n.
Pronunciation: ' hwi-s ə l, ' wi-
Function: noun
Usage: often attrib
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English hwistle; akin to Old Norse hv ī sla to whisper
Date: before 12th century
1 a : a small wind instrument in which sound is produced by the forcible passage of breath through a slit in a short tube <a police whistle > b : a device through which air or steam is forced into a cavity or against a thin edge to produce a loud sound <a factory whistle >
2 a : a shrill clear sound produced by forcing breath out or air in through the puckered lips b : the sound produced by a whistle c : a signal given by or as if by whistling
3 : a sound that resembles a whistle especially : a shrill clear note of or as if of a bird