whirligig
noun
whirl·i·gig
ˈ(h)wər-li-ˌgig 
Did you know?
English speakers, and particularly children, began spinning whirligigs as early as the 15th century. Since then, whirligig has acquired several meanings beyond its initial toy sense. It even has a place in the common name of the whirligig beetle, a member of the family Gyrinidae that swiftly swims in circles on the surface of still water. The word whirligig comes to us from Middle English whirlegigg ("whirling top"), which is itself from whirlen, meaning "to whirl," and gigg, meaning "(toy) top."
Examples of whirligig in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The wirework and defiance of gravity, the whirligig of clashing swords and poles, harks back to the films produced by the Shaw Brothers.
—
Vikram Murthi, Vulture, 4 Mar. 2024
Ashley Blair, a whirligig of comic energy, is one of those actors whose oddball physicality and spit-second intensity make every scene funnier.
—Jason Zinoman, New York Times, 24 Apr. 2024
The fate of Ingenuity was sealed when imagery beamed back to Earth after its 72nd and final flight on Jan. 18 showed that a portion of one of the miniature whirligig’s twin rotor blades had broken off, leaving it incapable of further operation, NASA officials said.
—Joey Roulette and Steve Gorman, The Christian Science Monitor, 26 Jan. 2024
In this whirligig of a chapter we are also first introduced to Haydn, the most admired composer of his time.
—Simon Callow, The New York Review of Books, 22 Dec. 2022
See All Example Sentences for whirligig
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Vikram Murthi, Vulture, 4 Mar. 2024
Ashley Blair, a whirligig of comic energy, is one of those actors whose oddball physicality and spit-second intensity make every scene funnier.
—Jason Zinoman, New York Times, 24 Apr. 2024
The fate of Ingenuity was sealed when imagery beamed back to Earth after its 72nd and final flight on Jan. 18 showed that a portion of one of the miniature whirligig’s twin rotor blades had broken off, leaving it incapable of further operation, NASA officials said.
—Joey Roulette and Steve Gorman, The Christian Science Monitor, 26 Jan. 2024
In this whirligig of a chapter we are also first introduced to Haydn, the most admired composer of his time.
—Simon Callow, The New York Review of Books, 22 Dec. 2022
See All Example Sentences for whirligig
Cite this Entry
“Whirligig.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/whirligig. Accessed 31 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
whirligig
noun
whirl·i·gig
ˈhwər-li-ˌgig
ˈwər-
1
: a toy that has a whirling motion
2
: something that continuously whirls or changes
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share