whir
pronunciation
How to pronounce whir in British English:
UK [hwɜ:, wɜ:]
How to pronounce whir in American English:
US [hwə, wə]
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- Noun:
- sound of something in rapid motion
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- Verb:
- make a soft swishing sound
Word Origin
- whir (v.)
- c. 1400, Scottish, "fling, hurl," probably from Old Norse hvirfla, frequentative of hverfa "to turn" (see wharf). Compare Danish hvirvle, Dutch wervelen, German wirbeln "to whirl." Related: Whirred; whirring.
Example
- 1. There was a sudden whir as the airplane started its engines .
- 2. Even when the car is off and locked , these fans whir around , so when you step back into it you don 't need to crank up the power-hungry air conditioning .
- 3. After all , I didn 't lose a limb or an eye , I just lost a bike , though I do miss the whispering whir of that grass-green kona hybrid .
- 4. The eyes of the people in guizhou , only that people can call while eating spicy whir to the surface is a good side .
- 5. Not supposing it to be only a picture , she flew towards it with a loud whir and unwittingly dashed against the signboard , jarring herself terribly .