Grasping for the Wind

Whinging

Came across this in Joe Abercrombie's The Blade Itself, so I had to look it up. The meaning is pretty clear from the text, but I had never seen it before.

whinge (hwnj, wnj)
intr.v. whinged, whing·ing, whing·es Chiefly British
To complain or protest, especially in an annoying or persistent manner.

[Middle English whinen, from Old English hwnan, to make a whizzing sound.]

Same root as the American:

whine (hwn, wn)
v. whined, whin·ing, whines
v.intr.
1. To utter a plaintive, high-pitched, protracted sound, as in pain, fear, supplication, or complaint.
2. To complain or protest in a childish fashion.
3. To produce a sustained noise of relatively high pitch: jet engines whining.
v.tr.
To utter with a whine.
n.
1. The act of whining.
2. A whining sound.
3. A complaint uttered in a plaintive tone.

[Middle English whinen, from Old English hwnan, to make a whizzing sound.]

So basically the same word with different spellings. Those crazy British!

Posted by John on September 13, 2007 10:09 AM | Posted to Literature and Language
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