whip
pronunciation
How to pronounce whip in British English:
UK [wɪp]
How to pronounce whip in American English:
US [wɪp]
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- Noun:
- an instrument with a handle and a flexible lash that is used for whipping
- a legislator appointed by the party to enforce discipline
- a dessert made of sugar and stiffly beaten egg whites or cream and usually flavored with fruit
- (golf) the flexibility of the shaft of a golf club
- a quick blow with a whip
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- Verb:
- beat severely with a whip or rod
- defeat thoroughly
- thrash about flexibly in the manner of a whiplash
- strike as if by whipping
- whip with or as if with a wire whisk
- subject to harsh criticism
Word Origin
- whip
- whip: [13] Whip was originally a verb, meaning ‘move quickly’. It was probably borrowed from Middle Low German or Middle Dutch wippen ‘vacillate, swing’, which in turn went back to the prehistoric Germanic base *wip- ‘move quickly’ (source also of English wipe). And *wip- itself was descended from Indo-European *wib-, from which English gets vibrate. Wafer, weave, web, etc come from variants of the same base. The application of whip to a ‘flexible implement for lashing’ is first recorded in the 14th century.=> vibrate, weave, wipe
- whip (v.)
- mid-13c., wippen "flap violently," not in Old English, of uncertain origin, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *wipjan "to move back and forth" (cognates: Danish vippe "to raise with a swipe," Middle Dutch, Dutch wippen "to swing," Old High German wipf "swing, impetus"), from PIE *weip- "to turn, vacillate, tremble" (see vibrate). "The senses of both [noun and verb] no doubt represent several independent adoptions or formations" [OED]. The cookery sense is from 1670s. Related: Whipped; whipping. Whip snake first recorded 1774, so called for its shape.
- whip (n.)
- "instrument for flagellating," early 14c., from whip (v.) and perhaps in part from Middle Low German wippe "quick movement." In parliamentary use from 1850 (the verb in this sense is recorded from 1742), from the sense in fox-hunting. The parliamentary whip's duty originally was to ensure the attendance of party members on important occasions.
Example
- 1. Now hal used his whip on the dogs .
- 2. But aside from the site description and the absurd price , what guarantee is there that this whip is right for you ?
- 3. It is usually very foolish to whip up a crowd .
- 4. And because the germans are not as strong as the americans , it really will be easy to whip them .
- 5. With a seal-hide whip and a splendid pair of polar-bearskin salopettes , mr mathieusen is the master of his team .