v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Twisted; p. pr. & vb. n. Twisting. ] [ OE. twisten, AS. twist a rope, as made of two (twisted) strands, fr. twi- two; akin to D. twist a quarrel, dissension, G. zwist, Dan. & Sw. tvist, Icel. tvistr the deuce in cards, tvistr distressed. See Twice, Two. ] 1. To contort; to writhe; to complicate; to crook spirally; to convolve. [ 1913 Webster ]

Twist it into a serpentine form. Pope. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Hence, to turn from the true form or meaning; to pervert; as, to twist a passage cited from an author. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To wreathe; to wind; to encircle; to unite by intertexture of parts. “Longing to twist bays with that ivy.” Waller. [ 1913 Webster ]

There are pillars of smoke twisted about with wreaths of flame. T. Burnet. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. To wind into; to insinuate; -- used reflexively; as, avarice twists itself into all human concerns. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

7. Hence, to form as if by winding one part around another; to wreathe; to make up. [ 1913 Webster ]

Was it not to this end
That thou began'st to twist so fine a story? Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

8. To form into a thread from many fine filaments; as, to twist wool or cotton. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To follow a helical or spiral course; to be in the form of a helix. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. The act of twisting; a contortion; a flexure; a convolution; a bending. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. Addison. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The form given in twisting. [ 1913 Webster ]

[ He ] shrunk at first sight of it; he found fault with the length, the thickness, and the twist. Arbuthnot. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. That which is formed by twisting, convoluting, or uniting parts. Specifically: -- [ 1913 Webster ]

(a) A cord, thread, or anything flexible, formed by winding strands or separate things round each other. [ 1913 Webster ]

(b) A kind of closely twisted, strong sewing silk, used by tailors, saddlers, and the like. [ 1913 Webster ]

(c) A kind of cotton yarn, of several varieties. [ 1913 Webster ]

(d) A roll of twisted dough, baked. [ 1913 Webster ]

(e) A little twisted roll of tobacco. [ 1913 Webster ]

(f) (Weaving) One of the threads of a warp, -- usually more tightly twisted than the filling. [ 1913 Webster ]

(g) (Firearms) A material for gun barrels, consisting of iron and steel twisted and welded together; as, Damascus twist. [ 1913 Webster ]

(h) (Firearms & Ord.) The spiral course of the rifling of a gun barrel or a cannon. [ 1913 Webster ]

(i) A beverage made of brandy and gin. [ Slang ] [ 1913 Webster ]

4. [ OE.; -- so called as being a two-forked branch. See Twist, v. t. ] A twig. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. Fairfax. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

6. A strong individual tendency, or bent; a marked inclination; a bias; -- often implying a peculiar or unusual tendency; as, a twist toward fanaticism. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

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. See Illust. of Drill. --
Uniform twist (Firearms), a twist of which the spiral course has an equal pitch throughout. [ 1913 Webster ]

obs. imp. of Twist. Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Contorted; crooked spirally; subjected to torsion; hence, perverted. [ 1913 Webster ]

Twisted curve (Geom.), a curve of double curvature. See Plane curve, under Curve. --
Twisted surface (Geom.), a surface described by a straight line moving according to any law whatever, yet so that the consecutive positions of the line shall not be in one plane; a warped surface. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. 1. One who twists; specifically, the person whose occupation is to twist or join the threads of one warp to those of another, in weaving. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The instrument used in twisting, or making twists. [ 1913 Webster ]

He, twirling his twister, makes a twist of the twine. Wallis. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. (Carp.) A girder. Craig. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Man.) The inner part of the thigh, the proper place to rest upon when on horseback. Craig. [ 1913 Webster ]

[ 1913 Webster ]

a. Crooked; tortuous; hence, perverse; unfair; dishonest. [ Slang, U. S. ] Bartlett. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. & n. from Twist. [ 1913 Webster ]

Twisting pair. (Kinematics) See under Pair, n., 7. [ 1913 Webster ]