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Inside the word "windlass," although you can't hear the verb "wind" ("to twist, to coil"), you can see it. "Windlass" traces back through Anglo-French to, possibly, Scandinavian words meaning "a winding pole, or a winding beam."

And that's what a windlass is: a device for lifting and lowering something heavy attached to a rope by winding the rope around a cylinder. A windlass on a ship, for example, can lift and lower an anchor; a windlass on a well can lift and lower the bucket of water.

"Windlass" is a verb, too, meaning "to lift or lower things with a windlass," as in "They windlassed the anchor" or "They windlassed a load of coal from the bottom of the mineshaft."

That brings us to the figurative sense that we'll focus on. To windlass something out of someone is to get it out of them by working steadily, as if it's a heavy weight that you're moving by winding a rope.

Part of speech:

Verb, the transitive kind: "They windlassed the anchor up;" "They had to windlass up the anchor;" "They windlassed the entire story out of him."

Also a noun, the countable kind: "We'll need a windlass;" "They built windlasses."

Other forms: 

The other verb forms are "windlassed" and "windlassing."

And the plural noun is "windlasses."

how to use it:

Pick the rare but wonderfully specific word "windlass" when you want to get figurative as you describe something that gets moved slowly and steadily, with constant effort.

You might talk about people windlassing information, explanations, stories, details, or the truth out of each other.

Or you might talk about people windlassing something up, down, or into place.

Although literal windlasses have many uses, they're most closely associated with ships. So, when you say that people are windlassing things, figuratively, you're probably calling to mind the image of a hardworking sailor.

examples:

"Each day thousands of dollars' worth of gold were scraped from bedrock and windlassed to the surface."
  — Jack London, The Faith of Men, 1904

"Let her rest, my dear sir, at the bottom of her well; there she is, and there she will be for ever and ever, and depend upon it none of our windlassing will ever bring her up."
  — Maria Edgeworth, Helen, 1857

has this page helped you understand "windlass"?

Awesome, I'm glad it helped!

Thanks for letting me know!
If you have any questions about this term, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com.

study it:

Explain the meaning of "windlass" without saying "winch" or "lift up."

try it out:

(Source)

Here's Rosita Boland reflecting on her fascination with the Sutton tower in Ireland, and on staying inside it one evening with her friends:

"We talk about our lives, dreams we had, and what we want to do in the future. It is as if the round tower is windlassing stories out of us."

With Boland's experience in mind as an example, talk about a time when some experience (or some person) seemed to windlass stories out of you.

If you like, use this space to write. (To save your work, copy and paste it into an email or a document.)

before you review, play:

Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out.

Our game for this month is "It's That Thing..."

We'll play with some highly slangy, reasonably wholesome terms, courtesy of Urban Dictionary.

I'll give you three terms, and you attempt to define them. Scroll down to see the correct definitions, and give yourself a point for each term that you defined either correctly or believably.

Try these today:

1. Jetway Jesus

2. Second screening

3. Solemn low five

review this word:

1. A near opposite of WINDLASS could be

A. DELUGE: to let loose all at once, like a flood.
B. TRANSMOGRIFY: to change completely into something weird.
C. DISSIPATE: to ease off, as if parts are moving away in different directions.

2. Toward the end of a Rudyard Kipling novel, a character who finally speaks "as though the words were being windlassed out of him," is, naturally, _____.

A. an orphan and beggar
B. an enormous Indian python
C. the captain of a fishing schooner

Answers to the review questions: 1. A 2. C From the game: Remember, even if you're wrong, give yourself a point for coming up with a believable definition! Here are the definitions that Urban Dictionary lists. 1. Jetway Jesus: "When people fake the use of a wheelchair to get early boarding on a flight, but when the flight lands and they are miraculously able to walk off the plane on their own two feet, they've been 'healed' by Jetway Jesus." 2. Second screening: "The opening of a second screen for distraction and/or entertainment purposes (e.g. emails, Instagram, Facebook) while attending a video meeting on a separate screen." 3. Solemn low five: "The act of quietly and calmly low fiving others when a location or event does not permit for a loud and/or enthusiastic high five."

a final word:

I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love. I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From my blog: On vocabulary...       36 ways to study words.       Why we forget words, & how to remember them.       How to use sophisticated words without being awkward. On writing...       How to improve any sentence.       How to motivate our kids to write.       How to stop procrastinating and start writing.       How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count. From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. A disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.