curl

I. verb Etymology: Middle English, from crul curly, probably from Middle Dutch; akin to Old High German krol curly Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. to form (as the hair) into coils or ringlets 2. to form into a curved shape ; twist <

curled his lip in a sneer

> 3. to furnish with curls intransitive verb 1. a. to grow in coils or spirals b. to form ripples or crinkles <

bacon curling in a pan

> 2. to move or progress in curves or spirals ; wind <

the path curled along the mountainside

> 3. twist, contort 4. to play the game of curling II. noun Date: 1578 1. a lock of hair that coils ; ringlet 2. something having a spiral or winding form ; coil 3. the action of curling ; the state of being curled 4. a curved or spiral marking in the grain of wood 5. a hollow arch of water formed when the crest of a breaking wave spills forward 6. a usually short pass pattern in football in which a receiver runs downfield and then curves back toward the line of scrimmage 7. a body-building exercise in which a weight held with the palms facing up is raised and lowered by flexing only the wrists or elbows