Literary notes about coiled (AI summary)
In literature, "coiled" is often employed to create vivid imagery that hints at both physical tension and latent energy. It appears when describing serpentine forms that evoke danger or grace—as in a snake poised to strike or a rope wound with precision ([1], [2], [3]), and it also captures the meticulous arrangement of objects, from braided hair to intricately wrapped rigging and springs ([4], [5], [6], [7]). Beyond tangible objects, the term extends metaphorically to portray accumulated, constrained forces within a character or situation, suggesting emotions or destinies held in suspense until they are unleashed ([8], [9], [10]).
- He went through every room, but all were empty until he reached the last, where a snake lay coiled in a ring.
— from Household Tales by Brothers Grimm by Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm - The coiled thing hissed and half opened its hood.
— from Kim by Rudyard Kipling - "The dragon lies round the treasures in a cave, as Fafnir, like a Python, lay coiled over his hoard.
— from I. Beówulf: an Anglo-Saxon poem. II. The fight at Finnsburh: a fragment. - Will you not tie up with a wreath your tawny coiled locks?
— from The gardener by Rabindranath Tagore - Her hair was still black and there was a great mass of it braided and coiled about her head.
— from Winesburg, Ohio: A Group of Tales of Ohio Small Town Life by Sherwood Anderson - The tightly coiled spring was released, the clock began to whirr and the chimes to play.
— from War and Peace by graf Leo Tolstoy - Each man's rope must be let go and hauled in at the order, properly made fast, and neatly coiled away when the ship was about.
— from Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Henry Dana - V The destiny of some men lies coiled within them, invisible as the blood of their hearts or the stuff of their will
— from The Best Short Stories of 1917, and the Yearbook of the American Short Story - But my anger coiled, preparing its fangs.
— from Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters - Within himself his will was coiled like a beast, hidden under the darkness, but always potent, working.
— from The Rainbow by D. H. Lawrence
