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whorl
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whorl
whorled leaves 		whorl  audio  (hwôrl, wôrl, hwûrl, wûrl) KEY 

NOUN:
  1. A form that coils or spirals; a curl or swirl: spread the icing in peaks and whorls.
  2. Botany An arrangement of three or more leaves, petals, or other organs radiating from a single node.
  3. Zoology A single turn or volution of a spiral shell.
  4. One of the circular ridges or convolutions of a fingerprint.
  5. Architecture An ornamental device, as in stonework or weaving, consisting of stylized vine leaves and tendrils.
  6. A small flywheel that regulates the speed of a spinning wheel.
ETYMOLOGY:
Middle English whorle, alteration of whirle, whirl, from whirlen, to whirl ; see whirl



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