whir

verb \ ˈhwər , ˈwər \

variants: or less commonly whirr

|Updated on: 19 Jun 2018

Examples: whir in a Sentence

Definition of whir

whirred; whirring

intransitive verb

: to fly, revolve, or move rapidly with a whir

hummingbirds whirring past

transitive verb

: to move or carry rapidly with a whir

See whir defined for kids

Examples of whir in a Sentence

the hummingbird whirred as it hovered over a flower
our tires whirred as we traveled over the rough road

Recent Examples of whir from the Web

First released two months after 9/11 with a spinning, magnetic hard drive that whirred audibly, the device was instrumental in turning Apple’s fortunes around.

— ian bogost, The Atlantic, "Apple's Airpods Are an Omen," 12 June 2018
For this dish, whir arugula with a little basil into a pesto — arugula gives the sauce an appealing, bitter edge — and thin the pesto with pasta cooking water.

— karoline boehm goodnick, BostonGlobe.com, "Recipe: Think of this pasta with melted cherry tomatoes and arugula pesto as your new go-to dish," 11 June 2018
Banán makes luscious, yogurt-like soft serve from pure fruit that’s frozen and then whirred to creamy consistency.

— ac shilton, Outside Online, "Carissa Moore's Guide to Honolulu's Best Food," 23 May 2018
Let this boy who carries the entire actual, whirringworld in his calm unwashed hands, barely walking, bear us all there buzzing, unstung.

— kevin young, New York Times, "A Poetry Collection That Squints Hard at the Culture, in Pain and in Joy," 26 Apr. 2018
In a 2016 study published in Scientific Reports, Gagliano and her colleagues reported that pea plants can be conditioned to associate two different stimuli, in this case, a whirring fan and the presence of blue light.

— michael greshko, National Geographic, "Brainless Creatures Can Do Some Incredibly Smart Things," 21 May 2018
The slow piano opening gradually builds into a propulsive dance track, marked by monotonous deep house beats simmering below whirring synths.

— billboard staff, Billboard, "The 100 Greatest Boy Band Songs of All Time: Critics' Picks," 23 Apr. 2018
Salvatore Vicari, the works council chief at Schaeffler’s Homburg plant, said over the din of clanking and whirring machines transforming metal bands into rocker arms that help combustion engines save fuel.

— Bloomberg.com, "The Town on the Front Lines of Germany’s Battle to Preserve its Industrial Future," 28 Mar. 2018
Investigators already had whiteboards up, evidence collected and laptops whirring by the time one of the state's top crimefighting bosses walked into the Piketon Community Center the afternoon of April 22.

— chris graves, Cincinnati.com, "Inside the Rhoden investigation: Scientists work with cops," 21 May 2016

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'whir.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.