Revised as of
14 Oct 2022
I’ll take a whinny over a whiny any day. Whether it’s a child or a nagging person, I’d much rather listen to a horse. I’ll bet you’d rather listen to a horse’s whinny over me whining on about what irritates me about authors’ spelling habits, or what I’m whinging on about in a book someone wrote . . . *grin* . . .
I have occasionally read of a person who has a laugh that sounds like a whinny. It’s an excellent use of adjective to project the sense of a cringing, fawning, or handwashing sort of person. Someone who’s either too timid for words *gag*, is sucking up to others, or one who’s hiding his (or her) evil light beneath a camouflage that includes a braying laugh.
Word Confusions . . .
. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end. Consider sharing this Word Confusion with friends by tweeting it.
Whinny | Whiny |
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Audio recorded by GoodListener and courtesy of FreeSound.org. — |
“Baby Crying HQ” recorded by Panikko and courtesy of FreeSound.org. — |
Part of Grammar: | |
Noun 1; Verb 2, intransitive & transitive
Plural for the noun: whinnies Third person present verb: whinnies |
Adjective
Alternative spelling: whiney |
Noun: Gentle, high-pitched neigh 1
Verb, intransitive: Verb, transitive: |
Long, high-pitched, complaining cry
Complaining tone of voice [British] Whinge |
Examples: | |
Noun: We heard a whinny in the distance. That poor horse’s whinnies became increasingly weak. Flicka gave a soft whinny when she saw Annabelle. I knew it was a whinny of delight as Blackie pranced up to the fence for her carrot. Verb, intransitive: Geez, Mabel whinnied like a horse in heat when she laughed. I heard the horse whinnying. Verb, transitive: She gave another high-pitched whinny and posed beside him. |
She had a whiny voice.
Someone needs a nap ’cause they’re getting whiny. God, woman, must you be whinging on all the time? |
Derivatives: | |
Adjective: whining, unwhining Comparative Adjectives: whinier, whiniest Adverb: unwhiningly, whiningly Noun: whine, whiner, whininess Verb: whine, whined, whining |
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History of the Word: | |
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1850–55: whine + -y evolved from the 1520-30 whine and ultimately imitative; compare to the Latin hinnire. |
C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!
Satisfy your curiosity about other Word Confusions on its homepage or more generally explore the index of self-editing posts. You may also want to explore Book Layout & Formatting Ideas, Formatting Tips, Grammar Explanations, Linguistics, Publishing Tips, the Properly Punctuated, Writing Ideas and Resources, and Working Your Website.
Resources for Whinny versus Whiny
Apple Dictionary.com
Merriam-Webster: whiny
Pinterest Photo Credits
Phyllis Diller – Hah! is courtesy of the Smithsonian and Crying Girl by Crimfants is under the CC BY-SA 2.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons.