noun
- a member of a political party in England (fl. 18th to mid-19th cent.) which championed reform and parliamentary rights: it later became the Liberal Party
- ☆ in the American Revolution, a person who opposed continued allegiance to Great Britain and supported the Revolution
- ☆ a member of an American political party (c. 1834-56) opposing the Democratic Party and advocating protection of industry and limitation of the power of the executive branch of government
- one who propounds or subscribes to a Whig interpretation of history
Origin:
shortened form of whiggamore (applied to Scot Covenanters who marched on Edinburgh in 1648), an erratic form of Scot whiggamaire < whig, a cry to urge on horses + mare, horse