as in notions
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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Recent Examples of whims
Multicoin, especially, has been at the whims of crypto’s booms and busts.
—
Ben Weiss, Fortune, 16 Apr. 2026
By design, the responsibility to pay these workers shifted from the employers, who were reluctant to pay Black laborers in the first place, to the whims of the customers.
—Allyson Reedy, Denver Post, 15 Apr. 2026
What started as a temporary outdoor steakhouse in an open lot in Little River during the pandemic, was reborn as a magnificent 220-seat indoor-outdoor restaurant that is no longer subject to the whims of weather and the limitations of an outdoor kitchen.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 15 Apr. 2026
The whims of the NHL’s draft lottery balls are cruel, as Canucks fans have learned repeatedly over the years.
—Thomas Drance, New York Times, 15 Apr. 2026
But some classics have been with us all along, their popularity ebbing and flowing with the whims of restaurant culture.
—Jerry & Krista Slater, AJC.com, 12 Apr. 2026
The online community of people who do this kind of analysis are used to their information environment constantly shifting according to the whims of companies and algorithms, Godin said.
—Geoff Brumfiel, NPR, 10 Apr. 2026
Private investors could be hesitant to put billions into an industry that relies so heavily on the whims of whomever is in the White House, said Arne Jacobson, director of the Schatz Energy Research Center at California State Polytechnic University in Humboldt.
—Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2026
Beginners might also struggle with sourcing high-quality seeds, navigating the unpredictable whims of the ocean, and determining best practices for a low-impact, ecologically beneficial operation.
—Megan Zhang, Saveur, 8 Apr. 2026
Ben Weiss, Fortune, 16 Apr. 2026
By design, the responsibility to pay these workers shifted from the employers, who were reluctant to pay Black laborers in the first place, to the whims of the customers.
—Allyson Reedy, Denver Post, 15 Apr. 2026
What started as a temporary outdoor steakhouse in an open lot in Little River during the pandemic, was reborn as a magnificent 220-seat indoor-outdoor restaurant that is no longer subject to the whims of weather and the limitations of an outdoor kitchen.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 15 Apr. 2026
The whims of the NHL’s draft lottery balls are cruel, as Canucks fans have learned repeatedly over the years.
—Thomas Drance, New York Times, 15 Apr. 2026
But some classics have been with us all along, their popularity ebbing and flowing with the whims of restaurant culture.
—Jerry & Krista Slater, AJC.com, 12 Apr. 2026
The online community of people who do this kind of analysis are used to their information environment constantly shifting according to the whims of companies and algorithms, Godin said.
—Geoff Brumfiel, NPR, 10 Apr. 2026
Private investors could be hesitant to put billions into an industry that relies so heavily on the whims of whomever is in the White House, said Arne Jacobson, director of the Schatz Energy Research Center at California State Polytechnic University in Humboldt.
—Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2026
Beginners might also struggle with sourcing high-quality seeds, navigating the unpredictable whims of the ocean, and determining best practices for a low-impact, ecologically beneficial operation.
—Megan Zhang, Saveur, 8 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for whims
Noun
-
Additionally, curiosity prompts individuals to question assumptions and challenge preconceived notions, thereby reducing the influence of bias in decision-making processes.—
Rebecca Ahmed,
Big Think,
22 Apr. 2026
-
As the Paramount upfront meetings commence, the company appears poised to keep them and is not at present entertaining any notions of returning to the days when CBS held court in front of advertisers at Carnegie Hall.—
Brian Steinberg,
Variety,
16 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
One needed Mother Nature to bestow upon brewers the right temperatures for making beer, and in the days before refrigeration and even thermometers, that meant that brewing was largely dictated by the caprices of the seasons.—
Jay R. Brooks,
Mercury News,
27 Feb. 2026
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Today, every country’s economy is tied to others, but a small nation that’s as historically dependent on trade as Denmark seems particularly vulnerable to Trump’s caprices.—
Margaret Talbot,
New Yorker,
11 Jan. 2026
Noun
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There were plenty of ordinary and dismissive explanations for what had happened, all related to the vagaries of the brain.—
Elizabeth Bruenig,
The Atlantic,
26 Mar. 2026
-
As a result, those close to him have felt that there have been some vagaries around his role within the team since his arrival.—
Cerys Jones,
New York Times,
28 Feb. 2026
Noun
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But what Danielson says was intended as a symbolic protest escalated dramatically amid paranoid fantasies, prosaic miscommunications, and the false report of a gun.—
Tessa Stuart,
Rolling Stone,
23 Apr. 2026
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Inspired in part by Gillian Anderson’s compendium of women’s erotic fantasies, Want, as well as Nancy Friday’s My Secret Garden, Superbloom is, in theory, a manifestation of Ware’s deepest desires.—
Harry Tafoya,
Pitchfork,
20 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
In honor of Valentine’s Day, Stephanie also has a story on the whimsies created by chocolate artist Chris Ford at his West Hollywood pop-up shop.—
Bill Addison,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Feb. 2026
-
In The Girlfriend, the truth is malleable, open to change based on our biases, judgments, whimsies, and desires.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Whims.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whims. Accessed 26 Apr. 2026.
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