the other faces the other direction.
I twisted in my seat in order to see the people behind me.The dancers twisted on the dance floor. |
| definition 2: |
to turn and go in another direction.
The river twisted through the mountains.The path twists sharply to the right up ahead.- synonyms:
- turn
- similar words:
- about-face, pirouette, pivot, revolve, rotate, swivel, twirl, wheel, whirl
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| definition 3: |
to wind or wrap around an object.
The ivy twisted around the drain pipe.- synonyms:
- coil, spiral, twine, wind, wrap
- similar words:
- convolute, twirl
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| definition 4: |
to squirm or writhe.
His body twisted in pain.- synonyms:
- squirm, writhe
- similar words:
- contort, wiggle, wriggle
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| definition 5: |
to become intertwined or tangled together.
The stems twisted until we couldn't tell which plant was which.- synonyms:
- entwine, interlace, intertwine, interweave
- similar words:
- interlock, knot, tangle
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| related words: |
buckle, climb, cock, loop, meander, ramble, spring, turn, wind, work, wring |
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| phrase: |
twist (someone's) arm |
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| part of speech: |
noun |
| definition 1: |
something twisted or made into a spiral, such as a piece of yarn or thread, a citrus peel, or tobacco leaves.
She likes her martini with a twist of lemon.- synonyms:
- braid, coil, curl, plait, spiral, twine, twirl
- similar words:
- convolution, hank, kink, knot, rope, screw, tangle, whorl, yarn
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| definition 2: |
the act or process of twisting; rotation.
She gave the lid a twist.- synonyms:
- revolution, rotation, turn, wind
- similar words:
- curl, roll, spin, swirl, twirl, wrench
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| definition 3: |
a wrench or sprain, esp. of a muscle.
This twist will need some time to heal.- synonyms:
- sprain, wrench
- similar words:
- jerk, strain, yank
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| definition 4: |
a sudden or unexpected change in an otherwise predictable or even pattern.
We were surprised by the plot twist at the end of the film.- synonyms:
- caprice, surprise
- similar words:
- change, quirk, skew, swerve, turn, veer, whim, whimsy
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| definition 5: |
a peculiarity or odd mannerism.
This is simply an odd twist in his personality.- synonyms:
- eccentricity, idiosyncrasy, oddness, peculiarity, quirk, warp
- similar words:
- crotchet, kink, mannerism, oddity
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| definition 6: |
a misrepresentation or distortion of something.
His twist of her words incensed her.- synonyms:
- distortion, misrepresentation, perversion, wrench
- similar words:
- bias, slant, warp
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| related words: |
bend, bow, caprice, peculiarity, vagary, wring, writhe |
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| derivations: |
twistable (adj.), twistedly (adv.), twistingly (adv.), twistability (n.) |
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