different between whim vs crotchety

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /(h)w?m/
• Rhymes: -?m

Etymology 1

Clipping of whim-wham.

Noun

whim (countable and uncountable, plural whims)

1. A fanciful impulse, or whimsical idea.
   • (Can we find and add a quotation of Churchill to this entry?)

     Let every man enjoy his whim.

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

Synonyms

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

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

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.

Further reading

• 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

Etymology 2

Compare whimbrel.

Noun

whim (plural whims)

1. A bird, the Eurasian wigeon.

English

Alternative forms

• crochety

Etymology

crotchet +? -y, using crotchet in the 16th-century sense of a whim or fancy.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /?k??t?.?.t?/
• (US) IPA^(key): /?k??.t??.ti/

Adjective

crotchety (comparative crotchetier or more crotchety, superlative crotchetiest or most crotchety)

1. Cranky, disagreeable, or stubborn, especially if prone to odd whims or fancies.

Translations