| 释义 |
whelp
I. \ˈhw]elp, ]eu̇p also ˈw]\ noun
(-s)
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English hwelp; akin to Old Saxon hwelp whelp, Old High German hwelf, welf, Old Norse hvelpr whelp, and perhaps to Old English hwelan to war, rage, hlōwan to low — more at low
1.
a. : one of the young of various carnivorous mammals (as the wolf, otter, or fox)
< the tracks of the mother wolverine and three full-size whelps — Fur-Fish-Game >
specifically : one of the young of a dog
b. : a young boy or girl
< the older folk would be huddled together … praying for their wayward whelps — L.C.Douglas >
2.
a. : an ill-considered or despised person
< that awkward whelp with his money bags — Joseph Addison >
b. obsolete : the offspring of such a person or being
< the devil's whelps >
c. : pup 2
< the young whelp had learned his lesson — Edna Ferber >
3.
a. : any of the longitudinal ribs or ridges on the barrel of a capstan or windlass — usually used in plural
< the whelps of a windlass >
b. : sprocket 2a
4. Britain : a medium-sized auxiliary warship first constructed in the early 17th century
5. usually capitalized : tennessean — used as a nickname
II. verb
(-ed/-ing/-s)
Etymology: Middle English whelpen, from whelp, n.
transitive verb
1. : to bring forth : give birth to — used especially of the female dog
< the bitch whelps her young >
2. archaic : to bring forth as if by giving birth
< whelps a pack of lies >
intransitive verb
: to bring forth young
< where they crawl out on the ice to whelp — O.F.Backer >
III. noun
(-s)
Etymology: alteration of welt
dialect : welt, wale
< rubbed the mare and showed me a whelp on her left flank — T.H.Phillips > |