whisper
verb/ˈwɪspə(r)/
/ˈwɪspər/
Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they whisper | /ˈwɪspə(r)/ /ˈwɪspər/ |
| he / she / it whispers | /ˈwɪspəz/ /ˈwɪspərz/ |
| past simple whispered | /ˈwɪspəd/ /ˈwɪspərd/ |
| past participle whispered | /ˈwɪspəd/ /ˈwɪspərd/ |
| -ing form whispering | /ˈwɪspərɪŋ/ /ˈwɪspərɪŋ/ |
- [intransitive, transitive] to speak very quietly to somebody so that other people cannot hear what you are saying synonym murmur
- Don't you know it's rude to whisper?
- whisper about something What are you two whispering about?
- whisper + speech ‘Can you meet me tonight?’ he whispered.
- 'I'm sorry,' he whispered softly.
- whisper to somebody + speech ‘Let's go,' she whispered to Anne.
- whisper something She leaned over and whispered something in his ear.
- whisper something to somebody I whispered words of comfort to him.
- whisper to somebody that… He whispered to me that he was afraid.
- whisper that… She whispered that she would tell me all about it later.
Extra Examples- ‘Come on,’ he whispered urgently.
- ‘Hush!’ he whispered against her hair.
- ‘No!’ he whispered through gritted teeth.
- ‘Yes, ’ I whispered back.
- He could only whisper in reply.
- He held her and whispered sweet nothings in her ear.
- I felt that everyone was whispering about me.
- She heard him whisper her name.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- gently
- quietly
- softly
- …
- can only
- hear somebody
- about
- against
- through
- …
- whisper something in somebody’s ear
- whisper something into somebody’s ear
Want to learn more?
Find out which words work together and produce more natural sounding English with the Oxford Collocations Dictionary app.
- [transitive, often passive] to say or suggest something about somebody/something in a private or secret way
- it is whispered that… It was whispered that he would soon die and he did.
- [intransitive] (+ adv./prep.) (literary) (of leaves, the wind, etc.) to make a soft, quiet sound
- A warm breeze whispered through the trees.
Word OriginOld English hwisprian, of Germanic origin; related to German wispeln, from the imitative base of whistle.
Check pronunciation:
whisper