whale away
Attack physically or verbally, as in Our boys whaled away at the enemy, or The talk-show host whaled away at the hostile critics. The word whale here does not allude to the ocean mammal, but means “flog” or “thrash.” [Mid-1800s]
Words Nearby whale away
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
How to use whale away in a sentence
At that juncture the look-out at the masthead shouted, “A dead whale away to the southward!”
The Two Whalers | W.H.G. Kingston
Browse