What does "coil" mean?
Something wound in the form of a helix or spiral.
Coil
/kwaɪl/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Something wound in the form of a helix or spiral.
- Grammar: coil is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: curl, helix, bight, bights.
- Useful contrasts: capacitor, diode, fixed beam.
- Usage evidence: When a coil is moved near to a wire with current flowing in it current flows in the coil as well.
How to use "coil"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "coil" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "coil" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "coil" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "coil" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "coil" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "curl" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "coil", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Something wound in the form of a helix or spiral.
"the sinuous coils of a snake"
- 2 A noise, tumult, bustle, or turmoil.
"a. 1738, Thomas Urquhart, Peter Anthony Motteux, and John Ozell (translators), François Rabelais, Gargantua and Pantagruel And when he saw that all the dogs were flocking about her, yarring at the retardment of their access to her, and every way keeping such a coil with her as they are wont to do about a proud or salt bitch, he forthwith departed […]"
- 3 A wad of cash. informal, slang
- 4 Abbreviation of chemical oxygen-iodine laser. abbreviation, alt-of
- 5 a structure consisting of something wound in a continuous series of loops wordnet
Show 9 more definitions
- 6 Any intrauterine device (abbreviation: IUD)—the first IUDs were coil-shaped.
"‘I’m gonna go on the pill and get fitted for a coil. I don’t wanna be pregnant. Ever. Again!’"
- 7 reactor consisting of a spiral of insulated wire that introduces inductance into a circuit wordnet
- 8 A coil of electrically conductive wire through which electricity can flow.
- 9 tubing that is wound in a spiral wordnet
- 10 A cylinder of clay.
- 11 a contraceptive device placed inside a woman's womb wordnet
- 12 Entanglement; perplexity. figuratively
"What trifling coil do we mortals keep; Wake, eat, and drink, evacuate, and sleep."
- 13 a transformer that supplies high voltage to spark plugs in a gasoline engine wordnet
- 14 a round shape formed by a series of concentric circles (as formed by leaves or flower petals) wordnet
Verb
- 1 To wind or reel e.g. a wire or rope into regular rings, often around a centerpiece.
"A simple transformer can be made by coiling two pieces of insulated copper wire around an iron heart."
- 2 wind around something in coils or loops wordnet
- 3 To wind into loops (roughly) around a common center.
"The sailor coiled the free end of the hawser on the pier."
- 4 make without a potter's wheel wordnet
- 5 To wind cylindrically or spirally.
"to coil a rope when not in use"
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 to wind or move in a spiral course wordnet
- 7 To build a pot (etc) with clay coils.
- 8 To encircle and hold with, or as if with, coils. obsolete, rare
"a. 1757, Thomas Edwards, sonnet to Mr. Nathanael Mason Pleasure coil thee in her dangerous snare"
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Example
"When a coil is moved near to a wire with current flowing in it current flows in the coil as well."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "coil"?
Common synonyms include: curl, helix, bight, bights, bolt, braid.
How do you use "coil" in a sentence?
When a coil is moved near to a wire with current flowing in it current flows in the coil as well.
How do you pronounce "coil"?
Pronounced /kwaɪl/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English coilen, from Old French coillir, cuillir (“to gather, pluck, pick, cull”) (modern French cueillir), from Latin colligō (“to gather together”), past participle collectus, from com- (“together”) + legō (“to gather”); compare legend. Doublet of cull.
Etymology 2
Unknown.