I. ˈhwīl, esp before pause or consonant -īəl; also ˈwī- noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English whil, while, from Old English hwīl; akin to Old High German hwīla time, while, Old Norse hvīla bed, Gothic hweila time, while, Latin quies rest, quiet, Old Slavic po kojĭ rest
1.
a. : a period of time : time
any critic may after a while exhaust his interest in a subject — C.W.Shumaker
takes us quite a while to find out — Sean O'Faolain
b. : the time during which an action takes place or a condition exists
looking here and there and calling his name, though I knew all the while it was too late — Mary Webb
went to her herb garden for her seasonings … and thus preserved the health of her family, the while she saved her purse — Van Wyck Brooks
c. : the time at which an event takes place : a time marked by the occurrence of an action or a condition : occasion
one while , it seems, he trapped in the … mountains — J.F.Dobie
were whiles when I was terrible bored — John Buchan
d. : a relatively short period of time : a brief time
if you've been reading this book for over an hour, you'd better put it aside for a while — W.J.Reilly
went away and came back again in a while — Pearl Buck
e. : the period of time needed (as for the performance of an action)
a breathing while — Shakespeare
f. archaic : a time marked by bad conditions
God help the while — Shakespeare
2. : the time and effort used (as in the performance of an action) : trouble , exertion
aesthetic matters are important, and … it is worth the while of a healthy male to take them seriously — H.L.Mencken
knew all the right people too because it was worth their while to know him — J.P.Marquand
II. conjunction
Etymology: Middle English whil, while, from whil, while, n.
1.
a. : during the time that
instructed and encouraged the boy while he made an almost incredible … record of precocity — Alexander Cowie
were killed while attempting a burglary — A.F.Harlow
b. : until the end of the time that : as long as
while there's life there's hope
c. : during which time : and during the same time : and meanwhile
hurried to get ready while the others just sat
2. archaic : until
while hunger make you eat — Christopher Marlowe
3.
a. : at the same time that on the contrary : when on the other hand : whereas
for many people a line of ten words requires perhaps eight fixations, while a good reader can grasp half a line as a unit — Russell Cosper & Barriss Mills
while her book shows the uneven hand of a novice at writing, it frequently stops the reader by its poetic simplicity — Rose Feld
b. : in spite of the fact that : although
while the evidence he has obtained may be said to fit the theory, the importance of some of it is questionable — Notes & Queries
while a magnificent organizer of espionage, he was a poor observer himself — Allen Upward
4. : at the same time that in a similar manner : when correspondingly : and also
while the book will be welcomed by scholars, it will make an immediate appeal to the general reader — British Book News
wild grapes grow in profusion along the sides of back roads, while blackberries and wild raspberries are common — American Guide Series: New Hampshire
III. preposition
Etymology: Middle English whil, from whil, while, n.
archaic : until
while then, God be with you — Shakespeare
IV. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: while (I)
transitive verb
: to cause to pass especially without boredom or in a pleasant manner — usually used with away
whiled away the tedium of debate by drawing caricatures — Dumas Malone
may while away the time tootling on his recorder — Newsweek
intransitive verb
archaic : to pass tediously
• whil·er -lə(r) noun -s