Having the shape of a helix or spiral, like a coiled spring or twisted rope.
From Greek 'helix' (spiral), derived from 'helissein' (to turn around). The suffix '-al' forms an adjective. The term entered English in the 16th-17th centuries.
DNA's double helix structure wasn't discovered until 1953, but the word 'helical' had been describing spirals in architecture and engineering for centuries—the shape was hiding the secret of life the whole time!
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