TOP

Definition of whale noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

whale

noun
 
/weɪl/
 
/weɪl/
 Idioms
jump to other results
  1. a very large animal that lives in the sea and looks like a very large fish. There are several types of whale, some of which are hunted.
    • whale meat
    • We saw a whale blowing a jet of spray high in the air.
    • management and conservation of whale stocks
    see also blue whale, killer whale, pilot whale, sperm whale
    Homophones wail | whalewail   whale
     
    /weɪl/
     
    /weɪl/
    • wail verb
      • The blow made him wail with pain.
    • wail noun
      • The blood-curdling wail sent shivers down her spine.
    • whale noun
      • The blue whale is the largest mammal on the planet.
    Topics Animalsa2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • beached
    • stranded
    … of whales
    • pod
    • school
    verb + whale
    • hunt
    • kill
    • harpoon
    • …
    whale + verb
    • swim
    • dive
    • sing
    • …
    whale + noun
    • hunter
    • watching
    • meat
    • …
    See full entry
    Word OriginOld English hwæl, of Germanic origin.
Idioms
have a whale of a time
  1. (informal) to enjoy yourself very much; to have a very good time
    • The kids had a whale of a time at the theme park.
See whale in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary
Check pronunciation: whale

Nearby words

given
adjective
 
 
From the Word list
OPAL spoken words
Oxford Learner's Dictionaries Word of the Day