1
: any of the young of various carnivorous mammals and especially of the dog
2
: a young boy or girl
whelped; whelping; whelps
: to give birth to
—used of various carnivores and especially the dog
: to bring forth young
Examples of whelp in a Sentence
Noun
playtime's over, it's time to gather up the whelps and head home
Verb
The dog whelped in March.
Recent Examples on the Web
Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Apr. 2025
The alpha male was a foster, and his mate whelped — or gave birth — during the same week, making the pack an ideal candidate to receive pups.
—Hayleigh Evans, The Arizona Republic, 29 July 2024
When a captive mother whelps, or gives birth on her own, managers match her pups with a wild den using GPS coordinates from radio collars placed on packs’ breeding alpha male and female.
—Hayleigh Evans, The Arizona Republic, 3 May 2024
Given its importance as one of two Northwest Atlantic harp seal whelping grounds, the area is one of Nat Geo’s Best Trips for 2020.
—Jennifer Hayes, National Geographic, 19 Dec. 2019
And from Susan’s line, the queen’s breeding program at the Kennels of Windsor whelped hundreds of corgi puppies.
—William Booth, Washington Post, 18 Apr. 2018
From the queen's breeding program at the Kennels of Windsor, hundreds of royal corgis have been whelped.
—William Booth, chicagotribune.com, 18 Apr. 2018
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Verb
Owners can help the process by giving them a whelping box.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Apr. 2025
The alpha male was a foster, and his mate whelped — or gave birth — during the same week, making the pack an ideal candidate to receive pups.
—Hayleigh Evans, The Arizona Republic, 29 July 2024
When a captive mother whelps, or gives birth on her own, managers match her pups with a wild den using GPS coordinates from radio collars placed on packs’ breeding alpha male and female.
—Hayleigh Evans, The Arizona Republic, 3 May 2024
Given its importance as one of two Northwest Atlantic harp seal whelping grounds, the area is one of Nat Geo’s Best Trips for 2020.
—Jennifer Hayes, National Geographic, 19 Dec. 2019
And from Susan’s line, the queen’s breeding program at the Kennels of Windsor whelped hundreds of corgi puppies.
—William Booth, Washington Post, 18 Apr. 2018
From the queen's breeding program at the Kennels of Windsor, hundreds of royal corgis have been whelped.
—William Booth, chicagotribune.com, 18 Apr. 2018
Cite this Entry
“Whelp.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/whelp. Accessed 4 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
whelp
1 of 2 noun
ˈhwelp 
ˈwelp
1
: one of the young of a flesh-eating animal and especially a dog
2
: a young person
whelp
2 of 2 verb
: to give birth to whelps
Medical Definition
whelp
2 of 2 transitive verb
: to give birth to
—used of various carnivores and especially the dog
: to bring forth young
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