W H I 
632 
hours in vain to find the original of such a name: it searches 
the sources, forms conjectures, invents reasons, and some¬ 
times, indeed, meets the truth, but always without knowing 
it assuredly. 
Thus, in France, the Calvinists are called Huguenots; yet 
nobody was ever able certainly to assign the cause of that 
appellation. 
Whig is a Scottish, and, some say too, an Irish word, lite¬ 
rally signifying whey. Tory is another Irish word, signify¬ 
ing a robber or highwayman. 
Under the reign of king Charles II., while his brother, 
then Duke of York, was obliged to retire into Scotland, 
there were two parties formed in that country. That of the 
duke was strongest, persecuted the other, and frequently re¬ 
duced them to fly into the mountains and woods; where 
those unhappy fugitives had often no other subsistence for a 
long time but cows’ milk. Hence they called these their 
adversaries tories, q. d. robbers; and the tories, upbraiding 
them with their unhappiness, from the milk on which they 
lived, called them whigs. From Scotland, the two names 
came’ over with the duke into England. 
Others give a different origin and etymology of the two 
words, for which see Tories. 
Bishop Burnet gives another etymology of the term whigs. 
The south-west counties of Scotland, he says, are supplied 
with corn from Leith; and from a word whiggam, used by 
the carriers, in driving their horses, all that drove were called 
whiggamoors, and by contraction whigs. 
He adds, that in the year 1648, after the news of the de¬ 
feat of duke Hamilton, who was charged with being a con¬ 
federate with the malignants, or royal party, in England, 
the ministers animated their people to rise, and march to 
Edinburgh: who came up, marching each at the head of 
his parish, with an unheard-of fury, praying and preaching 
all the way as they came. The marquis of Argyle and his 
party came and headed them. This was called the whigga- 
moor’s inroad; and ever after, all that opposed the court 
were contemptuously called whigs: and from Scotland the 
term was brought into England. Burnet's Hist, of his Own 
Times. 
WHI'GGARCHY, s. [whig, and Greek.] Go¬ 
vernment by whigs.—Let them come roundly to the business, 
and in plain terms give us to understand, that they will not 
recognise any other government in Great Britain, but whig- 
g arc hi/ only. Swift. 
WHI'GGISH, adj. Relating to the whigs. 
She’ll prove herself a tory plain, 
From principles the whigs maintain; 
And, to defend the wkiggish cause. 
Her topics from the tories draws. Swift. 
WHI'GGISM, s. The notions of a whig.—I could quote 
passages from fifty pamphlets, wholly made up of whiggism 
and atheism. Swift. 
WHILE, s. [well, German; hpile, Saxon; hweila, 
Goth.] Time; space of time.—I have seen her rise from 
her bed, and again return to bed; yet all this while in a 
most fast sleep. Shakspeare. 
WHILE, or Whiles, or Whilst, adv. [hpile, Saxon. 
Whiles is now out of use.] During the time that. 
Whiles I was protector. 
Pity was all the fault that was in me. Shakspeare. 
As long as.—Use your memory, you will sensibly expe¬ 
rience a gradual improvement, while you take care not to 
overload it. Watts.— At the same time that. 
He sits attentive to his own applause, 
While Wits and Templars ev’ry sentence raise. 
And wonder with a foolish face of praise. Pope. 
To WHILE, v. n. To loiter.—Men guilty this way never 
have observed that the whiling time, the gathering together, 
and waiting a little before dinner, is the most aukwardly 
passed away of any. Spectator. 
To WHILE, v. a. To draw out; to consume in a tedious 
way.—The word “ while” has been the father of a verb, 
W II I 
which gives me an opportunity of lamenting, that I should 
have caused you to while away so much time in perusing 
this disquisition. Pegge. 
WHI'LERE, adv. A little while ago; ere while. Not 
in use. 
WHILLIMOOR, a hamlet of England, in Cumberland, 
near Whitehaven. 
WHI'LOM, adv. [hpilom, Saxon, that is, once on a 
time.] Formerly; once ; of old. Not in use. 
Yet art thou not inglorious in thy fate; 
For so Apollo, with unweeting hand. 
Whilom did slay his dearly loved mate. Milton. 
WHILTON, a hamlet of England, in Northamptonshire ; 
4| miles east-north-east of Daventry. 
WHIM, s. [hwima, Icel. hue illuc circumspicere; hwirna, 
Sueth. caput in gyrum agitare, unde hwimmerkant, cui 
caput est turbatum.] A freak; an odd fancy; a caprice ; 
an irregular motion of desire. 
All the superfluous whims relate, 
That fill a female gamester’s pate. Swift. 
To WHI'MPER, v. n. [wimmeren, German.] To cry 
without any loud noise. 
In peals of thunder now she roars, and now 
She gently whimpers like a lowing cow. Swift. 
WHl'MPERING, s. The act of uttering a small cry; a 
squeak.—The noise of little birds, the whimpering of mice, 
every small stirrage, waketh them. Granger. 
WHIMPLE, a parish of England, in Devonshire ; 41- 
miles west-north-west of Ottery St. Mary. Population 461. 
WHI'MPLED, adj. This word seems to mean distorted 
with crying. 
This wh imp led, whining, purblind, wayward boy. 
This signior Junio’s giant dwarf, Dan Cupid, 
Regent of love-rhimes, lord of folded arms, 
Th’ anointed sovereign of sighs and groans. Shakspeare. 
WHI'MSEY, s. [Only another form of the word whim.] 
A freak; a caprice; an odd fancy; a whim. 
Th’ extravagance of poetry 
Is at a loss for figures to express 
Men’s folly, whimsies, and inconstancy. Swift, 
To WHI'MSEY, v. a. To fill with whimsies.—To have 
a man’s brains whimsied with his wealth. Beaum. and FI. 
WHI'MSICAL, adj. Freakish; capricious; oddly fan¬ 
ciful.—In another circumstance I am particular, or, as my 
neighbours call me, whimsical: as my garden invites into it 
all the birds, I do not suffer any one to destroy their nests. 
Addison. 
WHl'MSICALLY, adv. So as to be oddly fanciful.— 
Your situation and mine are whimsically odd in relation to 
the present dispute about articles and subscriptions. Dean 
WHI'MSICALNESS, s. State of being whimsical.— 
Every one values Mr. Pope, but every one for a different 
reason ; one for his grave behaviour, another for his whim¬ 
sicalness, &c. Pope. 
WHI'MWHAM, s. [A ludicrous reduplication of whim.] 
A plaything; a toy; an odd device; a strange fancy; a 
freak. 
Your behaviours 
Have made men stand amaz’d ;- 
Your scorns of those that came to visit ye; 
Your studied whim-whams, and your fine set faces. 
Beaum. and FI. 
WHIN, [schwyn, Welsh; genista spinosa, Lat.] F ur 
gorse.—Plants that have prickles in their leaf are ho 
juniper, wAiw-bush, and thistle. Bacon. 
WHINBURGH, a parish of England, in Norfolk; 3 
miles south-south-east of East Dereham. 
To WHINE, v. n. [hwina, Su. Goth, to mourn; 
queina, Icel.; quainan, M. Goth.] To lament in low mur¬ 
murs; to make a plaintive noise; to moan meanly and 
effeminately. 
At 
