ˈmæn.dɹəl spaɪk ˈspɪndəl any holding device consisting of a rigid, sharp-pointed object the spike pierced the receipts and held them in order a stick or pin used to twist the yarn in spinning any of various rotating shafts that serve as axes for larger rotating parts a piece of wood that has been turned on a lathe; used as a baluster, chair leg, etc. (biology) tiny fibers that are seen in cell division; the fibers radiate from two poles and meet at the equator in the middle chromosomes are distributed by spindles in mitosis and meiosis