Spire Definition
spīr
spired, spires, spiring
noun
spires
A spiral or coil.
Webster's New World
A slender, tapering plant part.
American Heritage
The top part of a pointed, tapering object or structure, as a mountain peak.
Webster's New World
Any of the convolutions of a spiral or coil.
Webster's New World
A sprout, spike, or stalk of a plant, a blade of grass, etc.
Webster's New World
verb
spired, spires, spiring
To extend upward, tapering to a point; shoot up or rise in, or put forth, a spire or spires.
Webster's New World
To furnish with a spire.
American Heritage
To rise and taper steeply.
American Heritage
To grow upwards rather than develop horizontally. [from 14th c.]
Wiktionary
Origin of Spire
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Old English spīr. Cognate with Dutch spier, German Spier, Spiere, Swedish spira.
From Wiktionary
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From Old French spirer, and its source, Latin spÄ«rāre (“to breathe").
From Wiktionary
Latin spīra coil from Greek speira
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
Middle English from Old English spīr
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
From Middle French spire.
From Wiktionary
Spire Is Also Mentioned In
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