whammy

[wam-ee, hwam-ee]

noun

Informal.

plural

whammies 

1. a devastating blow, setback, or catastrophe.

   The drought and the high price of fertilizer are a double whammy to farmers.

   The big whammy will be the coming update, which could make our software nonfunctional.

2. bad luck or misfortune.

3. Often the whammy the evil eye; jinx.

whammy

/ ˈwæmɪ /

noun

1. something which has great, often negative, impact

   the double whammy of high interest rates and low wage increases

2. an evil spell or curse

   she was convinced he had put the whammy on her

Word History and Origins

Origin of whammy¹

First recorded in 1935–40; wham + -y ², after a method of jinxing someone by striking the fist into the palm

Word History and Origins

Origin of whammy¹

C20: _wham + _-y ²

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. 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.

Example Sentences

In what Nick described as a "double whammy", the couple had four e-bikes, worth hundreds, that they chained together outside their home after the blaze.

From BBC

And now the tariffs are a double whammy.

From BBC

But the ISC chief executive Julie Robinson says the sector has been hit a "triple whammy" of national insurance changes, an end to charitable business rates relief and "the blow of 20% VAT on fees".

From BBC

Employers will also pay an increased amount of National Insurance from April, which Mr Astley described as a "double whammy".

From BBC

"We also found that children's social and emotional development has a big impact on their academic results so it's been a double whammy and we predict that GCSEs won't recover for a decade."

From BBC

Related Words

• hex