Definitions for: Whirligig

[n] large mechanical apparatus with seats for children to ride on
[n] a conical child's plaything tapering to a steel point on which it can be made to spin; "he got a bright red top and string for his birthday"
[v] whirl or spin like a whirligig

Webster (1913) Definition: Whirl"i*gig, n. [Whirl + gig.]
1. A child's toy, spun or whirled around like a wheel upon an
axis, or like a top. --Johnson.

2. Anything which whirls around, or in which persons or
things are whirled about, as a frame with seats or wooden
horses.

With a whirligig of jubilant mosquitoes spinning
about each head. --G. W. Cable.

3. A medi[ae]val instrument for punishing petty offenders,
being a kind of wooden cage turning on a pivot, in which
the offender was whirled round with great velocity.

4. (Zo["o]l.) Any one of numerous species of beetles
belonging to Gyrinus and allied genera. The body is
firm, oval or boatlike in form, and usually dark colored
with a bronzelike luster. These beetles live mostly on the
surface of water, and move about with great celerity in a
gyrating, or circular, manner, but they are also able to
dive and swim rapidly. The larva is aquatic. Called also
weaver, whirlwig, and whirlwig beetle.

Synonyms: carousel, carrousel, merry-go-round, roundabout, spinning top, teetotum, top

See Also: gyrate, humming top, peg top, plaything, reel, ride, spin, spin around, toy, whip top, whipping top, whirl

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