whim

• IPA^(key): /wɪm/
• (without the wine–whine merger) IPA^(key): /ʍɪm/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪm

Clipping of whim-wham.

whim (countable and uncountable, plural whims)

1. A fanciful impulse, or sudden change of idea.
   • 1763, Charles Churchill, The Ghost, book IV, J. Coote, →OCLC, page 137:

     Let ev’ry Man enjoy his whim; / What’s He to Me, or I to him?

   • 1886, Peter Christen Asbj&oslash￵rnsen, translated by H.L. Brækstad, Folk and Fairy Tales, page 269:

     The king was tired of this whim of hers long ago, and thought she ought to get married like other people; there was nothing she need wait for, she was old enough and she would not be any richer either, for she was to have half the kingdom, which she inherited after her mother.

   • 2019 May 19, Alex McLevy, “The final Game Of Thrones brings a pensive but simple meditation about stories (newbies)”, in The A.V. Club‎^[1], archived from the original on 22 May 2019:

     “You’re either with me or you’re against me” became Dany’s credo, and those against her were an ever-changing multitude to be determined solely by her whims.

   • 2025 October 15, “News: Renewed commitment to Northern Powerhouse Rail”, in RAIL, number 1046, page 9:

     He also disagreed with the idea of cancelling projects "completely at the whim of an individual Prime Minister," citing Rishi Sunak's decision to cancel HS2 north of Handsacre Junction.

2. (mining) A large capstan or vertical drum turned by horse power or steam power, for raising ore or water, etc., from mines, or for other purposes

• (fancy): lark, especially in phrase on a whim, see also Thesaurus:whim

whim (third-person singular simple present whims, present participle whimming, simple past and past participle whimmed)

1. (rare, intransitive) To be seized with a whim; to be capricious.

• Picture of a horse-powered whim used to wind the cables on to work the mine between the depth of 50 feet to 500 feet - photo taken at Gympie, Queensland, Australia

Compare whimbrel.

whim (plural whims)

1. A bird, the Eurasian wigeon.