From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Whorl \Whorl\, n. [OE. whorvil the whirl of a spindle; akin to
AS. hweorfa the whirl of a spindle, hweorfan to turn; cf. OD.
worvel the whirl of a spindle. See Whirl, n. & v.]
[1913 Webster]
1. (Bot.) A circle of two or more leaves, flowers, or other
organs, about the same part or joint of a stem.
[1913 Webster]
2. (Zool.) A volution, or turn, of the spire of a univalve
shell.
[1913 Webster]
3. (Spinning) The fly of a spindle.
[1913 Webster]
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
whorl
n 1: a round shape formed by a series of concentric circles (as
formed by leaves or flower petals) [syn: coil, whorl,
roll, curl, curlicue, ringlet, gyre, scroll]
2: a strand or cluster of hair [syn: lock, curl, ringlet,
whorl]
3: a structure consisting of something wound in a continuous
series of loops; "a coil of rope" [syn: coil, spiral,
volute, whorl, helix]