as in notion
a sudden impulsive and apparently unmotivated idea or action
on a whim, we stopped at the roadside stand to get ice cream
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of whim
Thousands of people — displaced by disaster, their past lives gone up in smoke — are hostage to the whims of a peevish president who always puts his feelings first and cares nothing for the greater good.
—
Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 22 June 2025
Global travel is subject to the whims of international geopolitics at most times, but never more so than in the sky.
—Brad Lendon, CNN Money, 21 June 2025
Public mission, not presidential whims The dispute began when President Donald Trump fired two Biden-era officials: Gwynne Wilcox, a member of the National Labor Relations Board, and Cathy Harris, a member of the Merit Systems Protection Board.
—Claire B. Wofford, The Conversation, 13 June 2025
Another is whether a state’s Constitution is to be taken literally, or can be evaded at a politician’s whim.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 12 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for whim
Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 22 June 2025
Global travel is subject to the whims of international geopolitics at most times, but never more so than in the sky.
—Brad Lendon, CNN Money, 21 June 2025
Public mission, not presidential whims The dispute began when President Donald Trump fired two Biden-era officials: Gwynne Wilcox, a member of the National Labor Relations Board, and Cathy Harris, a member of the Merit Systems Protection Board.
—Claire B. Wofford, The Conversation, 13 June 2025
Another is whether a state’s Constitution is to be taken literally, or can be evaded at a politician’s whim.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 12 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for whim
Recent Examples of Synonyms for whim
Noun
-
The 10-round cruiserweight affair ended in Paul’s sixth consecutive victory but did little to quell the notion that the YouTuber-turned-boxer is building his in-ring reputation with a fraudulent resume built on defeating big names many years removed from their heydays.—
Mark Puleo,
New York Times,
28 June 2025
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The overall operations swiftly moved from the notion of targeting dangerous criminal immigrants to everyday workers and laborers — who may or may not have proper documentation — trying to make a living, and overriding local officials along the way.—
Michael Smolens,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 June 2025
Noun
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The caprice of the wind was the only reason there was evidence to recover in the first place.—
Henry Leutwyler Robert Petkoff Emma Kehlbeck Quinton Kamara,
New York Times,
20 May 2025
-
Trump ran as a populist, but his actions in office have built a new élite shaped by his personal preference and caprice.—
Nathan Heller,
New Yorker,
9 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Another concerning aspect of AI's influence on our freedom of thought is its capacity to distort memory and perception.—
Cornelia C. Walther,
Forbes.com,
2 July 2025
-
Please detail any thoughts and feelings at this point.—
Sally Krutzig,
Idaho Statesman,
1 July 2025
Noun
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Vape shops have spread across the American retail landscape with a bizarre swiftness, seemingly unbeholden to the same vagaries of inflation, customer demand, and local real estate that bind every other kind of storefront small business in the country.—
Amanda Mull,
The Atlantic,
22 June 2023
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Third, repeaters should prove capable of swapping this data between nodes in a network in a predictable way and not one too subject to the vagaries of chance.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
13 June 2023
Noun
-
The Old Guard 2 — a sequel to the Charlize Theron fantasy superhero hit from 2020 — arrives on Netflix this week.—
Tim Lammers,
Forbes.com,
29 June 2025
-
Set in a fantasy version of early 1900s Japan, the series focuses on the adventures Tanjiro Kamado, an ordinary boy whose peaceful life in the mountains is disrupted when demons murder his family.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
28 June 2025
Noun
-
The whole process, Mill argued, would move voting away from a referendum on a community’s values and toward an act of whimsy, like browsing from an array of calico clothes.—
Gal Beckerman,
The Atlantic,
23 June 2025
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Its mismatched shades and staggered pendant height bring a subtle whimsy overhead that lend the fixture its statement-making quality.—
Maria Conti,
Better Homes & Gardens,
3 June 2025
Noun
-
The other company members all said more or less the same thing: everyone respected Matthew’s great passion for the play, for the character, but why should the company put itself in legal jeopardy for what was, essentially, one man’s fancy?—
Han Ong,
New Yorker,
22 June 2025
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Donned in their fancy (and very thick) bejeweled outfits, the group is introduced individually by their English names: guitarist/vocalist Sammy (Woosung), guitarist/vocalist Leo (Dojoon), bass player Jeff (Jaehyeong/Taegyeom), and drummer Dylan (Hajoon).—
Laura Sirikul,
Forbes.com,
12 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Whim.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whim. Accessed 9 Jul. 2025.
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