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Twist   /twɪst/   Listen
noun
Twist  n.  
1.
The act of twisting; a contortion; a flexure; a convolution; a bending. "Not the least turn or twist in the fibers of any one animal which does not render them more proper for that particular animal's way of life than any other cast or texture."
2.
The form given in twisting. "(He) shrunk at first sight of it; he found fault with the length, the thickness, and the twist."
3.
That which is formed by twisting, convoluting, or uniting parts. Specifically:
(a)
A cord, thread, or anything flexible, formed by winding strands or separate things round each other.
(b)
A kind of closely twisted, strong sewing silk, used by tailors, saddlers, and the like.
(c)
A kind of cotton yarn, of several varieties.
(d)
A roll of twisted dough, baked.
(e)
A little twisted roll of tobacco.
(f)
(Weaving) One of the threads of a warp, usually more tightly twisted than the filling.
(g)
(Firearms) A material for gun barrels, consisting of iron and steel twisted and welded together; as, Damascus twist.
(h)
(Firearms & Ord.) The spiral course of the rifling of a gun barrel or a cannon.
(i)
A beverage made of brandy and gin. (Slang)
4.
A twig. (Obs.)
5.
Act of imparting a turning or twisting motion, as to a pitched ball; also, the motion thus imparted; as, the twist of a billiard ball.
6.
A strong individual tendency, or bent; a marked inclination; a bias; often implying a peculiar or unusual tendency; as, a twist toward fanaticism.
Gain twist, or Gaining twist (Firearms), twist of which the pitch is less, and the inclination greater, at the muzzle than at the breech.
Twist drill, a drill the body of which is twisted like that of an auger.
Uniform twist (Firearms), a twist of which the spiral course has an equal pitch throughout.


verb
Twist  v. t.  (past & past part. twisted; pres. part. twisting)  
1.
To contort; to writhe; to complicate; to crook spirally; to convolve. "Twist it into a serpentine form."
2.
Hence, to turn from the true form or meaning; to pervert; as, to twist a passage cited from an author.
3.
To distort, as a solid body, by turning one part relatively to another about an axis passing through both; to subject to torsion; as, to twist a shaft.
4.
To wreathe; to wind; to encircle; to unite by intertexture of parts. "Longing to twist bays with that ivy." "There are pillars of smoke twisted about with wreaths of flame."
5.
To wind into; to insinuate; used reflexively; as, avarice twists itself into all human concerns.
6.
To unite by winding one thread, strand, or other flexible substance, round another; to form by convolution, or winding separate things round each other; as, to twist yarn or thread.
7.
Hence, to form as if by winding one part around another; to wreathe; to make up. "Was it not to this end That thou began'st to twist so fine a story?"
8.
To form into a thread from many fine filaments; as, to twist wool or cotton.


Twist  v. i.  
1.
To be contorted; to writhe; to be distorted by torsion; to be united by winding round each other; to be or become twisted; as, some strands will twist more easily than others.
2.
To follow a helical or spiral course; to be in the form of a helix.





Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48


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"Twist" Quotes from Famous Books



... pantaloons, of which not much is seen, tight at the ankles, and his high shoes, whose black satin tops are slightly turned up at the toes, make him look even taller and bigger than he is. His head is mostly shaven, but the hair at the back is plaited with a quantity of black purse twist into a queue which reaches to his knees, above which, set well back, he wears a stiff, black satin skull-cap, without which he is never seen. His face is very yellow, his long dark eyes and eyebrows slope upwards towards his temples, he has not the vestige of a beard, and his skin is ...
— Unbeaten Tracks in Japan • Isabella L. Bird
... out of the doorway to the right. It was Harry Morgan, and the side of his face was swathed in bandages, so that he had to twist his mouth violently ...
— Ronicky Doone • Max Brand
... her by such surprise that she was like a mad thing, throwing herself upon him and battling for her treasure, though any possibility of her getting it back from him was hopeless. It was so easy for him to catch her by the wrists and twist them that he laughed while he was ...
— The Dust Flower • Basil King
... thick braid to her waist. She wore an odd little vizored cap of white leghorn, which may either have been the latest thing in children's hats, or some bit of ancient finery furbished up for the occasion. It was trimmed with a twist of buff ribbon and a cluster of black and orange porcupine quills, which hung or bristled stiffly over one ear, giving her the quaintest and most unusual appearance. Her face was without color and sharp in outline. As to features, she must have had the usual number, though Mr. Cobb's attention ...
— Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm • Kate Douglas Wiggin
... who is, according to popular prejudice, a victim of bad luck, and I will show you one who has some unfortunate crooked twist of temperament that invites disaster. He is ill-tempered, or conceited, or trifling; lacks character, enthusiasm, or ...
— Architects of Fate - or, Steps to Success and Power • Orison Swett Marden


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