whilom 
WhUome thou earnest with the morniiij; mist. 
Tennytson, Memory. 
Sometimes used adjectively. 
The ticlcle queen caused her whilom favorite to be be- 
headed. IT. S. Gregg, Irisl) Hist, for Eng. Readers, p. 60. 
Il.t conj. While. 
At last he cais to minde a man of fashion, 
With whom his father heid much conversation 
Whiiovxe he livde. 
Times' Whistle (E. E. T. S.), p. 121. 
whilst (hwilst), conj. and adv. [Formerly also 
whilest, < tclnlcs + -t excrescent after s as in 
amidst, amotujst, betwixt, etc.] Same as while^, 
or whiles, in all its senses. 
I could soon . . . reckon up such a rabble of shooters, 
that be named here and there in poets, as would hold us 
tallying whilst to-morrow. 
Ascham, Toxophilus (ed. 1864), p. 74. 
To him one of the other twins was bound, 
Whilst I had been like heedful of the other. 
Shak., C. of E., i. 1. 83. 
Whilest the Grape lasteth they drinke wine. 
Capt. John Smith, True Travels, I. 84. 
We find ourselves unable to avoid joining in the merri- 
ment of our friends, whilst unaware of its cause. 
H. Spencer, .Social Statics, p. 115. 
The Whllstt. (a) While. 
If he steal aught the whilst this play is playing. 
Shak., Hamlet, iii. 2. 93. 
(ft) In the mean time. 
I'll call Sir Toby the whilst. 
Shak., T. N., iv. 2. 4. 
And watch'd, the whilst, with visage pale 
And throbbing heart, the struggling sail. 
Scott, L. of L. M., vi. 21. 
whimi (hwim), v.; pret. and pp. ichimmed, ppr. 
whimming. [< leel. hvima, wander with the 
eyes, as a silly person does, = Norw. kvima, 
whisk or flutter about, trifle, play the fool ; cf. 
Sw. dial. hviDimer-lantig, dizzy, swimming in 
the head: cf. also W. chwimiol, be in motion, 
cliwimlo, move briskly; MHG. wimmen (> G. 
!ct»i?He/)i), move.] l.intrans. To turn round; be 
seized with a whim : also with an indefinite it. 
My Head begins to whim it about. 
Congreve, Way of the World, iv. 9. 
II. trans. To turn ; cause to turn ; ttu'n off 
or away. 
He complained that lie had for a long season been in as 
good a way as he could almost wish, but he knew not how 
he came to be wlmnmed off from it, as his expression was. 
R. Ward, Life of Dr. H. More. {Latham.) 
whiml (hwim), H. [< wkinA, v. Cf. Icel. vim, 
giddiness, folly. Cf. also!t7(»««(/.} If. An unex- 
pected or surprising turn ; a startling outcome, 
development, or proceeding ; a prank or freak. 
One told a Gentleman 
His son should be a man-killer, and hang'd for 't ; 
Who, after prov'd a great and rich Physician, 
And with great Fame ith' Universitie 
Hang'd up in Picture for a grave example. 
There was the whim of that. Quite contrary ! 
Broine, Jovial Crew, i. 
2. A sudden turn or inclination of the mind; 
a fancy ; a caprice. 
If You have tliese Whims of Apartments and Gardens, 
From twice fifty Acres you'll ne'er see five Farthings. 
Prior, Down-Hall, st. 42. 
Ichabod, on the contrary, had to win his way to the 
heart of a country coiiuette, beset with a labyrinth of 
whims and caprices, which were for ever presenting new 
difficulties and impediments. Irving, Sketch-Book, p. 430. 
3. A simple machine for raising ore from mines 
of moderate depth, it consists of a vertical shaft 
carrying a drum, with arms to which horses may be at- 
ii^atitf*'^^-- 
(T, frame; ^, shaft ; <-, cross h.ir ; </, driiiii ; c. pulley ; /.hoisting-rope. 
taehbd, and by wliicb it may be turned. The hoisting- 
rope, passina over pulleys, is wound or unwound on the 
drum, according to the direction of the horses' motion. 
Also whimgg, whim-gin, and, in England, gin. 
4. Hence, a mine: as, Tully IHiim, in the Isle 
of Purbeck, England.— 5. A round table that 
turns round upon ii screw. Ilaltiwdl. [Prov. 
Eng.] = Syn. 1 and 2. Prank, etc. (see /ri-ai^), humor, 
crotchet, quirk, wliimsy, vagary. 
whim'-* (hwim), )/. [(Jrigin obscure.] The brow 
of a hill. Halliwcll. [Prov. Eng.] 
whim-' (hwim), «. [Cf. Khimhrcl, whirnmer.] 
The widgeon or whewer, Mareca pcnelope. See 
whew-duck. Montagu. [Prov. Eng.] 
6900 
whimbrel(hwim'brel), «. l Als^o wimbrel ; per- 
haps for *whimmerel, so called with ref. to its 
peculiar cry, < whiinmer + -e?.] The jack-cur- 
lew or half-curlew of Europe, Numenius phieo- 
pus, smaller than the curlew proper, N. arqua- 
tus, and very closely related to the Hudsonian 
curlew of North America, N. hudsonicus. Also 
called tang-whaup. May whau}), and little whaup 
(which see, under whaup). 
whlm-gin (hwim'jin), n. [< whim^ + gin^.] 
Same as whinA, 3. 
whimlingt (hwim'ling), n. [Also corruptly 
whimlen; < whim^ + -Hh(/1.] A person full of 
whims. 
Go, whimling, and fetch two or three grating-loaves out 
of the kitchen, to make gingerbread of. "I'is such an un- 
toward thing! Beau, and Fl., Coxcomb, iv. 7. 
whimmer (hwim'er), V. i. [Var. of whimper; 
cf. G. wimmern, moan.] Same as whimper. 
[Scotch.] 
whimmy (hwim'i), a. [< ii7/iHjl + -^1.] Full 
of whims ; whimsical. 
The study of Kabbinical literature either finds a man 
whimmy or makes him so. Coleridge. 
whimpt (hwimp), V. i. Same as whimper. 
St. Paul said, there shall be intractabiles, that will 
whimp and whine. 
Latimer, 3d Sermon bef. Edw. "VI., 1549. 
whimper (hwim'per), V. [Also (Sc.) whimmer; 
= L(t. wemcrcn = G. wimmern, whimper; ef. 
MHG. icimmcr, n., whining, gewammer, whin- 
ing; perhaps ult. connected with whine.'\ I. 
intrans. 1. To cry with a low, whining, broken 
voice; make a low, complaining sound. 
Speak, whimp'ring Younglings, and make known 
Tile reason why 
Ye droop and weep. 
Herrick, To Primroses flU'd with Morning Dew. 
Tlie little brook that whimpered by his school-house. 
Irving, Sketch-Book, p. 424. 
2. To tell tales. HalHwell. [Prov. Eng.] 
II. trans. To utter in a low, whining, or cry- 
ing tone. 
Poverty with most who whimper forth 
Their long complaints, is self-inflicted woe. 
Cowper, Task, iv. 429. 
whimper (hwim'per), n. [< whimper, v. Cf. 
MHG. wimmcr, whimper, crying, wliiniug.] A 
low, peevish, broken cry; a whine. 
The loved caresses of the maid 
The dogs with crouch and whimper paid. 
Scott, L. of the L., ii. 24. 
To be on the whimper, to be in a peevish, crying state. 
[Colloq.] 
Mrs. Mountain is constantly on ttte whimper when 
George's name is mentioned. Thackeray, Virginians, xii. 
whimperer (hwim'per-er), n. [< whimper + 
-«■!.] One who whimpers. 
No effeminate knight, no whimperer, like his brother. 
Jarvis, tr. of Don Quixote, i. 1. 
whimpering (hwim'per-ing), n. [Verbal n. of 
whimper, «).] A low, whining cry ; a whimper. 
Line in puling and whimpering (fe heuines of hert. 
Sir T. More, Works, p. 90. 
He will not be put off with solemn whimperings, hypo- 
critical confessions, rueful faces. 
Dr. H.More, Mystery of Godlii)e8S(1660), p. 509. (Latham.) 
whimperingly (hwim'p<'r-ing-li), adv. In a 
whimpering or whining manner. 
*' 'T was n't my fault ! " he whimperingly declared. 
St. Nicholas, XVIII. 176. 
whimple (hwim'pl), n. and v. An erroneous 
form of icimple. 
whimsey, «., a. and v. See whimsy. 
whimsey-shaft (hwim'zi-shaft), ». Same as 
whim-shaft. 
whim-shaft (hwim'shaft), n. In mining, a shaft 
at vvhicli there is a whim for hoisting the ore. 
In shallow mines and in regions where fuel is very scarce 
(as in Mexico) most of the hoisting is done by horse-power 
and the use of the whim : called in Derbyshire, England, 
where this mode of raising the ore was formerly almost ex- 
clusively used, a horse-engitie shaft. See cut under whim^. 
whimsical (hwim'zi-kal), a. [< whims(y) + 
-ic + -ah'] 1. Full of wliims ; freakish; having 
odd fancies or peculiar notions ; capricious. 
There is another circumstance in which I am particular, 
or, as my neighbors call me, whimsical : as my garden in- 
vites into it all the birds, ... I do not suffer any one to 
destroy their nests. Addison, Spectator, No. 477. 
How humoursome, how whim.'dcal soever we may ap- 
pear, there's one fixed principle that runs through almost 
the whole race of us. Vanbntgh, .^sop, "V. i. 
2. Odd; fantastic. 
In one of the chambers is a whimsical chayre, which 
folded into so many varieties as to turn into a bed, a 
bolster, a table, or a couch. Evelyn, Diary, Nov. 29, 1044. 
The . . . genti7 now dispersed, the whimsical misfor- 
tune which had befallen the gens d'armerie of Tillietudlem 
whin 
furnisliing them with huge entertainment on their road 
homeward. Scott, Old Mortality, iii. 
= Syn. 1. Singular, Odd, etc. (see eccentric), notional, 
crotchety. — 2. Fanciful, grotesque. 
whimsicality (hwim-zi-kal'j-ti), n. l< whimsi- 
cal + -ity.~\ 1. The state or character of being 
whimsical ; whimsicalness. 
The whimsicality of my father's brain was so far from 
having the whole honor of this as it had of almost all his 
other strange notions. Stirne, Tristram shandy, iii. 33. 
2. Oddity; strangeness; fantastiealness. 
It was a new position for Mr. Lyon to find his prospec- 
tive rank seemingly an obstacle to anything he desired. 
For a moment the whimsicality of it interrupted the cur- 
rent of his feeling. 
C. D. Warner, Little Journey in the World, v. 
3. PI. whimsicalities (-tiz). That which exhib- 
its wiiimsical or fanciful qualities ; a whimsical 
thought, saying, or action. 
To pass from these sparkling whimsicalities to the al- 
most Quaker-like gravity, decorum, and restraint of the 
essay "On the Life and Writings of Mr. Isaac Disraeli" 
is an almost bewildering transition. 
The Academy, April 26, 1891, p. 389. 
whimsically (hwim'zi-kal-i), adv. In a whim- 
sical manner; freakishly. 
There is not ... a more whimsically dismal figure In 
nature than a man of real modesty who assumes an air 
of impudence. Goldsmith, The Bee, No. 1. 
whimsicalness (hwim'zi-kal-nes), n. The state 
or character of being whimsical ; whimsicality ; 
freakishness ; whimsical disposition ; odd tem- 
per. Pope, Letter to Miss Blount. 
whimsy, whimsey (hwim'zi), n. and a. [Ap- 
par. from an unrecorded verb whitnse, be un- 
steady, < Norw. kvimsa, skip, whisk, jump from 
one thing to another, = Sw. dial, hvimsa, be 
unsteady, giddy, or dizzy, = Dan. rimse, skip, 
jump, etc.: see icAiWfl.] I. n.; pi. whimsies, 
whimseys (-ziz). 1. A whim; a freak; a ca- 
pricious notion. 
I cannot but smile at this man's preposterous whimsies. 
Milton, Ans. to Salmasius, iii. 
I court others in Verse, but I love thee in Prose ; 
And they have my Whimsies, but thou hast my Heart 
Prior, Better Answer to Cloe Jealous, st 4. 
Wearing out life in his religious whim 
Till his religious whimsey wears out him. 
Cowper, Truth, 1. 90. 
2. Same as tohitn^, 3 ; also, a small warehouse- 
crane for lifting goods to the upper stories. 
E. H. Knight. — 3. See the quotation. 
The table [of crown-glass], as it is now called, is carried 
off, laid fiat upon a support called a whimsey. 
Glasttnaiing, p. 124. 
II. a. Full of whims or fancies; wiiimsical; 
changeable. 
Jeer on, my whimsy lady. Shirley, Hyde Park, iL 2. 
Yet reveries are fleeting things, 
Tliat come and go on whimsy wings. 
F. Locker, Arcadia. 
whimsyt, whimseyt (hwim'zi), r. t. [< whim- 
sy, «.] To fill witn whimsies. 
Jewels, and plate, and fooleries molest me ; 
To have a man's brains whimsied with his wealth ! 
Fletcher, Kule a Wife, it 2. 
whimsy-boardt (hwim'zi-bord), v. A board or 
tray on which different objects were carried 
about for sale. 
I am sometimes a small retainer to a billiard-table, and 
sometimes, when the master of it is sick, earn a penny 
hy a whimsy-board. Tom Brown, M'orlis, 11.17. (Daviet.) 
Then pippins did in wheel-barrows aliound, 
And oi-anges in whimsey boards went round ; 
Bess Hoy first found it troublesome to bawl. 
And therefore plac d her cherries on a stall. 
W. King, Art of Cookery, 1. 342. 
whimwham (hwim'hwam), «. [A varied re- 
duplication of irhim^. Ct. flimflam.'] A play- 
thing ; a toy ; a freak or whim ; an odd device. 
Nay, not that way ; 
They'll pull yon all to pieces for your whim-whams. 
Your garters, and your gloves. 
Fletcher and Shirley, Night- Walker, L 5. 
Your studied whim-whams, and your fine set faces — 
What have these got ye? proud and harsh opinions. 
Fletcher, Wildgoose Cliase, iii. 1. 
whin^ (hwin), H. [Early mod. E. whynne : < ME. 
whynne, quyn, gorse, furze, < W. ehwyn, weeds, a 
weed; cf. Bret. WicMfMWff, weed.] 1. A plant 
of the genus VUx, the furze or gorse, chiefly U. 
Europeeus and V. nanus. See/wiTe, 1, and cut 
under Vtcx. 
With thornes, breres. and moni a quyn. 
Ywain and Gawain, 1. 159. (Skeat.) 
Whynnes or hethe — bruiere. Palsgrave, p. 288. 
Blackford I on whose uncultured breast. 
Among the broom, and thorn, and whin, 
A truant-boy, I sought the nest. 
Scott, Marmion, iv. 24. 
2. Same us rest-harrotr,l — Cammoclc-whliL Same 
as caminoc*!.— Cat- Whin, the dogrose (liosa cantjio), the 
