twisting

T1W4I1S1T1I1N1G2
/ˈtwɪstɪŋ/

noun

The disreputable practice of selling unnecessary insurance to a customer in order to earn commission.

“The mountain road is even more twisting than the valley road.”

Less commonScrabble 12

Meanings

verb
  1. gerundparticiplepresentpresent participle and gerund of twist
nountwisting (countable and uncountable, plural twistings)

plural twistings

  1. countablegerundgerund of twist

    She was oblivious of all around her, and her facial twistings and scrunchings were droll.

    1984, Theodore R. Sizer, Horace's Compromise: The Dilemma of the American High School
    2 more examples

    Tracing Emerson’s famous twistings and turnings, Mr. Poirier argued that even when he seemed most complacent […] Emerson cannot be taken at face value.

    2009 August 23, Alexander Star, “Richard Poirier: A Man of Good Reading”, in New York Times

    Engineers decided not to use hydraulics, to ensure there was no twisting or buckling to the 80-tonne girder structure.

    2021 July 14, “Network News: Network Rail engineers raise Machynlleth bridge”, in RAIL, number 935, page 27
  2. uncountableThe disreputable practice of selling unnecessary insurance to a customer in order to earn commission.

    Twisting benefits an insurance agent while damaging the customer. The agent benefits because the commission earned on the sale of a new health insurance policy is substantially higher than that earned on the renewal of an existing policy.

    1985, The Federal Reporter (second series, volume 756, page 219)
adjective
  1. Having many twists

    The mountain road is even more twisting than the valley road.

Synonyms & antonyms

adjectivemarked by repeated turns and bends

nounthe act of distorting something so it seems to mean something it was not intended to mean

nounthe act of rotating rapidly

Broader
rotationrotary motion

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Translations

Dutch kronkelend
  • kronkelendhaving many twists
Finnish mutkikas
  • mutkikashaving many twists
Russian изви́листый
  • изви́листый (izvílistyj)having many twists
Cite this entry
APA

twisting. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/twisting

MLA

“twisting.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/twisting. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “twisting,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/twisting.

Source: twisting on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.