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