winder

See also: Winder

English

Etymology 1

From Middle English wynder; equivalent to wind +‎ -er.

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈwaɪndɚ/

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -aɪndə(ɹ)

Noun

winder (plural winders)

1. A winding plant.
   • 1984, J. G. Ohler, K. H. Reichelderfer, Gerald A. Carlson, Economic Guidelines for Crop Pest Control, volumes 57-60, page 165:

     Two types of leguminous crops combine most of the above mentioned favourable characteristics, the vines (creepers or winders, fig. 23) and the bushes (fig. 22).

2. A textile worker, or machine, that winds cloth
3. A spool around which something is wound
4. A key or knob for winding a clock, watch or clockwork mechanism

   Synonym: stem

5. One of the steps of a spiral staircase (as opposed to a flyer, or straight step).

Derived terms

• coil winder
• stem-winder

 

Etymology 2

From wind +‎ -er.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈwɪndə(ɹ)/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪndə(ɹ)

Noun

winder (plural winders)

1. (slang) A blow that winds somebody, or takes away their breath.
   • 1913, D[avid] H[erbert] Lawrence, “chapter 8”, in Sons and Lovers, London: Duckworth & Co. […], →OCLC:

     "Well!" exclaimed the miner. "That's a winder." He considered it a moment, said "H'm!" and proceeded with his dinner. Suddenly his face contracted with wrath. "I hope he may never set foot i' my house again," he said.

Etymology 3

Related to winnow.

Verb

winder (third-person singular simple present winders, present participle windering, simple past and past participle windered)

1. To fan; to clean grain with a fan.

Noun

winder (plural winders)

1. A winnowing fan.

Etymology 4

Noun

winder (plural winders)

1. Pronunciation spelling of window.
   • 1868, Ann Sophia Stephens, Doubly False:

     That accounts for my having the dress, but it don't account for the piece that you left sticking to the rose-bush under Mrs. Lander's bed-room winder, which piece I took off that morning, and which piece I matched with the dress after you pitched it at me over them bannisters […]

   • 2019, Robert Eggers, Max Eggers, The Lighthouse (motion picture), spoken by Thomas Wake (Willem Dafoe):

     Don’t be so darn foolish. It’s the calm afore the storm, Winslow. She were a gentle westerly wind yer cursin’. Only feels roughly ‘cause you don’t know nothin’ bout nothin’ and there ain’t no trees on this here rock like your Hudson Bay bush. Nor’Easterly wind’ll come soon a-blowin’ like Gabriel’s horn. Best board up them signal house winders.

Anagrams

• Widner, indrew, Derwin, rewind