definitions

whammy

[ hwam-ee, wam-ee ]
/ ˈʰwæm i, ˈwæm i /
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noun, plural wham·mies. Informal.

the evil eye; jinx.
bad luck or misfortune.
a devastating blow, setback, or catastrophe: The drought and the high price of fertilizer are a double whammy to farmers.

RELATED WORDS

hex, hocus-pocus, curse, magic, abracadabra, charm, voodoo, jinx, conjuration

Nearby words

whalesucker, whaling, whaling port, wham, whammo, whammy, whanau, whang, whangarei, whangdoodle, whangee

Idioms

    put the whammy on,
    1. to give the evil eye to; jinx.
    2. to destroy, end, or eradicate: New controls will put the whammy on irresponsible spending.

Origin of whammy

1935–40; wham + -y2, one of the methods of putting a whammy on someone being to strike the fist into the palm
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for whammy

British Dictionary definitions for whammy

whammy

/ (ˈwæmɪ) /

noun plural -mies

something which has great, often negative, impactthe double whammy of high interest rates and low wage increases
an evil spell or curseshe was convinced he had put the whammy on her

Word Origin for whammy

C20: wham + -y ²
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012