a. [f. SWIRL sb. + -Y.] Twisted; knotty, gnarled (cf. SWIRL sb. 3).

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1785.  Burns, Halloween, xxiii. A swirlie, auld moss-oak.

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1825.  Jamieson, Swirlie..., entangled; applied to grass that lies in various positions, so that it cannot be easily cut by the scythe.

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1828.  P. Cunningham, N. S. Wales (ed. 3), II. 165. The swirly bark always denoting a swirly fibre in the wood.

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