whittle Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun English aeronautical engineer who invented the jet aircraft engine (1907-1996)
    Sir Frank Whittle; Frank Whittle.
  2. verb cut small bits or pare shavings from
    pare.
    • whittle a piece of wood

WordNet

Whit"tle noun
Etymology
AS. hwitel, from hwit white; akin to Icel. hvitill a white bed cover. See White.
Definitions
  1. A grayish, coarse double blanket worn by countrywomen, in the west of England, over the shoulders, like a cloak or shawl. C. Kingsley.
  2. Same as Whittle shawl, below.
Whit"tle noun
Etymology
OE. thwitel, fr. AS. pwitan to cut. Cf. Thwittle, Thwaite a piece of ground.
Definitions
  1. A knife; esp., a pocket, sheath, or clasp knife. "A butcher's whittle." Dryden. "Rude whittles." Macaulay.
    He wore a Sheffield whittle in his hose. Betterton.
Whit"tle transitive verb
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Whittled ; present participle & verbal noun Whittling
Definitions
  1. To pare or cut off the surface of with a small knife; to cut or shape, as a piece of wood held in the hand, with a clasp knife or pocketknife.
  2. To edge; to sharpen; to render eager or excited; esp., to excite with liquor; to inebriate. Obs.
    "In vino veritas." When men are well whittled, their tongues run at random. Withals.
Whit"tle intransitive verb
Definitions
  1. To cut or shape a piece of wood with am small knife; to cut up a piece of wood with a knife.
    Dexterity with a pocketknife is a part of a Nantucket education; but I am inclined to think the propensity is national. Americans must and will whittle. Willis.

Webster 1913