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whirligig - Meaning and Examples

Meaning of 'whirligig' (Webster Dictionary)

1 . Whirligig [ n.]
- A child's toy, spun or whirled around like a wheel upon an axis, or like a top.
- Anything which whirls around, or in which persons or things are whirled about, as a frame with seats or wooden horses.
- A mediaeval instrument for punishing petty offenders, being a kind of wooden cage turning on a pivot, in which the offender was whirled round with great velocity.
- Any one of numerous species of beetles belonging to Gyrinus and allied genera. The body is firm, oval or boatlike in form, and usually dark colored with a bronzelike luster. These beetles live mostly on the surface of water, and move about with great celerity in a gyrating, or circular, manner, but they are also able to dive and swim rapidly. The larva is aquatic. Called also weaver, whirlwig, and whirlwig beetle.

Meaning of 'whirligig' (Princeton's WordNet)

1 . whirligig [ n]
Meaning (1):
- a conical child's plaything tapering to a steel point on which it can be made to spin
Example in sentence:
  • he got a bright red top and string for his birthday

Nearby Words:

which whichever whichsoever whidah bird whider whiff whiffed whiffet whiffing whiffle

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