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Trace Whimsical Back to the 16th Century
Even the origin of whimsical is whimsical: its ultimate source (by way of the noun whimsy) is the now-obscure whim-wham, a noun from the early 16th century that first referred to an ornamental object or trinket, and later to an eccentric impulse or interest—that is, to what in modern terms can be called a whim. The origin of whim-wham isn’t clear, but it’s among a class of words known as reduplications, words that are formed by repeating a word, as in go-go, or by adding to a word one that sounds very similar to it, as in dillydally. (In the case of whim-wham, the original duplicated term has been lost to time.) While whimsical first described those who tend toward whimsy, it now commonly describes things that are unusual in a playful or amusing way, as in “charmed by the book’s whimsical illustrations.”
Examples of whimsical in a Sentence
Janice Wald Henderson, Chocolatier, March 2001
Unlike the broad slapstick humor of Musical Mose and other early Herriman strips, Krazy Kat was gentle, fey, and whimsical.
—Jeet Heer, Lingua Franca, September 2001
In the whimsical linguistics of theoretical physics, the "naked" electron is an imaginary object cut off from the influences of the field, whereas a "dressed" electron carries the imprint of the universe, but it is all buried in extremely tiny modifications to its bare properties.
—Leon Lederman et al., The God Particle, 1993
She has a whimsical sense of humor.
it's hard to make plans with such a whimsical best friend
Amanda Le, InStyle, 22 May 2026
Everything feels more whimsical, more fairy-like, more nymph-coded, as if fashion itself is trying to mirror the romance of the natural world.
—Tiana Randall, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026
Colbert’s final show mostly stayed away from politics, with even the opening monologue tending toward less pointed jokes about whimsical subjects like potholes on an airport runway, as if the host was intent on not going out on an adversarial note.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 22 May 2026
The original Swan and Dolphin were designed by renowned postmodern architect Michael Graves, whose whimsical vision helped make the hotels instantly recognizable.
—Jacqueline Dole, Southern Living, 22 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for whimsical
Cite this Entry
“Whimsical.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/whimsical. Accessed 24 May. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
whimsical
adjective
