whimsy
/ˈwɪmzi/ noun, verb, adjective
Forms whimsies whimsying whimsied whimsier whimsiest whimsey
- noun A quaint and fanciful idea; a whim; playfully odd behaviour.
- noun An impulsive, illogical or capricious character.
- noun (mining, countable) A whim (capstan or vertical drum).
- noun (countable) A jigsaw puzzle piece that has been cut into a recognizable shape, as if on a whim; often the shape is representative of the theme of the image used for the puzzle.
- noun (glassblowing, countable) The support that protects a finished piece as it is detached from a punty.
- verb (transitive) To fill with whimsies or whims; to make fantastic; to craze.
- adjective Synonym of whimsical.
Synonyms
whimsical notion whim whimsey flightiness arbitrariness whimsicality capriciousness
Etymology
Probably from whims + -y. Related to whim-wham, whim.
Webster’s 1913
Etymology [See Whim.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “whimsy”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details