American English pronunciation
How to pronounce whistle
IPA transcription: ['wɪsəl]
Pronunciation variants: ['wɪsəl][h'wɪsəl]
Hear “whistle” pronounced
['wɪsəl]
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['wɪsəl]
Quality: 0.98
['wɪsəl]
Quality: 0.98
Noun
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the sound made by something moving rapidly or by steam coming out of a small aperture
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the act of signalling (e.g., summoning) by whistling or blowing a whistle
“the whistle signalled the end of the game”
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a small wind instrument that produces a whistling sound by blowing into it
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acoustic device that forces air or steam against an edge or into a cavity and so produces a loud shrill sound
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an inexpensive fipple flute
Verb
-
make whistling sounds
“He lay there, snoring and whistling”
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move with, or as with, a whistling sound
“The bullets whistled past him”
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utter or express by whistling
“She whistled a melody”
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make a whining, ringing, or whistling sound
“the kettle was singing”
“the bullet sang past his ear”
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move, send, or bring as if by whistling
“Her optimism whistled away these worries”
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give a signal by whistling
“She whistled for her maid”
Usage examples
- From this the work acquired its enduring nickname of simply "Whistler's Mother".
- You may whistle for it.
- She later studied under Carolus-Duran and James McNeill Whistler.
- You may whistle for it.
- Calls are strident whistles; songs are musical to human ears.
- All the time he whistled softly and persistently to himself.
- If it wasn't for a whistle blower, the fraud may have never been caught.
- Ruskin's abusive language led Whistler to sue for libel.
- Bob Evergreen in the wartime radio series "The Pig and Whistle".
- To human ears, a dog whistle makes only a quiet hissing sound.