▪ I. whistle, n.
(ˈhwɪs(ə)l)
Forms: 1–2 hwistle, wistle, 4–7 whistel(l, etc. (see the vb.), 4– whistle; also 4 Sc. quyschile, 5 whystyl, Sc. qwistle, quhissle, 6 whisstill, Sc. qwystelle, qwissel, vhissell, 7 Sc. whissille, whissall, whisle, (8 Sc. dial. fusle), 9 Sc. and north. whustle, whussel.
[OE. hwistle (also wuduhwistle), with a variant wistle, related to hwistlian, wistlian (see next). Sense 3 is prob. a new formation on the vb.]
1. a. A tubular wind instrument of wood, metal or other hard substance, having a more or less shrill tone, which is produced by impact of air upon a sharp edge; a shrill-toned pipe. Formerly also = pipe or flute.
Used in various forms and sizes for many different purposes: esp. (blown by the mouth) by boatswains, policemen, etc., for calling dogs or horses, or the like, or (blown by steam) on railway engines, steam-ships, etc., for giving a signal or alarm; also as a musical toy, usually of tin and pierced with six holes (commonly called penny whistle, tin whistle). † Almain whistle or German whistle, a fife.
| c 950 Lindisf. Gosp. Luke vii. 32 We ᵹesungun iuh mið hwistlum. c 1000 Voc., in Wr.-Wülcker 311/22, 27 Musa, pipe, oððe hwistle... Fistula, hwistle. 11.. Ibid. 539/24 Musa, pipe, uel hwistle. a 1340 Hampole Psalter cl. 4 Orgyns þat is made as a toure of sere whistils. c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints vi. (Thomas) 60 A madyne com..hafand a quyschile in-to hand. 1387–8 T. Usk Test. Love ii. iii. (Skeat) l. 55 The bird is begyled with the mery voice of the foulers whistel. c 1400 Destr. Troy 6051 With qwistlis, & qwes, & other qwaint gere. 1427 For. Acc. 61 (P.R.O.), vj par' corn' voc' whisteles. 1463 Bury Wills (Camden) 41 My whistel of silvir. 1513 in Lett. & Papers War France (1913) 148 The boy..sawe hym [sc. the Admiral] take his whistill from aboute his neck,..and hurlid [sic] it in to the see. 1532–3 Act 24 Hen. VIII c. 13 §1 It shalbe lefull for..maisters of the Shipps..and maryners to weare whistells of Silver. 1576 Gascoigne Steele Glas Epil. 19 The yonger sorte, come pyping..In whistles made of fine enticing wood. 1585 Jas. I Ess. Poesie (Arb.) 56 O Mercure,..efter Pan had found the quhissill, syne Thou did perfyte, that quhilk he bot espyit. a 1610 Heywood & Rowley Fortune by Land & Sea iv. i. (1655) 36 Boatswain with your whistle command the Saylors to the upper deck. 1661 Boyle Style Script. 190 A Child, with a Whistle; a Trifle that onely pleases with a transient and empty sound. 1670–1 Sir J. Turner Pallas Armata iii. xi. (1683) 219 The Bag-pipe..is not so good as the Almain Whistle. c 1770 Beattie To Alex. Ross ix, Where..shepherd lads on sunny knows Blaw the blythe fusle. 1819 Scott Leg. Montrose iii, They havena sae mickle as a German whistle, or a drum, to beat a march, an alarm,..or any other point of war. 1836 Mayne Siller Gun i. xxxix, Dangling like a baby's whustle, The Siller Gun..Gleam'd in the sun! 1840 R. H. Dana Bef. Mast xxvii, Everything man-of-war fashion, except that there was no boatswain's whistle. 1898 F. Montgomery Tony i, The whistle sounded, and the train began slowly to glide out of the station. |
b. Phrases, etc.
† (
a)
box or (
Sc.)
kist of whistles, a contemptuous appellation for a church organ. (
Cf. a 1340 above.) (
b) In comparisons,
e.g. as clean, clear, dry as a whistle (often with play on other senses of the
adjs.: see
quots.). (
c)
to pay (too dear) for one's whistle (and similar phrases), to pay much more for something than it is worth: in allusion to a story of Benjamin Franklin (
Wks. 1840 II. 182). (
d)
to blow the whistle on (a person or thing): to bring an activity to a sharp conclusion, as if by the blast of a whistle; now
usu. by informing on (a person) or exposing (an irregularity or crime). Also without
on.
| (a) 1678 Alsop Melius Inq. i. ii. 99 Pope Vitalian..first..taught Mankind the Art of Worshipping God with a Box of Whistles. 1866 [see kist n.1 1]. |
| (b) 1786 Burns Author's Earnest Cry vii, Her mutchkin stowp as toom's a whissle. 1828 Craven Gloss. s.v., ‘As clean as a whistle’, a proverbial simile, signifying completely, entirely. 1842 J. Wilson Chr. North I. 84 By the time we reach the manse we are as dry as a whistle. 1849 W. S. Mayo Kaloolah v. (1850) 41 A first rate shot;..head taken off as clean as a whistle. 1865 Dickens Mut. Fr. i. xv, You're as clean as a whistle. 1880 A. Gray Lett. (1893) II. 710 My throat was as clear as a whistle. |
| (c) 1851 Ticknor Life, Lett. & Jrnls. (1876) II. xiii. 271 Too much, he thought, for the price of such a whistle. 1854 R. S. Surtees Handley Cr. vii, I should not like to pay too dear for my whistle. 1876 Geo. Eliot Dan. Der. xxxv, If a man likes to do it he must pay for his whistle. |
| (d) 1934 Wodehouse Right Ho, Jeeves xvii. 222 Now that the whistle had been blown on his speech, it seemed to me that there was no longer any need for the strategic retreat which I had been planning. 1953 R. Chandler Long Good-Bye vi. 38 Come on, Marlowe. I'm blowing the whistle on you. 1965 Midnight 12 July 20/1 More and more frequently though, a whistle is being blown on the more exuberant borrowers. 1978 S. Wilson Dealer's Move v. 98 So Arnie and Alfie blew the whistle on you all. What are you going to do about it? 1984 Gainesville (Florida) Sun 29 Mar. 5a/4 Jim Kirkland, the man who first blew the whistle on Gainesville's deteriorating financial condition, has resigned after less than three months on the job. |
† c. fig. A person who speaks on behalf of another, an ‘instrument’, ‘mouth-piece’; one who gives a secret signal (
cf. whistle v. 10).
Obs.| c 1380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. II. 2 Crist criede in desert, bi Baptist þat was his whistle. Ibid. 240 Poul whom God haþ made his whistil. 1633 Massinger Guardian iii. vi. (1655) 51 Your neighbour, Your whistle, agent, parasite..Should be within Call, when you hem. |
d. whistle and flute: rhyming slang for ‘suit’ (
suit n. 19). Chiefly
ellipt. as
whistle.
| 1931 Brophy & Partridge Songs & Slang of Brit. Soldier, 1914–18 (ed. 3) 375 Whistle and flute, a suit (of clothes). 1941 G. Kersh They die with their Boots Clean i. 27 He is the one permanent type of Londoner..the..Cockney... To Barker..a suit is a Whistle, or Whistle-an'-Flute. 1960 A. Prior in Pick of Today's Short Stories XI. 180 Half-Nelson lives for clothes... He never keeps a whistle more than a month. 1970 A. Draper Swansong for Rare Bird vii. 51 My best whistle was in a big heap on the floor. 1980 ‘J. Gash’ Spend Game ix. 97 ‘Him with the fancy whistle.’ Whistle-and-flute, suit. |
2. colloq. A jocular name for the mouth or throat as used in speaking or singing; chiefly in
phr. to wet (erron. whet) one's whistle, to take a drink.
| c 1386 Chaucer Reeve's T. 235 So was hir ioly whistle wel y-wet. 1530 Palsgr. 780, I wete my whystell, as good drinkers do, je crocque la pie. 1612 Beaum. & Fl. Coxcomb ii. ii, Let's have no pitty, for if you do, here's that shall cut your whistle. 1653 Walton Angler iii. 75 Lets..drink the other cup to wet our whistles, and so sing away all sad thoughts. 1674 [see whet v. 6]. a 1680 Butler Rem. (1759) I. 216 He, that laugh'd, until he choak'd his Whistle. 1715 tr. Pancirollus' Mem. Things I. i. i. xi. 28 They did not only moisten their Pates, but their Whistles too. 1787 Wolcot (P. Pindar) Ode upon Ode Wks. 1812 I. 447 Nor damn thy precious soul to wet thy whistle. 1836 [Hooton] Bilberry Thurland II. 8 Let's have another drop to keep my whistle wet. 1840 Marryat Poor Jack xiii, Whet your whistle, Jim. |
3. a. An act of whistling; a clear shrill sound produced by forcing the breath through the narrow opening made by contracting the lips;
esp. as a call or signal to a person or animal; also as an expression of surprise or astonishment;
rarely, the action of whistling a tune. Also, the act of sounding, or the sound made by, a whistle or pipe.
| 1447 O. Bokenham Seyntys (Roxb.) 151 Whan Marcuryis whystyl hym dede streyne To hys deed slepe. 1586 [? J. Case] Praise Mus. iii. 43 The ploughman & carter, are..compelled to frame their breath into a whistle. 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts 608 He requireth of a skilfull shepheard a voyce or whisell intelligable to the sheepe, whereby to call them together. 1634 Milton Comus 346 The..sound of pastoral reed.., Or whistle from the Lodge. 1671 Trenchfield Cap Gray Hairs (1688) 53 When Dogs or Horses shew their ready motion at our Whistle or Chirrup. 1749 Fielding Tom Jones vi. ii, She took an Opportunity..to interrupt one of his Whistles in the following Manner. 1823 Scott Quentin D. xviii, Lucky that Klepper knows my whistle, and follows me as truly as a hound. 1848 Dickens Dombey xxiii, There was nothing but a whistle emphatic enough for the conclusion of the sentence. 1856 Amy Carlton 13 The engine gave its warning yell, as Amy called the whistle. 1896 Conan Doyle Exploits Brig. Gerard vi, The dry rattle of the drums and the shrill whistle of the fifes. |
b. fig. or in figurative phrases: Call, summons.
Formerly often in
phr. not worth a whistle: hence as a type of something worthless. Rarely with other implications:
† A moment, instant (in
phr. in a whistle): a ‘whisper’, slight mention (
cf. whistle v. 10).
| a 1529 Skelton Col. Cloute 238 They..woteth neuer what thei rede, Paternoster, Ave, nor Crede; Construe not worth a whystle Nether Gospell nor Pystle. a 1553 Udall Royster D. i. iv. (Arb.) 26 Kocks nownes what meanest thou man, tut a whistle. c 1580 Bugbears iii. ii, He red me a pistle and told a long round about not worth a whistle. 1583 T. Stocker Civ. Warres Lowe C. ii. 67 That hee shoulde be brought to the whistle, or daunce after their pipe. 1605 Shakes. Lear iv. ii. 29, I haue beene worth the whistle. 1639 J. Clarke Parœm. 232 Ready to run at every mans whistle. 1641 Milton Animadv. 57 Those drossy spirits that need the lure and whistle of earthly preferment. 1643 Trapp Comm. Gen. vi. 3 It bloweth where it listeth, and will not be at your whistle. 1784 R. Bage Barham Downs II. 273 He could do it in a whistle. 1855 Macaulay Hist. Eng. xiii. III. 337 All his followers..were ready at his whistle to array themselves round him. 1886 Stevenson Kidnapped i, Can you forget..old friends at the mere whistle of a name? |
c. The clear shrill voice or note of a bird, or of certain other animals.
| 1784 Cowper Death of Mrs. Throckmorton's Bulfinch 10 With a whistle blest, Well-taught, he all the sounds express'd Of flagelet or flute. 1816 Scott Antiq. xxxvii, A miserable linnet..began to greet them with his whistle. 1839 Penny Cycl. XV. 517/1 They [sc. Marmots]..when angry or before a storm pierce the ear with their shrill whistle. 1860 Tyndall Glac. i. xv. 103 To its [sc. a chamois'] whistle our guide whistled in reply. 1881 Jefferies Toilers of Field (1892) 297 The blackbird's whistle is very human, like a human being playing the flute. |
d. Any similar sound, as of wind blowing through trees or rigging, of a missile flying through the air, etc.
| a 1648 Ld. Herbert Occas. Poems, Ode whether Love shd. continue for ever, Soft whistles of the wind, And warbling murmurs of a brook. 1826 J. F. Cooper Last of Mohicans xx, We..are already nearly out of whistle of a bullet. 1867 Morris Jason xv. 435 Therewithal must I..writhe beneath the whistle of the whip. 1888 S. R. Bottone Electr. Instr. Making (ed. 2) 30 To a practised ear the peculiar whistle tells when the glass is being cut, and when only scratched. |
4. attrib. and
Comb., as
whistle-call;
whistle-belly-vengeance (
slang), bad liquor, such as causes rumbling in the bowels (
cf. whip-belly-vengeance under
whip- 2 a);
whistle-blower chiefly
U.S., one who ‘blows the whistle’ on a person or activity (see sense 1 b (d) above),
esp. from within an organization; also
whistle-blowing vbl. n. and ppl. a. (
lit. and
fig.);
whistle-fish [see
quot. 1836], a name for different species of rockling or sea-loach;
whistle-grinder, a contemptuous appellation for a church organist (
cf. 1 b (
a));
whistle-insect (see
quot.);
whistle-kist,
Sc.: see 1 b (
a);
whistle-language = whistle-speech below;
whistle-line,
-pull, a line or cord by pulling which the whistle of a steamer is sounded;
† whistle-pipe, a whistle for decoying birds;
whistle punk N. Amer. Logging, a workman who sends signals by means of a whistle to those operating a donkey-engine;
whistle-ring, a ring constructed to be sounded as a whistle;
whistle-speech, a system of communication by whistling based on the spoken language, found
esp. among peoples of mountainous districts and used to communicate over long distances;
† whistle-stalk, a stalk made into a whistle or pipe, a ‘reed’;
whistle-tankard, a drinking-vessel fitted with a whistle, which sounds when it is emptied;
whistle-wing, a name for the golden-eyed duck (
golden-eye 1 a), from the shrill sound made by its wings in flying;
whistle-wood, a name for various trees whose bark is easily peeled off, used by boys to make whistles, as the alder, bass-wood, mountain-ash, and various species of maple.
| 1861 Hughes Tom Brown at Oxf. xli, I thought you wouldn't appreciate the widow's tap..Regular *whistle-belly vengeance, and no mistake. |
| 1970 N.Y. Times 23 Mar. 40 When they reflect more fully on how well the majority leader handled a *whistle⁓blower and protected their interests. 1983 New Scientist 23 June 838/1 A whistleblower who tries to alert his own organisation to a problem and fails will, if he feels strongly enough about the matter, go outside. |
| 1971 Ibid. 9 Dec. 69 The Code [of Good Conduct of The British Computer Society] contains secrecy clauses that effectively prohibit Nader style *whistle-blowing. 1978 Monitor (McAllen, Texas) 21 May 16a/6 He has introduced legislation to protect ‘whistleblowing’ federal employees from reprisals if they reveal wasteful, illegal or improper government activities. 1980 Times 1 Apr. 3/4 The growth in Britain of ‘whistle-blowing’ journalism (blowing the whistle on the secret parts of the state and its servants by disclosing their activities) would seem to have sealed the fate of the D-notice system. 1983 D. Dunnett Dolly & Bird of Paradise vii. 80 Whistle-blowing guys in white helmets. |
| 1746 W. Ellis Agric. Improv'd May xvi. 100 In a certain Park, where Pheasants and Partridges come at the *Whistle-call. 1830 Scott Demonol. x. 393 Mariners conceive they hear the whistle-call. |
| a 1672 Willughby Hist. Pisc. (1686) 121 Mustela vulgaris Rondeletii..A Sea Loche Cestriæ. *Whistle-fish in Cornubia. 1769 Pennant Brit. Zool. III. 128 The Irish have their song at the taking of the razor shell; and the Cornish theirs, at the taking of the whistle fish. 1836 Yarrell Brit. Fishes II. 188, I believe..that..the term has been changed,..and that for Whistle-fish we ought to read Weasel-fish. Both the Three and Five Bearded Rocklings were called mustela from the days of Pliny..to the present time. |
| 1843 Ballantine Gaberlunzie's Wallet 237 Doors were shut against the ‘*whistle-grinder’. |
| 1760 G. Edwards Glean. Nat. Hist. ii. 161 The head is made like that of a locust: the..thorax is surrounded with many sharp points;..I have called it the *Whistle-Insect, because it very nearly agrees with another insect found in Africa, of which the natives make whistles to call their cattle together: these whistles consist of the whole outer cover of the insect. |
| 1843 Ballantine Gaberlunzie's Wallet 139 Grinding muckle *whistle-kists, Sic abomination. |
| 1956 J. Whatmough Language iii. 48 In this book we are not concerned with such departures from true speech as the so-called *whistle ‘languages’ of Mazateco..and of the Canary Islands. 1957 Amer. Anthropologist LIX. 487 My direct interest in the subject stems from a brief encounter with a whistle-‘language’ and a slit-gong xylophone..among the Northern Chins of Burma. 1978 Maledicta II. 254 Whistle-Languages: Who knows whether there are insults or other abuses in whistled languages of the Canary Islands, Kuskoy/Turkey, etc.? |
| 1898 ‘H. S. Merriman’ Roden's Corner v. 46 The second mate, with his hand on the *whistle-line, blared out his warning note every half-minute. |
| 1570 Henry's Wallace viii. 1423 Ane *quhissil pype. 1587 A. Day Daphnis & Chloe (1890) 14 Vpon what occasion to vse the Whistle-Pipe, and how at another time to call with their voice alone. |
| 1892 ‘H. S. Merriman’ Slave of Lamp xxvi, Her captain swearing on the bridge, with the *whistle-pull in his hand. 1925 Amer. Speech I. 136 The ‘*whistle-punk’, who handles the signal wire that runs from the timber to the whistle of the donkey-engine. 1945 B. MacDonald Egg & I xiv. 184 Sharp and clear came the whistle punk's signals for a skidder. 1965 M. McIntyre Place of Quiet Waters ix. 172 He might get a job as a whistle punk in a logging camp. |
| 1877 W. Jones Finger-ring 534 *Whistle-rings, puzzle-rings, squirt-rings, &c. |
| 1948 Language XXIV. 280 (heading) Mazateco *whistle speech. 1972 Hartmann & Stork Dict. Lang. & Linguistics 255/2 Young English children often use whistle speech as a game. 1979 L. Campbell in Campbell & Mithun Lang. Native Amer. 958 Whistle speech is shared by Amuzgo, Mazatec,..some Nahua dialects, and Mexican Kickapoo. |
| a 1653 G. Daniel Idyll. iv. 74 A *whistle-Stalke. |
| 1909 Daily Chron. 12 July 4/7 In the possession of the Corporation of Hull..is a *whistle tankard which belonged to Anthony Lambert, Mayor of Hull in 1669. |
| 1872 Coues Key N. Amer. Birds 361 *Whistle-wing = Golden-eye. |
| 1825 Brockett N.C. Gloss., *Whussel-wood, the alder and plane-tree; used by boys in making whistles. |
▪ II. whistle, v. (
ˈhwɪs(ə)l)
Forms: 1
hwistlian,
hwys(t)lian,
huislian,
wistlian, 4
wystel,
whysle, 4–5
Sc. quhistle, 4–6
whistil(l,
whissil(l, 4–7
whistel(l, 5
whistyll(e, 5–6
whystel(l,
whystle,
Sc. quhissil(l,
quhisle, 5–7
wistle, 6
wyssel, 6–7
whissel(l,
Sc. quhissel(l, 8
Sc. whissle, 9
Sc. whussle, 4–
whistle.
[OE. hwis(t)lian, also wistlian, f. an echoic root + -le 3. Cf. ON. hv{iacu}sla to whisper, MSw. hvisla, Sw. vissla to whistle, Da. hvisle to hiss.] I. Literal senses.
1. intr. To utter a clear, more or less shrill sound or note by forcing the breath through the narrow opening formed by contracting the lips (the tone being produced merely by the resonance of the mouth-cavity, without vibration of the vocal cords):
esp. as a call or signal to a person or animal, also as an expression of derision, contempt, etc., later more usually of surprise or astonishment; also, to utter a melody or tune consisting of a succession of such notes,
esp. by way of idle diversion.
The common superstitious practice among sailors to whistle for a wind during a calm, and to refrain from whistling during a gale, is referred to in
quots. c 1515, etc.
| c 1000 Gloss. Prudentius in Germania (N.S.) XI. 398/176 Hwyslaþ, exsibilat. c 1000 Sax. Leechd. II. 258 Wistlað of þam dæle þe þæt sar bið. 1382 Wyclif Isa. v. 26 He shall whistle [1388 hisse] to hym fro the coestes of the erthe; and lo! hastid he shal come swiftli. a 1400 Octouian 1436 Clement nere the stede stapte, He whyslede and hys hondys clapte. c 1400 Beryn 3418 Geffrey..was evir wistlyng att euery pase comyng. 1423 Jas. I Kingis Q. cxxxv, The foulere quhistlith in his throte Diuersely. c 1515 Cocke Lorell's B. (Percy Soc.) 12 Some stered at the helme behynde Some whysteled after the wynde. ? 1549 Cranmer Serm. Wks. (Parker Soc. 1846) 198 If we take it for a Canterbury tale,..why do we not laugh it out of place, and whistle at it? 1570 Satir. Poems Reform. xvi. 83 Thay say he can baith quhissill and cloik, And his mouth full of meill. 1581 A. Hall Iliad x. 186 He whistled to him in his fiste. 1592 Shakes. Rom. & Jul. v. iii. 7 Whistle then to me, As signall that thou hearest some thing approach. 1623 in Ellis Orig. Lett. Ser. i. III. 140 That ye showlde quhissell and sing one to another like Jakke and Tom for faulte of bettir musike. 1632 Milton L'Allegro 64 The Plowman..Whistles ore the Furrow'd Land. 1700 Dryden Cymon & Iph. 85 He trudg'd along..And whistled as he went, for want of Thought. 1742 Blair Grave 59 The Schoolboy..Whistling aloud to bear his Courage up. 1801 Scott Eve St. John vii, He whistled thrice for his little foot-page. 1827 in Hone Every-day Bk. II. 255 Our sailors..whistle for a wind. 1844 Hood Captain's Cow vii, The more we whistled for the wind The more it did not blow. 1882 Besant All Sorts xxiii, Another discovery..at sight of which he whistled and then shook his head. 1905 F. Young Sands of Pleasure i. iii, Richard, whistling to the dog, led the way. |
2. a. To utter a clear shrill sound, note, or song, as various birds and certain other animals; to pipe;
† also formerly, to hiss, as a serpent.
| a 1100 Aldhelm Gloss i. 4703 (Napier 121/2) Sibilans, hwistliende. 13.. K. Alis. 5348 (Laud MS.) Dragouns..Þat grisely whistleden & blasten, And of her mouþe fyre out casten. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. v. xxxvii. (Bodl. MS.), An adder..þat whisteleþ and blowith and corrumpith þe aier. 1484 Caxton Fables of æsop i. x, [The serpent] whystled about the hows. 1549 Compl. Scot. vi. 39 The chekyns began to peu quhen the gled quhissillit. 1599 A. Hume Poems (S.T.S.) Hymnes iii. 190 The Maveis and the Philomeen, The Stirling whissilles lowd. 1663 Butler Hud. i. i. 54 Latine was no more difficile, Than to a Black-bird 'tis to whistle. 1766 J. Collier (Tim Bobbin) Wks. (1862) 344 They [sc. magpies] can whistle also! 1810 E. D. Clarke Trav. Russia xii. 249 The Suroke, which is seen in all parts of the steppes, sitting erect, near its burrow, on the slightest alarm whistling very loud. 1820 Keats Autumn iii, The redbreast whistles from a garden-croft. 1853 Kane Grinnell Exp. xxxix. (1856) 359 The white whale..whistled while submerged. 1900 Blackw. Mag. July 60/1 It [sc. a buck] turned and crashed away into the forest, ‘whistling’ as it went. |
b. Of a broken-winded horse:
cf. whistler 2 d,
whistling vbl. n. 2 b.
| 1898 Encycl. Sport Mar. 183/1 Whether his most promising two-year-old..did or did not whistle—or worse—as she passed him. |
3. a. To produce a shrill sound of this kind in any way,
esp. by rapid movement, as the wind, a missile, the lash of a whip, etc.
| c 1480 Henryson Test. Cress. 20 The blastis bitterly Fra Pole Artick come quhisling loud and schill. 1513 Douglas æneis iv. viii. 73 The souchand bir quisland amang the granis. 1581 A. Hall Iliad ii. 25 Making such noise as doth the sea, when..It makes the shoare whistle along, with beating on eche crag. 1697 Dryden æneis xii. 404 The winged Weapon, whistling in the Wind. a 1718 Prior Henry & Emma 392 When the Winds whistle, and the Tempests roar. 1748 Anson's Voy. ii. vi. 192 The first shot passed extremely near.., whistling just over the heads of the crew. 1853 Dickens Bleak Ho. viii, The place became dilapidated, the wind whistled through the cracked walls. 1896 Conan Doyle Rodney Stone xxii, A whip whistled in the darkness. 1901 W. P. Ridge Lond. only i. 26 Mrs. Bell..turned up the gas until it whistled madly. |
b. To rustle shrilly, as silk or other stiff fabric.
Obs. or
dial.| 1633 G. Herbert Temple, Quip iv, Then came brave Glorie puffing by In silks that whistled. 1669 J. Flavel Husb. Spir. etc. 240 Under poor garments more true worth may be, Than under silks that whistle. 1858 A. Mayhew Paved with Gold ii. vii, Making his nether garments ‘whistle’, as the noise produced by the friction of corduroy is musically styled by the vulgar. |
4. To blow or sound a whistle; to sound, as a whistle.
| 1530 Palsgr. 781/1, I whystell in a whystell, or in my hande, je ciffle. 1549 Compl. Scot. vi. 40 The maister quhislit, and bald the marynalis lay the cabil to the cabil⁓stok. 1608 Shakes. Per. iv. i. 64 The Boatswaine whistles,..the Maister calles. 1668 [see 7 a]. 1818 Scott Br. Lamm. iv, She whistled on a small silver call..which..was sometimes used to summon domestics. 1849 Thackeray Contrib. to Punch, Paris Revisited ¶5 The engine whistled—the train set forth. 1896 Law Times Rep. LXXIII. 614/2 The engine driver began to whistle about ten seconds before the train passed over the crossing. |
5. trans. To produce or utter by whistling (in sense 1, 2, or 4), as a tune or melody; to express by whistling.
| 1530 Lyndesay Test. Papyngo 88 To play platfute, and quhissill fute before. 1575 A. F. Virg. Bucol. x. 31 If that your pipe would whistle vp my loue, which boyles in brest [L. Vestra meos olim si fistula dicat amores]. 1597 Shakes. 2 Hen. IV, iii. ii. 342 (Qo.) Those tunes..that he heard the Car-men whistle. 1709 T. Robinson Vind. Mosaick Syst. 89 They [sc. God's creatures] have all their several ways of Pleasure and Diversion, some by dancing around in the open Air,..others by singing, or whistling out their chearful Notes. 1774 Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) V. 345 The linnet and bull-finch may be taught..to whistle a long and regular tune. 1837 Dickens Pickw. ii, The officer whistled a lively air. 1853 Mrs. Gaskell Ruth xi, Miss Benson had some masculine tricks, and one was whistling a long, low whistle when surprised or displeased. |
6. a. To shoot or drive with a whistling sound.
| 1697 W. Dampier Voy. round World (1699) 116 The Spaniards..began to whistle now and then a shot among them. 1829 Scott Anne of G. xiii, Sturdy young giants as ever climbed cliff, or carried bolt to whistle at a chamois. 1853 Ferris Mormons at Home xv. (1856) 278 The wind..whistled the dust around us in clouds. |
b. With
down,
off: To put on, or take off (the brakes of a railway engine).
| 1869 B. Harte What Engines said iii. Wks. (1872) 491 Said the Engine from the East:..S'pose you whistle down your brakes. 1891 C. Roberts Adrift Amer. 172 The engineer whistled the brakes off. |
c. To make (one's way) with whistling.
| 1853 Mrs. Gore Dean's Dau. xxxvi, The steamer thumped and whistled its way athwart Cowes Roads. 1866 Blackmore Cradock Nowell xvi, He..whistled his way to the main front-door. |
II. Extended, allusive, and figurative senses.
7. trans. a. To call, summon, bring, or get by or as by whistling;
† fig. to entice, allure.
| 1486 Bk. St. Albans b iv b, Stonde styll and cherke hir, and whistyll hir. 1580 Lyly Euphues Wks. 1902 II. 197 If Argus with his hundred eyes went prying to vndermine Iupiter, yet met he with Mercurie, who whiselled all his eyes out. 1589 R. Harvey Pl. Perc. (1590) 22 When I lead a horse to the water, if he will not drinke, what can I doo, but whistle him. 1623 Sanderson Serm., Job xxix. 14–17 (1674) I. 98 Whether it be through his own cowardise or inconstancy, that he keepeth off; or that a fair word whistleth him off. 1623 Middleton & Rowley Sp. Gipsy iv. (1653) H 3, If you can whistle her To come to Fist, make tryall, play the young Falconer. 1665 Glanvill Def. Van. Dogm. 4 Whistling their dependants into apparent precipices. 1668 H. More Div. Dial. ii. xxvi. 338 Hyl. If you fall a-drinking, I may well fall a-whistling on my Flagellet. Cuph. What, do you mean to make us all Horses, to whistle us while we are a-drinking? Ibid. xxix. 349 No Hags of Thessaly could ever whistle the celestial Dog out of the Sky. 1716 Addison Freeholder No. 22 ¶2 He..chanced to miss his dog... We stood still till he had whistled him up. 1759 Sterne Tr. Shandy I. xvi, Had he been whistled up to London, upon a Tom Fool's errand. 1774 Goldsm. Retal. 108 He cast off his friends, as a huntsman his pack, For he knew when he pleased he could whistle them back. 1836 [Hooton] Bilberry Thurland III. 3 A young man..came..and whistled her out through the palisadings of the area. 1876 Field 12 Feb. 156/2 The driver's whistle, as he tried to whistle the opposing signal down, would soon show to the man in the signal-box what was amiss. 1889 Mrs. Alexander Crooked Path iv, The polite man..whistled up a hansom for the two gentlemen. |
b. (With
away,
off, etc.) To send or dismiss by whistling (
esp. as a term of falconry); also
fig. to dismiss, cast off, or abandon lightly: so
to whistle down the wind (the hawk being usually cast off against the wind in pursuit of prey, but with the wind when turned loose).
| c 1555 Harpsfield Divorce Hen. VIII (Camden) 121 The which John Bacon was whistled and clapped out of Rome. 1604 Shakes. Oth. iii. iii. 262 If I do proue her Haggard, Though that her Iesses were my deere heart-strings, I'ld whistle her off, and let her downe the winde To prey at Fortune. a 1616 Beaum. & Fl. Bonduca iv. iii, This is he..that basely Whistled his honour off to th' wind. 1621 Burton Anat. Mel. ii. ii. iii. 317 As a long-winged Hawke when he is first whistled off the fist, mounts aloft. a 1721 Sheffield (Dk. Buckhm.) Jul. C. i. ii, Those lofty Thoughts..now are whistled off With every Pageant Pomp, and gawdy Show. 1759 Franklin Ess. Wks. 1840 III. 269 He first acknowledges that right, and then whistles it away. 1775 Johnson Tax. no Tyr. 83 The Dean of Gloucester has proposed..that we should..release our claims, declare them masters of themselves, and whistle them down the wind. 1792 Holcroft Road to Ruin i. 14 Poverty is a trifle; we can whistle it off. 1840 Marryat Poor Jack xlvi, To the winds have I whistled her long ago! 1860 Trollope Castle Richmond xiv, Having accepted my love, you cannot whistle me down the wind as though I were of no account. 1871 Meredith H. Richmond liii, You're going, are you?.. Then I whistle you off my fingers! |
8. a. intr. To issue a call or summons, to call;
whistle for, to summon. Now
rare or
Obs. (
exc. as implied in sense 1 or 4).
| 1560 Pilkington Aggeus (1562) 158 Drought, hunger, plage, sworde, do tarye..for God's callinge and as soone as he whystles, they come straighte. a 1626 Bacon Adv. King Sutton's Est. Wks. 1826 V. 381 The greatness of the reward doth whistle for the ablest men..to supply the chair. |
b. whistle off: to go off, go away (suddenly or lightly).
colloq. ?
Obs.| 1689 Shadwell Bury F. ii. 22 Wild. So, Madam, you have my Heart... Gert. 'Tis a light one, and always ready to whistle off at any Game. 1796 F. Burney Camilla vii. viii, [He] whistled off to his appointed chamber. |
9. a. to go whistle: to go and do what one will, to occupy oneself idly or to no purpose (
esp. in phrases expressing unceremonious or contemptuous dismissal or refusal, as
to bid one go whistle; also without
go).
to whistle for: to seek, await, or expect in vain, to fail to get, to go without (
cf. note under sense 1).
colloq.| 1453–4 Pecock Folewer to Donet 106 If eny man pretende so greet a curiosite anentis þe persoon of crist þat he lackid þe passioun of angir, he may go whistle til he leerne bettir. 1513 More in Hall Chron., Edw. V. (1548) 9 b, There they spende and byd their creditours goo whystle. 1605 Lond. Prodigal ii. iv. 173 The Deuen-shyre man shall whistle for a wife. 1611 Shakes. Wint. T. iv. iv. 715 This being done, let the Law goe whistle. 1642 Prynne Pleas. Purge 157 There is no Altar, Table in the Text. You may goe whistle then. 1677 Govt. Venice 271 Men are apt to promise any thing in danger, and to perform nothing when out of it, according to the Proverb of their Countrey:..When the danger's past, the Saint may go whistle. 1741 Shenstone Poet & Dun 24 Your fame is secure—bid the critics go whistle. 1760 C. Johnston Chrysal II. ii. xiv, ‘Do not you desire to be free?’..‘aye! that I do! but I may whistle for that wind long enough, before it will blow.’ 1812 Colman Br. Grins, &c., Low Ambit. ii, You may as well go whistle as go think Of mending the confusion. 1818 Scott Hrt. Midl. xviii, And sae we'll leave Mr. Sharpitlaw to whistle on his thumb. 1882 G. Bloomfield Remin. I. i. 14 She..rode off, telling him he might whistle for his money. |
b. to whistle in the dark: to put on a brave front; to make a pretence of confidence.
colloq.| 1939 [implied in whistling vbl. n. 1 d]. 1958 Spectator 8 Aug. 185/3 At his press conference, Mr. Dulles was whistling bravely in the dark. 1971 ‘L. Egan’ Malicious Mischief (1972) ii. 29 That fellow's whistling in the dark. And I think he knows it. 1983 S. Hill Woman in Black 92 ‘I am finding the whole thing rather a challenge.’ ‘Mr Kipps..you are whistling in the dark.’ |
10. intr. and trans. To speak, tell, or utter secretly, to ‘whisper’; to give secret information, turn informer. ?
Obs.| 1599 Sir J. Hayward Hen. IV, i. 27 Some of the secrete counsailers, or corrupters rather, and abusers of the King, whistled him in the eare, that his going to Westminster was neither seemly nor safe. 1611 Shakes. Wint. T. iv. iv. 248 Is there not milking-time? When you are going to bed? Or kill-hole? To whistle of these secrets? 1627 J. Taylor (Water P.) Armado B 5, They dare speake fellony, whistle treason. 1681 J. Flavel Right. Man's Ref. 195 The bird of the air that carries tidings, and whistles deeds of darkness. 1815 Scott Guy M. xxxiii, I kept ay between him and her, for fear she had whistled. Ibid. l, I wadna like..to gang about whistling and raising the rent on my neighbours. 1917 H. A. Vachell Fishpingle xii. 236 He hurried on, now doubly assured that Joyce had ‘whistled’. |
11. To smell unpleasantly or strongly.
slang. rare.
| 1935 Auden & Isherwood Dog beneath Skin ii. v. 113 Wot wouldn't I give fer a bath? Cor! I don't 'alf whistle! |
▪ III. whistle change, exchange: see
wissel.