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/wɪm/ /hwɪm/ Listen

noun

Whim n. (Zool.) The European widgeon. (Prov. Eng.)

Whim n.

A sudden turn or start of the mind; a temporary eccentricity; a freak; a fancy; a capricious notion; a humor; a caprice. "Let every man enjoy his whim."

(Mining) A large capstan or vertical drum turned by horse power or steam power, for raising ore or water, etc., from mines, or for other purposes; called also whim gin, and whimsey.

Whim gin (Mining), a whim. See Whim, 2.

Whim shaft (Mining), a shaft through which ore, water, etc., is raised from a mine by means of a whim.

Synonyms: Freak; caprice; whimsey; fancy. Whim, Freak, Caprice. Freak denotes an impulsive, inconsiderate change of mind, as by a child or a lunatic. Whim is a mental eccentricity due to peculiar processes or habits of thought. Caprice is closely allied in meaning to freak, but implies more definitely a quality of willfulness or wantonness.

verb

Whim v. i. To be subject to, or indulge in, whims; to be whimsical, giddy, or freakish. (R.)

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Etymology of 'Whim'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Whim" Quotes from Famous Books

... Nature. We are subject, unquestionably, to certain "laws of thought," which we can neither repeal nor resist, and which impose upon us a logical necessity to conceive, to reason, and to infer, not according to our own whim or caprice, but according to established rules. We are equally subject to certain "conditions of existence,"—arising partly from our own constitution, partly from the constitution of external objects and the relations subsisting between the two,—which lay us under a moral necessity ...

— Modern Atheism under its forms of Pantheism, Materialism, Secularism, Development, and Natural Laws • James Buchanan

... IV. was no ordinary King: that one can see even from the scanty extracts from his letters given in "Bunsen's Memoirs." Nor was his love of Bunsen a mere passing whim. He loved the man, and those who knew the refreshing and satisfying influence of Bunsen's society will easily understand what the King meant when he said, "I am hungry and thirsty for Bunsen." But what constitution can resist the daily doses of hyperbolical flattery that are ...

— Chips From A German Workshop. Vol. III. • F. Max Mueller

... indulgent tone, "that we of the non-useful class depend for our amusement upon departure from precedent. Just now it is a fad to put ice in champagne. The idea was originated by a visiting Prince of Tartary while dining at the Waldorf. It will soon give way to some other whim. Just as at a dinner party this week on Madison Avenue a green kid glove was laid by the plate of each guest to be put on and used while ...

— The Voice of the City • O. Henry

... make your own home, and I will take you whither you will. I will be a servant to minister to every whim; all the world shall be a Paradise to you; you shall have every joy that wealth, and love, and sweet friends can procure for you,—if you will obey me in one thing." Lady Anna, still crouching upon the ground, hid her face in her mother's dress, but she was silent. ...

— Lady Anna • Anthony Trollope

... finger and enforce the Rubrics, and then the whole controversy would be at an end.... I knew there was something else, yes! He said we need not fast! But Cambridge men are always peculiar, they always have some whim or other; he ought to have been at Oxford, and we should have made a man of him. He has many good points, but he runs theories, and rides hobbies, and ...

— Loss and Gain - The Story of a Convert • John Henry Newman

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