DictionaryAI

whale

WAYL/weɪl/

Pluralwhales

Verbwhales, whaling, whaled

7 meanings of whale

Practice

  1. 1
    nouncountable
    A sea mammal, usually a very large one, but sometimes including dolphins and porpoises.

    Like a huge animal that lives in the sea but comes up to breathe air the way we do.

    A whale surfaced near the boat to breathe.

    Whales travel thousands of miles each year to find food.

    Note
  2. 2
    hunt at seaverbintransitive
    To go out and hunt whales at sea.

    Today very few people whale for a living.

    They whaled near the cold northern islands every summer.

  3. 3
    nounfigurativelycountable
    Something very big or very good, often in 'a whale of a…', as in 'a whale of a time'.

    The storm left a whale of a puddle right in front of our door.

    He caught a whale of a fish at the lake last weekend.

    UsageSay a whale of a fish for a very big one, or a whale of a time for great fun.

    Similarmonster, giant, behemoth, colossus

    Note
  4. 4
    big investornouncolloquialfigurativelycountable
    An investor who moves very large amounts of money.

    Like one huge shopper who can empty a whole store's shelves.

    A single whale can change a small market's prices.

    Whales often buy when prices are low and sell when they rise.

    UsagePeople say a crypto whale for someone with a huge amount of coins.

    Note

Less common meanings

  1. 5
    nounfigurativelycountable
    A person who bets or spends a huge amount of money, for example in a casino or a game.

    Like a big customer a store really wants to keep happy.

    Casinos treat every whale like an honored guest.

    The whale at the high-stakes table bet thousands on every hand.

    UsageA whale is a very big high roller.

    Note
  2. 6
    fat person (rude)nounderogatorycolloquialfigurativelycountable
    A rude word for a person seen as very overweight, usually a woman.

    Some kids meanly called the new boy a whale.

    She felt hurt when someone called her a whale online.

    Note
  3. 7
    beat hardverbslangtransitive
    To hit someone or something hard, again and again.

    Like hitting a drum over and over as hard as you can.

    Don't whale on that drum or you'll break it.

    The boxer whaled on the heavy bag for ten minutes.

    UsageSay whale on something when you hit it hard again and again.

    Similarthrash, beat, wallop, pound, lash

    Note

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of whale apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origins

Meanings 1–6

It comes from Old English hwæl, meaning "whale."

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

Meaning 7

The origin is uncertain, but it may be a form of the word wale.

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts