whale
whale — noun
1. One of the largest creatures on Earth, this ocean-dwelling animal takes in air t
One of the largest creatures on Earth, this ocean-dwelling animal takes in air through a blowhole and nurses its young with milk.
Hiro saw a whale jump out of the water during his trip to the coast.
The blue whale is the largest animal that has ever lived on Earth.
species name: blue whale; superlative construction
A mother whale keeps her baby close for many months after birth.
Whales rise to the surface every few minutes to take a breath of air.
The tour boat stopped so passengers could watch the whales swimming nearby.
- cetacean
scientific term for the group that includes whales, dolphins, and porpoises; very formal, not used in everyday speech
文法句型
a/the whale
whales (plural)
常見錯誤
2. A person or thing that is extremely large, impressive, or important in a noticea
A person or thing that is extremely large, impressive, or important in a noticeable way.
The new stadium is a whale of a building that can be seen from across the city.
pattern: a whale of a [noun] — emphasising size
In the world of technology, their company is a whale that smaller businesses hope to compete with.
Rodrigo pulled a whale of a fish out of the lake on his first try with a new rod.
The final report they wrote was a whale of a document, nearly two hundred pages long.
- minnow
informal; describes a very small person or organization, often contrasted with 'whale' in business contexts
文法句型
a whale of a [noun]
用法筆記
Frequently appears in the phrase 'a whale of a [noun]', which adds emphasis to the size or quality of the following noun. This structure is informal and often used for emphasis in spoken English.
常見錯誤
whale — verb
1. To hunt and kill whales, particularly for their meat, oil, or other products obt
To hunt and kill whales, particularly for their meat, oil, or other products obtained from the body.
People in this coastal town have been whaling for more than two hundred years.
present perfect continuous with duration
Several countries have agreed not to whale in protected ocean areas anymore.
The documentary showed how small communities used to whale from wooden boats.
International treaties now heavily restrict where nations may whale.
Tensions rose when a foreign ship was caught whaling inside the protected zone.
文法句型
go whaling
whale (intransitive)
用法筆記
In modern English, the gerund form 'whaling' and the phrase 'go whaling' are far more common than simple past-tense uses of 'whale'. The verb is rarely used in everyday conversation outside discussions of the whaling industry or its history.