whirl Definition
whirl (hwʉrl, wʉrl)
intransitive verb
- to move rapidly in a circular manner or as in an orbit; circle swiftly couples whirling round the dance floor
- to rotate or spin fast; gyrate
- to move, go, drive, etc. swiftly
- to seem to spin; reel my head is whirling
Etymology: ME whirlen < ON hvirfla, akin to hverfa: see whir
transitive verb
- to cause to rotate, revolve, or spin rapidly
- to move, carry, drive, etc. with a rotating motion the wind whirled the leaves
- Obsolete to hurl or throw
noun
- the act of whirling
- a whirling motion
- something whirling or being whirled a whirl of dust
- a round of parties, etc., one after another
- a tumult; uproar; stir
- a confused or giddy condition his head in a whirl
Etymology: ME wherwille < ON hverfill, akin to Ger wirbel
whirl Related Forms
whirl Idioms
give it a whirl
☆Informal to try something; make an attempt
whirl Synonyms
whirl
n.
whirl Synonyms
whirl
v.
whirl Usage Examples
Object
- dervish: Around the same time I actually went to see the festival of the whirling dervishes in Anatolia, in central Turkey.
- blade: Gauntlet: The gauntlet combines a whirling saw blade with a powerful electrical charge to create a deadly close-combat weapon.
- round: I was still inside the office with the water whirling round me.
- wheel: Directly opposite the entrance two more doors could be glimpsed between the pipes, conduits and whirling wheels of the generators.
- mass: The rising air condenses so that some of the water in the whirling mass falls as rain.
- dance: The real language of computers is a whirling electromagnetic dance that no human will ever speak.
Converse of object
have: On Wednesday, as soon as my mail was finished, I had a wild whirl to look forward to.
Adjective modifier
- mad: The curtain finally comes down on a mad whirl of destruction.
- social: Life is just one long social whirl, don't you know?
Modifies a noun
- pool: The heavy winds caused a whirl pool that divided the water causing the center of the lake to be visible.
- wind: Obviously could not stand the pace of this hectic whirl wind of the best Christmas Party ever held!
- round: Oh, what a strange meeting, and how it all makes my head whirl round.
Modifying Another Word
- away: The Wizard of Oz Open these pages and be whirled away with Dorothy, to the magical Land of Oz.
- about: Their punishment consists in being forever whirled about in a dark, stormy wind.
- rapidly: A vortex is a rapidly whirling spiral, a body of fluid or gas rotating around its own center.
Followed by an intransitive particle
- around: The snow was getting heavier and heavier whirling around my face nearly blinding me.
- up: The butterflies whirled up into the air, bright wings flashing in the level golden light, and settled along her arm.
Preposition: in
air: It consists of two thermometers mounted on the same frame that can be whirled in the air by hand.
Preposition: of
activity: We look around and smell the aromas, growing ever more curious about the whirl of activity surrounding us.
Preposition: like
dervish: Reports from the committee Barn Stuff Bryan Smith has whirled like a dervish into his new role.
Browse dictionary entries near whirl
- ‹ whir
- ‹ whipworm
- ‹ whipstock
- ‹ whipstitch
- ‹ whipstall
- ‹ whipsnake
- ‹ whipsaw
- ‹ whippy
- ‹ whippoorwill
- ‹ whippletree
- whirligig ›
- whirligig beetle ›
- whirling ›
- whirlpool ›
- whirlwind ›
- whirlybird ›
- whirring ›
- whirry ›
- whish ›
- whisht ›

