whale
[noun]
Synonyms: giant, behemoth, leviathan, mammoth, monster
[verb]
Synonyms: whip, flagellate, flog, hide, larrup, lash, scourge, stripe, thrash, wear out

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. whale¹ /weɪl/ noun [countable]
[Language: Old English; Origin: hwæl]

1. a very large animal that lives in the sea and looks like a fish, but is actually a mammal

2. have a whale of a time informal to enjoy yourself very much

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. whale² verb [intransitive] American English
[Date: 1700-1800; Origin: Perhaps from wale 'to mark someone's skin by hitting them' (15-20 centuries), from wale 'weal'; ⇒ weal]
whale into/on somebody/something to start hitting someone or something

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

whale
noun
ADJ. beached, stranded
QUANT. school
VERB + WHALE hunt | harpoon
WHALE + VERB swim | dive | sing | blow (sth) We saw a whale blowing a jet of spray high in the air.
breach sth Ahead, the whale breached the surface of the water.
beach itself, be washed up
WHALE + NOUN hunting | meat, oil | stocks management and conservation of whale stocks

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

whale

a beached/stranded whale (=one that is stuck on land)
The beached whales are quite obviously very distressed.
go whale-watching
You can go whale watching off the coast.
hunt whales
Some countries continue to hunt whales, even though they have no real use for them and the whales are in danger of extinction.
save the whales
Greenpeace campaigns to save the whales.
a whale breaches (=comes up through the surface of the water)
He got a picture of a whale breaching, with droplets of water glittering in the sun.
a school/pod of whales (=a group of whales)
A school of sperm whales was sighted.
whale music/song (=sounds made by whales)
Scientists believe that whale song is used to communicate.
whale oil (=fat from whales that has been made into oil)
Whale oil was used in lamps.
whale meat
Whale meat was once part of the local people's diet.
whale blubber (=fat from whales)

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲