| 释义 |
▪ 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.
c950Lindisf. Gosp. Luke vii. 32 We ᵹesungun iuh mið hwistlum. c1000Voc., in Wr.-Wülcker 311/22, 27 Musa, pipe, oððe hwistle... Fistula, hwistle. 11..Ibid. 539/24 Musa, pipe, uel hwistle. a1340Hampole Psalter cl. 4 Orgyns þat is made as a toure of sere whistils. c1375Sc. Leg. Saints vi. (Thomas) 60 A madyne com..hafand a quyschile in-to hand. 1387–8T. Usk Test. Love ii. iii. (Skeat) l. 55 The bird is begyled with the mery voice of the foulers whistel. c1400Destr. Troy 6051 With qwistlis, & qwes, & other qwaint gere. 1427For. Acc. 61 (P.R.O.), vj par' corn' voc' whisteles. 1463Bury Wills (Camden) 41 My whistel of silvir. 1513in 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. 1532–3Act 24 Hen. VIII c. 13 §1 It shalbe lefull for..maisters of the Shipps..and maryners to weare whistells of Silver. 1576Gascoigne Steele Glas Epil. 19 The yonger sorte, come pyping..In whistles made of fine enticing wood. 1585Jas. I Ess. Poesie (Arb.) 56 O Mercure,..efter Pan had found the quhissill, syne Thou did perfyte, that quhilk he bot espyit. a1610Heywood & Rowley Fortune by Land & Sea iv. i. (1655) 36 Boatswain with your whistle command the Saylors to the upper deck. 1661Boyle Style Script. 190 A Child, with a Whistle; a Trifle that onely pleases with a transient and empty sound. 1670–1Sir J. Turner Pallas Armata iii. xi. (1683) 219 The Bag-pipe..is not so good as the Almain Whistle. c1770Beattie To Alex. Ross ix, Where..shepherd lads on sunny knows Blaw the blythe fusle. 1819Scott 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. 1836Mayne Siller Gun i. xxxix, Dangling like a baby's whustle, The Siller Gun..Gleam'd in the sun! 1840R. H. Dana Bef. Mast xxvii, Everything man-of-war fashion, except that there was no boatswain's whistle. 1898F. 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)1678Alsop 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)1786Burns Author's Earnest Cry vii, Her mutchkin stowp as toom's a whissle. 1828Craven Gloss. s.v., ‘As clean as a whistle’, a proverbial simile, signifying completely, entirely. 1842J. Wilson Chr. North I. 84 By the time we reach the manse we are as dry as a whistle. 1849W. S. Mayo Kaloolah v. (1850) 41 A first rate shot;..head taken off as clean as a whistle. 1865Dickens Mut. Fr. i. xv, You're as clean as a whistle. 1880A. Gray Lett. (1893) II. 710 My throat was as clear as a whistle.
(c)1851Ticknor Life, Lett. & Jrnls. (1876) II. xiii. 271 Too much, he thought, for the price of such a whistle. 1854R. S. Surtees Handley Cr. vii, I should not like to pay too dear for my whistle. 1876Geo. Eliot Dan. Der. xxxv, If a man likes to do it he must pay for his whistle.
(d)1934Wodehouse 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. 1953R. Chandler Long Good-Bye vi. 38 Come on, Marlowe. I'm blowing the whistle on you. 1965Midnight 12 July 20/1 More and more frequently though, a whistle is being blown on the more exuberant borrowers. 1978S. Wilson Dealer's Move v. 98 So Arnie and Alfie blew the whistle on you all. What are you going to do about it? 1984Gainesville (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.
c1380Wyclif Sel. Wks. II. 2 Crist criede in desert, bi Baptist þat was his whistle. Ibid. 240 Poul whom God haþ made his whistil. 1633Massinger 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.
1931Brophy & Partridge Songs & Slang of Brit. Soldier, 1914–18 (ed. 3) 375 Whistle and flute, a suit (of clothes). 1941G. 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. 1960A. Prior in Pick of Today's Short Stories XI. 180 Half-Nelson lives for clothes... He never keeps a whistle more than a month. 1970A. 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.
c1386Chaucer Reeve's T. 235 So was hir ioly whistle wel y-wet. 1530Palsgr. 780, I wete my whystell, as good drinkers do, je crocque la pie. 1612Beaum. & Fl. Coxcomb ii. ii, Let's have no pitty, for if you do, here's that shall cut your whistle. 1653Walton Angler iii. 75 Lets..drink the other cup to wet our whistles, and so sing away all sad thoughts. 1674[see whet v. 6]. a1680Butler Rem. (1759) I. 216 He, that laugh'd, until he choak'd his Whistle. 1715tr. Pancirollus' Mem. Things I. i. i. xi. 28 They did not only moisten their Pates, but their Whistles too. 1787Wolcot (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. 1840Marryat 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.
1447O. 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. 1607Topsell Four-f. Beasts 608 He requireth of a skilfull shepheard a voyce or whisell intelligable to the sheepe, whereby to call them together. 1634Milton Comus 346 The..sound of pastoral reed.., Or whistle from the Lodge. 1671Trenchfield Cap Gray Hairs (1688) 53 When Dogs or Horses shew their ready motion at our Whistle or Chirrup. 1749Fielding Tom Jones vi. ii, She took an Opportunity..to interrupt one of his Whistles in the following Manner. 1823Scott Quentin D. xviii, Lucky that Klepper knows my whistle, and follows me as truly as a hound. 1848Dickens Dombey xxiii, There was nothing but a whistle emphatic enough for the conclusion of the sentence. 1856Amy Carlton 13 The engine gave its warning yell, as Amy called the whistle. 1896Conan 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).
a1529Skelton Col. Cloute 238 They..woteth neuer what thei rede, Paternoster, Ave, nor Crede; Construe not worth a whystle Nether Gospell nor Pystle. a1553Udall Royster D. i. iv. (Arb.) 26 Kocks nownes what meanest thou man, tut a whistle. c1580Bugbears iii. ii, He red me a pistle and told a long round about not worth a whistle. 1583T. Stocker Civ. Warres Lowe C. ii. 67 That hee shoulde be brought to the whistle, or daunce after their pipe. 1605Shakes. Lear iv. ii. 29, I haue beene worth the whistle. 1639J. Clarke Parœm. 232 Ready to run at every mans whistle. 1641Milton Animadv. 57 Those drossy spirits that need the lure and whistle of earthly preferment. 1643Trapp Comm. Gen. vi. 3 It bloweth where it listeth, and will not be at your whistle. 1784R. Bage Barham Downs II. 273 He could do it in a whistle. 1855Macaulay Hist. Eng. xiii. III. 337 All his followers..were ready at his whistle to array themselves round him. 1886Stevenson 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.
1784Cowper Death of Mrs. Throckmorton's Bulfinch 10 With a whistle blest, Well-taught, he all the sounds express'd Of flagelet or flute. 1816Scott Antiq. xxxvii, A miserable linnet..began to greet them with his whistle. 1839Penny Cycl. XV. 517/1 They [sc. Marmots]..when angry or before a storm pierce the ear with their shrill whistle. 1860Tyndall Glac. i. xv. 103 To its [sc. a chamois'] whistle our guide whistled in reply. 1881Jefferies 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.
a1648Ld. Herbert Occas. Poems, Ode whether Love shd. continue for ever, Soft whistles of the wind, And warbling murmurs of a brook. 1826J. F. Cooper Last of Mohicans xx, We..are already nearly out of whistle of a bullet. 1867Morris Jason xv. 435 Therewithal must I..writhe beneath the whistle of the whip. 1888S. 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.
1861Hughes Tom Brown at Oxf. xli, I thought you wouldn't appreciate the widow's tap..Regular *whistle-belly vengeance, and no mistake.
1970N.Y. Times 23 Mar. 40 When they reflect more fully on how well the majority leader handled a *whistle⁓blower and protected their interests. 1983New 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.
1971Ibid. 9 Dec. 69 The Code [of Good Conduct of The British Computer Society] contains secrecy clauses that effectively prohibit Nader style *whistle-blowing. 1978Monitor (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. 1980Times 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. 1983D. Dunnett Dolly & Bird of Paradise vii. 80 Whistle-blowing guys in white helmets.
1746W. Ellis Agric. Improv'd May xvi. 100 In a certain Park, where Pheasants and Partridges come at the *Whistle-call. 1830Scott Demonol. x. 393 Mariners conceive they hear the whistle-call.
a1672Willughby Hist. Pisc. (1686) 121 Mustela vulgaris Rondeletii..A Sea Loche Cestriæ. *Whistle-fish in Cornubia. 1769Pennant 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. 1836Yarrell 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.
1843Ballantine Gaberlunzie's Wallet 237 Doors were shut against the ‘*whistle-grinder’.
1760G. 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.
1843Ballantine Gaberlunzie's Wallet 139 Grinding muckle *whistle-kists, Sic abomination.
1956J. 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. 1957Amer. 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. 1978Maledicta 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.
1570Henry's Wallace viii. 1423 Ane *quhissil pype. 1587A. 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. 1925Amer. Speech I. 136 The ‘*whistle-punk’, who handles the signal wire that runs from the timber to the whistle of the donkey-engine. 1945B. MacDonald Egg & I xiv. 184 Sharp and clear came the whistle punk's signals for a skidder. 1965M. McIntyre Place of Quiet Waters ix. 172 He might get a job as a whistle punk in a logging camp.
1877W. Jones Finger-ring 534 *Whistle-rings, puzzle-rings, squirt-rings, &c.
1948Language XXIV. 280 (heading) Mazateco *whistle speech. 1972Hartmann & Stork Dict. Lang. & Linguistics 255/2 Young English children often use whistle speech as a game. 1979L. Campbell in Campbell & Mithun Lang. Native Amer. 958 Whistle speech is shared by Amuzgo, Mazatec,..some Nahua dialects, and Mexican Kickapoo.
a1653G. Daniel Idyll. iv. 74 A *whistle-Stalke.
1909Daily 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.
1872Coues Key N. Amer. Birds 361 *Whistle-wing = Golden-eye.
1825Brockett 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. hvísla 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.
c1000Gloss. Prudentius in Germania (N.S.) XI. 398/176 Hwyslaþ, exsibilat. c1000Sax. Leechd. II. 258 Wistlað of þam dæle þe þæt sar bið. 1382Wyclif Isa. v. 26 He shall whistle [1388 hisse] to hym fro the coestes of the erthe; and lo! hastid he shal come swiftli. a1400Octouian 1436 Clement nere the stede stapte, He whyslede and hys hondys clapte. c1400Beryn 3418 Geffrey..was evir wistlyng att euery pase comyng. 1423Jas. I Kingis Q. cxxxv, The foulere quhistlith in his throte Diuersely. c1515Cocke Lorell's B. (Percy Soc.) 12 Some stered at the helme behynde Some whysteled after the wynde. 1549Cranmer 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? 1570Satir. Poems Reform. xvi. 83 Thay say he can baith quhissill and cloik, And his mouth full of meill. 1581A. Hall Iliad x. 186 He whistled to him in his fiste. 1592Shakes. Rom. & Jul. v. iii. 7 Whistle then to me, As signall that thou hearest some thing approach. 1623in 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. 1632Milton L'Allegro 64 The Plowman..Whistles ore the Furrow'd Land. 1700Dryden Cymon & Iph. 85 He trudg'd along..And whistled as he went, for want of Thought. 1742Blair Grave 59 The Schoolboy..Whistling aloud to bear his Courage up. 1801Scott Eve St. John vii, He whistled thrice for his little foot-page. 1827in Hone Every-day Bk. II. 255 Our sailors..whistle for a wind. 1844Hood Captain's Cow vii, The more we whistled for the wind The more it did not blow. 1882Besant All Sorts xxiii, Another discovery..at sight of which he whistled and then shook his head. 1905F. 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.
a1100Aldhelm 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. 1398Trevisa Barth. De P.R. v. xxxvii. (Bodl. MS.), An adder..þat whisteleþ and blowith and corrumpith þe aier. 1484Caxton Fables of æsop i. x, [The serpent] whystled about the hows. 1549Compl. Scot. vi. 39 The chekyns began to peu quhen the gled quhissillit. 1599A. Hume Poems (S.T.S.) Hymnes iii. 190 The Maveis and the Philomeen, The Stirling whissilles lowd. 1663Butler Hud. i. i. 54 Latine was no more difficile, Than to a Black-bird 'tis to whistle. 1766J. Collier (Tim Bobbin) Wks. (1862) 344 They [sc. magpies] can whistle also! 1810E. 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. 1820Keats Autumn iii, The redbreast whistles from a garden-croft. 1853Kane Grinnell Exp. xxxix. (1856) 359 The white whale..whistled while submerged. 1900Blackw. 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.
1898Encycl. 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.
c1480Henryson Test. Cress. 20 The blastis bitterly Fra Pole Artick come quhisling loud and schill. 1513Douglas æneis iv. viii. 73 The souchand bir quisland amang the granis. 1581A. Hall Iliad ii. 25 Making such noise as doth the sea, when..It makes the shoare whistle along, with beating on eche crag. 1697Dryden æneis xii. 404 The winged Weapon, whistling in the Wind. a1718Prior Henry & Emma 392 When the Winds whistle, and the Tempests roar. 1748Anson's Voy. ii. vi. 192 The first shot passed extremely near.., whistling just over the heads of the crew. 1853Dickens Bleak Ho. viii, The place became dilapidated, the wind whistled through the cracked walls. 1896Conan Doyle Rodney Stone xxii, A whip whistled in the darkness. 1901W. 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.
1633G. Herbert Temple, Quip iv, Then came brave Glorie puffing by In silks that whistled. 1669J. Flavel Husb. Spir. etc. 240 Under poor garments more true worth may be, Than under silks that whistle. 1858A. 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.
1530Palsgr. 781/1, I whystell in a whystell, or in my hande, je ciffle. 1549Compl. Scot. vi. 40 The maister quhislit, and bald the marynalis lay the cabil to the cabil⁓stok. 1608Shakes. Per. iv. i. 64 The Boatswaine whistles,..the Maister calles. 1668[see 7 a]. 1818Scott Br. Lamm. iv, She whistled on a small silver call..which..was sometimes used to summon domestics. 1849Thackeray Contrib. to Punch, Paris Revisited ⁋5 The engine whistled—the train set forth. 1896Law 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.
1530Lyndesay Test. Papyngo 88 To play platfute, and quhissill fute before. 1575A. 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]. 1597Shakes. 2 Hen. IV, iii. ii. 342 (Qo.) Those tunes..that he heard the Car-men whistle. 1709T. 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. 1774Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1776) V. 345 The linnet and bull-finch may be taught..to whistle a long and regular tune. 1837Dickens Pickw. ii, The officer whistled a lively air. 1853Mrs. 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.
1697W. Dampier Voy. round World (1699) 116 The Spaniards..began to whistle now and then a shot among them. 1829Scott Anne of G. xiii, Sturdy young giants as ever climbed cliff, or carried bolt to whistle at a chamois. 1853Ferris 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).
1869B. Harte What Engines said iii. Wks. (1872) 491 Said the Engine from the East:..S'pose you whistle down your brakes. 1891C. Roberts Adrift Amer. 172 The engineer whistled the brakes off.
c. To make (one's way) with whistling.
1853Mrs. Gore Dean's Dau. xxxvi, The steamer thumped and whistled its way athwart Cowes Roads. 1866Blackmore 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.
1486Bk. St. Albans b iv b, Stonde styll and cherke hir, and whistyll hir. 1580Lyly 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. 1589R. 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. 1623Sanderson 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. 1623Middleton & Rowley Sp. Gipsy iv. (1653) H 3, If you can whistle her To come to Fist, make tryall, play the young Falconer. 1665Glanvill Def. Van. Dogm. 4 Whistling their dependants into apparent precipices. 1668H. 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. 1716Addison Freeholder No. 22 ⁋2 He..chanced to miss his dog... We stood still till he had whistled him up. 1759Sterne Tr. Shandy I. xvi, Had he been whistled up to London, upon a Tom Fool's errand. 1774Goldsm. 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. 1876Field 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. 1889Mrs. 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).
c1555Harpsfield Divorce Hen. VIII (Camden) 121 The which John Bacon was whistled and clapped out of Rome. 1604Shakes. 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. a1616Beaum. & Fl. Bonduca iv. iii, This is he..that basely Whistled his honour off to th' wind. 1621Burton Anat. Mel. ii. ii. iii. 317 As a long-winged Hawke when he is first whistled off the fist, mounts aloft. a1721Sheffield (Dk. Buckhm.) Jul. C. i. ii, Those lofty Thoughts..now are whistled off With every Pageant Pomp, and gawdy Show. 1759Franklin Ess. Wks. 1840 III. 269 He first acknowledges that right, and then whistles it away. 1775Johnson 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. 1792Holcroft Road to Ruin i. 14 Poverty is a trifle; we can whistle it off. 1840Marryat Poor Jack xlvi, To the winds have I whistled her long ago! 1860Trollope Castle Richmond xiv, Having accepted my love, you cannot whistle me down the wind as though I were of no account. 1871Meredith 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).
1560Pilkington Aggeus (1562) 158 Drought, hunger, plage, sworde, do tarye..for God's callinge and as soone as he whystles, they come straighte. a1626Bacon 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.
1689Shadwell 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. 1796F. 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.
1453–4Pecock 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. 1513More in Hall Chron., Edw. V. (1548) 9 b, There they spende and byd their creditours goo whystle. 1605Lond. Prodigal ii. iv. 173 The Deuen-shyre man shall whistle for a wife. 1611Shakes. Wint. T. iv. iv. 715 This being done, let the Law goe whistle. 1642Prynne Pleas. Purge 157 There is no Altar, Table in the Text. You may goe whistle then. 1677Govt. 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. 1741Shenstone Poet & Dun 24 Your fame is secure—bid the critics go whistle. 1760C. 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.’ 1812Colman Br. Grins, &c., Low Ambit. ii, You may as well go whistle as go think Of mending the confusion. 1818Scott Hrt. Midl. xviii, And sae we'll leave Mr. Sharpitlaw to whistle on his thumb. 1882G. 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]. 1958Spectator 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. 1983S. 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.
1599Sir 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. 1611Shakes. Wint. T. iv. iv. 248 Is there not milking-time? When you are going to bed? Or kill-hole? To whistle of these secrets? 1627J. Taylor (Water P.) Armado B 5, They dare speake fellony, whistle treason. 1681J. Flavel Right. Man's Ref. 195 The bird of the air that carries tidings, and whistles deeds of darkness. 1815Scott 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. 1917H. A. Vachell Fishpingle xii. 236 He hurried on, now doubly assured that Joyce had ‘whistled’.
11. To smell unpleasantly or strongly. slang. rare.
1935Auden & 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. |