whinny

1 of 2

verb

whin·ny ˈ(h)wi-nē

whinnied; whinnying

Synonyms of whinny

intransitive verb

: to neigh especially in a low or gentle way

transitive verb

: to utter with or as if with a whinny

whinny

2 of 2

noun

plural whinnies

: the neigh of a horse especially when low or gentle

: a sound resembling a neigh

Examples of whinny in a Sentence

Verb I heard the horse whinnying. the father whinnied and reared as his young daughter pretended to ride him

Recent Examples on the Web

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Verb

The downy woodpecker also whinnies like a miniature horse throughout the breeding season. —Sheryl De Vore, Chicago Tribune, 21 Jan. 2025

That doesn’t include food for the horses, who start whinnying. —Keith Phipps, Vulture, 22 Mar. 2024 Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth is one of the oldest proverbs known to humankind, whinnying back at least 1,500 years. —Richard Lederer, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 May 2024 Kenny was large for his age, with a flat, flabby face and a high, whinnying voice. —Aryn Kyle, Harper's Magazine, 26 Feb. 2024 Waffles, patient and unbothered as onlookers walked around and stopped to gaze, nickered as another horse on the other side of the massive stalls whinnied. —James Hartley, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 26 Jan. 2024 Some unidentified whinnying joins the cacophony that accompanies gentrification—brash and brazen, with a total disregard for anything other than its own bullish desire. —Rebecca Haithcoat, GQ, 5 June 2018 The 10-year-old mare bucked, whinnied, and galloped, sensing the pride of victory. —Mitchell Gladstone, Philly.com, 2 June 2018 The forecast was calling for rain the next day, an element as necessary for all this — the flowering plant life, the whinnying animal life — as is the sun. —John Kelly, Washington Post, 29 Apr. 2018

Noun

Wild ponies, svelte & savage, graze in dune grasses, whinny, yawn. —J.t. Townley, The New York Review of Books, 6 Mar. 2025 This works, Brian says, and leans back against the wall, the dog panting less, the faint whinny of a horse, an airplane. —Paul Yoon, The New Yorker, 20 Oct. 2024 One of the horses fell on its side, its high whinny like a human scream. —Nick Romano, EW.com, 12 Dec. 2022 Laughter punctuates the exaggerated whinnies, proving that the source is not in fact a horse. —Kalyn Kahler, SI.com, 11 June 2018 But the methodical, meditative act of grooming a horse — brush, brush, brush — and the smell of hay and the gentle whinnies from the 1,200-pound creature have been therapy for Alger. —Petula Dvorak, Washington Post, 17 May 2018 An astonishing collection of laughs — whinnies, giggles, squeals, snorts, heaves — gradually colors the narrative, until this seemingly harmless man becomes, in effect, not just a witness to savagery, but also an accessory. —Jesse Green, New York Times, 11 Jan. 2018 Animal grunts and growls, horse neighs and whinnies. —Charles Desmarais, San Francisco Chronicle, 17 Apr. 2018 More important, the track is where Charley meets a pretty quarter horse named Lean on Pete, whose velvety brown coat and barely audible whinnies become a balm for the lonely teenager. —Manohla Dargis, New York Times, 5 Apr. 2018

Word History

Etymology

Verb

probably imitative

First Known Use

Verb

1530, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Noun

circa 1823, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler

The first known use of whinny was in 1530

See more words from the same year

Browse Nearby Words

whinnock

whinny

whinstone

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Whinny.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/whinny. Accessed 1 Apr. 2025.

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Kids Definition

whinny

1 of 2 verb

whin·ny ˈhwin-ē

ˈwin-

whinnied; whinnying

: to neigh especially in a low or gentle manner

whinny

2 of 2 noun

plural whinnies

: the neigh of a horse especially when low or gentle

whinny

verb

noun

Synonyms

Examples of whinny in a Sentence

Word History

Browse Nearby Words

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whinny

verb

noun

Synonyms

Examples of whinny in a Sentence

Word History

Rhymes for whinny

Browse Nearby Words

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Kids Definition

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