Library / English Dictionary

WHISTLE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

An inexpensive fipple flute

Synonyms:

pennywhistle; tin whistle; whistle

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("whistle" is a kind of...):

fipple flute; fipple pipe; recorder; vertical flute (a tubular wind instrument with 8 finger holes and a fipple mouthpiece)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Acoustic device that forces air or steam against an edge or into a cavity and so produces a loud shrill sound

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("whistle" is a kind of...):

acoustic device (a device for amplifying or transmitting sound)

signaling device (a device used to send signals)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "whistle"):

boat whistle (a whistle on a boat that is sounded as a warning)

factory whistle (a whistle at a factory that is sounded to announce times for starting or stopping work)

steam whistle (a whistle in which the sound is produced by steam; usually attached to a steam boiler)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A small wind instrument that produces a whistling sound by blowing into it

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("whistle" is a kind of...):

wind; wind instrument (a musical instrument in which the sound is produced by an enclosed column of air that is moved by bellows or the human breath)

Sense 4

Meaning:

The act of signalling (e.g., summoning) by whistling or blowing a whistle

Example:

the whistle signalled the end of the game

Synonyms:

whistle; whistling

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("whistle" is a kind of...):

sign; signal; signaling (any nonverbal action or gesture that encodes a message)

Derivation:

whistle (give a signal by whistling)

Sense 5

Meaning:

The sound made by something moving rapidly or by steam coming out of a small aperture

Synonyms:

whistle; whistling

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural events

Hypernyms ("whistle" is a kind of...):

sound (the sudden occurrence of an audible event)

Derivation:

whistle (make a whining, ringing, or whistling sound)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Utter or express by whistling

Example:

She whistled a melody

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "whistle" is one way to...):

communicate; intercommunicate (transmit thoughts or feelings)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

whistler (someone who makes a loud high sound)

whistling (the act of whistling a tune)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Give a signal by whistling

Example:

She whistled for her maid

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "whistle" is one way to...):

sign; signal; signalise; signalize (communicate silently and non-verbally by signals or signs)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s PP

Derivation:

whistle; whistling (the act of signalling (e.g., summoning) by whistling or blowing a whistle)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Make a whining, ringing, or whistling sound

Example:

the bullet sang past his ear

Synonyms:

sing; whistle

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "whistle" is one way to...):

go; sound (make a certain noise or sound)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s

Derivation:

whistle; whistling (the sound made by something moving rapidly or by steam coming out of a small aperture)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Move with, or as with, a whistling sound

Example:

The bullets whistled past him

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "whistle" is one way to...):

go; locomote; move; travel (change location; move, travel, or proceed, also metaphorically)

Sentence frames:

Something is ----ing PP
Somebody ----s PP

Sense 5

Meaning:

Move, send, or bring as if by whistling

Example:

Her optimism whistled away these worries

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "whistle" is one way to...):

displace; move (cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Sense 6

Meaning:

Make whistling sounds

Example:

He lay there, snoring and whistling

Classified under:

Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling

Hypernyms (to "whistle" is one way to...):

go; sound (make a certain noise or sound)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s

Sentence examples:

The birds whistle in the woods

The woods whistle with many kinds of birds

Derivation:

whistler (someone who makes a loud high sound)

whistling (the sound made by something moving rapidly or by steam coming out of a small aperture)

Credits

 Context examples: 

I had just time to blow on my police-whistle, and then I must have fainted, for I knew nothing more until I found the policeman standing over me in the hall.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

"I can do it with whistles," Skiff Miller said proudly. "He was my lead dog."

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

So he sat down, and the fox began to run, and away they went over stock and stone so quick that their hair whistled in the wind.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

Then, taking his little silver whistle from his pocket, he blew a low, shrill call.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

“That’s a ferry-boat of some sort,” the new-comer said, indicating a whistle off to the right.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

The whip was whistling savagely, when once more Mercedes interfered.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

In an instant the nearest male gave a shrill, whistling cry, and flapped its twenty-foot span of leathery wings as it soared up into the air.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

If a gust of wind swept the waste, I looked up, fearing it was the rush of a bull; if a plover whistled, I imagined it a man.

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

The airways become inflamed and narrow, causing difficult breathing, wheezing (a whistling sound while breathing), tightness in the chest, and coughing.

(Infant Exposure to Allergens May Help Prevent Wheezing, NIH)

It was joyful to hear the merry whistle of blackbirds as they darted from one clump of greenery to the other.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)