What does whiffled mean?
Whiffled is the past tense and past participle of whiff, a compact and slightly playful verb with several related uses. Its most familiar sense is to miss an attempt to hit, strike, or score: a batter who whiffles fails to connect with a pitch. It can also describe taking a quick, faint smell, as when a dog whiffles the air, or moving or striking through the air without making contact. In extended informal use, whiffled may simply mean failed badly or produced an embarrassing miss. The word suits conversational accounts of sporting frustration but can also sound gently comic when applied to an ill-fated attempt. Although its sense can vary, the underlying image is motion that fails to achieve its purpose: a nose catches only a hint of a scent, a bat misses the ball, or a performer loses the moment. Knowing whiffled therefore depends on reading context rather than expecting one narrow meaning.
verbWhiffled is the past tense and past participle of whiff. It can mean sniffed or tried to smell something faintly, moved or struck through the air without making contact, or failed to hit, strike, or score.
- Missed an attempt to hit, strike, or score.
- Gave a quick, faint sniff or attempted to smell something.
- Moved or struck through the air with a quick motion without making contact.
"The puppy whiffled the air and bounded into the grass."
"The puppy whiffled the air and bounded into the grass."
"He whiffled on the pitch and sent the ball foul into the backstop."
Whiffled can describe a quick sniff, a missed swing, or an unsuccessful attempt at scoring—several very different blunders in one little word.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
How whiffled is actually used
Generally informal. The sports sense is the most familiar today, while the sniffing sense is also chiefly informal. Figurative use can describe an embarrassing or conspicuous failure.