What does windmilling mean?
“Windmilling” is the present participle and gerund of “windmill,” meaning to operate a windmill or to use a windmill's sails to drive machinery. In its literal sense, it describes a mill whose sails are turning in the wind. The word also has figurative uses: a person may be said to be “windmilling” when moving the arms rapidly in broad circles, much like windmill sails, while rotating aircraft propellers or mechanical blades may be described as windmilling. As a noun, “windmilling” names the activity or process itself, though this use is less common than the verb form. The expression is uncommon in formal writing but can be especially vivid in descriptive prose and in aviation or engineering contexts. Its value lies in making a familiar mechanical action immediately accessible: wind, circular motion, power, and labor are compressed into one memorable word.
To operate a windmill or cause something to rotate in a manner resembling windmill sails.
"The repaired sails were windmilling in the strong coastal wind."
Figurative descriptions of circling arms, rotating propellers, or spinning blades are established but vary in register.
The operation or process of using a windmill, especially to grind grain or drive machinery.
"The records include the windmilling of grain at the mill."
This gerund-based noun use is uncommon and is normally uncountable.
Rare; the noun is ordinarily used uncountably.
"Several windmillings were recorded in the mill ledger."
Windmilling turns moving air into useful labor: its sails capture the breeze and put a mill into motion.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does windmilling come from?
“Windmilling” was formed by adding the present-participle ending -ing to “windmill,” with the final e retained before the suffix. The underlying compound joins Old English “wind” with “mill,” an Old English form related to Latin molina. Close cognates include Dutch “windmolen” and German “Windmühle,” while English “windmiller” and “milling” preserve the same elements or their derivatives.
How windmilling is actually used
The literal sense is relatively uncommon because a description of a working windmill is often clearer. Figurative uses, especially for rapidly circling arms or freely rotating blades, are vivid but informal or technical. The gerund can also function as a noun, though it is normally uncountable.