/hwip"lash', wip"-/ , n.
1. the lash of a whip.
2. an abrupt snapping motion or change of direction resembling the lash of a whip.
3. Also, whiplash injury . a neck injury caused by a sudden jerking backward, forward, or both, of the head: Whiplash resulted when their car was struck from behind.
4. Also called whiplash curve . a connected series of reverse curves of more or less elliptical form, used as a major design motif in the Art Nouveau style.
v.t.
5. to beat, hit, throw, etc., with or as if with a whiplash.
6. to affect adversely, as by a sudden change: new taxes whiplashing corporate earnings.
[ 1565-75; 1950-55 for def. 6; WHIP + LASH 1 ]