corkscrew

Etymology

From cork + screw.

noun

1. An implement for opening bottles that are sealed by a cork. Sometimes specifically such an implement that includes a screw-shaped part, or worm.
   I opened the wine with a corkscrew.
   There stood presented to his sight, Or seem'd to stand, the God of wine, […] This hand a Cork-scrue did contain, And that a Bottle of Champaign. 1720, Nicholas Amhurst, “The Bottle-Scrue”, in Poems on Several Occasions, page 113
   A corkscrew is designed so that when it is turned it creates effectively a helical undulation pushing it into the cork, whereas rotation in the opposite sense pulls it out. 1999, James Lighthill, “Biofluiddynamics: A Survey”, in Contemporary Mathematics, volume 141, page 11
   A two-prong or ah-so corkscrew with sheath. 2006, Costas Katsigris, Chris Thomas, The Bar and Beverage Book, 4th edition, page 152
2. The screw-shaped worm of a typical corkscrew.
   A bubble rising rapidly in water describes a spiral closely resembling a corkscrew. 1898, Herbert Spencer, First Principles of a New System of Philosophy
3. (boxing, martial arts) A type of sharp, twisting punch, often one thrown close and from the side.
   […] the immovable McCoy let fly his most miraculous punch of the evening, of his lives, a world-beater of a right corkscrew, a punch years in the windup […] 2002, Darin Strauss, The Real McCoy, page 42
4. (amusement rides) A type of inversion used in roller coasters.
   A corkscrew has a 90° turn just prior to the loop and a 90° turn just afterward. 1987 September, Tim Cole, “Killer Coasters”, in Popular Mechanics, page 56

adj

1. Having the tightly winding shape of a corkscrew.
   Then the old gentleman spun himself round with velocity in the opposite direction, continued to spin until his long cloak was all wound neatly about him, clapped his cap on his head, very much on one side (for it could not stand upright without going through the ceiling), gave an additional twist to his corkscrew mustaches, and replied with perfect coolness. 1841, John Ruskin, chapter I, in The King of the Golden River
   All the heat of a decade of fierce Indian summers is stored in the pitch-black, polished walls of the corkscrew staircase. 1885, Rudyard Kipling, The City of Dreadful Night
   Wide eyes and corkscrew hair / Tied with lace you found somewhere 1980, “Spring Collection”, in New Clear Days, performed by The Vapors

verb

1. (intransitive) To wind or twist in the manner of a corkscrew; to move with much horizontal and vertical shifting.
   Into the tea–room Mr. Pickwick turned; and catching sight of him, Mr. Bantam corkscrewed his way through the crowd and welcomed him with ecstasy. 1832, Charles Dickens, chapter 35, in The Pickwick Papers
   The street corkscrewed endlessly. Sometimes it seemed to stop; then it found a hole in the opposing masonry and edged its way in. 1916, John Buchan, chapter 10, in Greenmantle
   Far off to starboard an Atlantic liner, all lights blazing, came towards us, corkscrewing with a motion which must have left the passengers unhappy. 1960, Lobsang Rampa, chapter 5, in The Rampa Story
2. (transitive) To cause something to twist or move in a spiral path or shape.
   Caught and twisted—corkscrewed in the mazes of the line, loose harpoons and lances, with all their bristling barbs and points, came flashing and dripping up to the chocks in the bows of Ahab’s boat. 1851, Herman Melville, chapter 134, in Moby-Dick
   Rusty corkscrewed the plane back down again, but instead of mashing the throttles to the wall, he pulled them to idle. 2006, Rocky Raab, Baggy Zero Four, page 155
   Soon he was corkscrewed into place, suspended from the ceiling in an impossible maze of unforgiving circuitry. 2007, Mike Monahan, Barracuda, page 107
3. (transitive, informal) To extract information or consent from someone.
   I strongly suspect (from what Small has dropped, and from what we have corkscrewed out of him) that those letters I was to have brought to your ladyship were not destroyed when I supposed they were. 1852, Charles Dickens, chapter 55, in Bleak House
   Yes, I believe you did after it was corkscrewed out of you, but I got the impression at the outset that you were, just as willing to let it stand there. 1922, James Thomas Heflin, Hearings Before the Committee on Agriculture and Forestry, page 460