whinge

[hwinj, winj]

verb (used without object)

British and Australian Informal.

whinged, whinging 

1. to complain; whine.

whinge

/ wɪndʒ /

verb

1. to cry in a fretful way

2. to complain

noun

1. a complaint

Other Word Forms

• whinger noun
• whingeing noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of whinge¹

First recorded before 1150; dialectal Scots, North England, earlier Scots quhynge, Old English hwinsian (not recorded in Middle English ); cognate with Old High German winsōn ( German winseln ); derivative of Germanic base of whine

Word History and Origins

Origin of whinge¹

from a Northern variant of Old English hwinsian to whine; related to Old High German winsan, winisan, whence Middle High German winsen

Example Sentences

The likes of Ellis Genge might whinge and moan about former pros not understanding what it takes, but unfortunately they do because they have been successful in the past and won trophies.

From BBC

Clarke-Smith dismissed the complaint as "a bit of a whinge... No-one is pretending to be an MP".

From BBC

"This is not a whinge, it's not about me, it's more for other people. Not everybody has got a conventional CV which sees you working up the management ladder."

From BBC

Dr Shaw said the police investigation found messages the couple exchanged with each other in September in which Castle told her husband Leiland-James was an "absolute moaning whinge bag", but she needed to "stop smacking him because if I start it wont stop".

From BBC

You will whinge to the school and demand meetings and they will say they hear your concern and nothing will happen,’ ” he said.

From Los Angeles Times

When To Use

What does whinge mean?

Whinge means to complain or whine.Whinge is primarily used in the U.K. and Australia.Like whine, whinge can mean to make a whining noise (often as part of complaining), or to complain with such a tone, or simply to complain in a way that’s considered annoying. When you say that someone’s whinging, you’re criticizing them because they’re complaining in an annoying way, especially about something minor.Whinge can also be used as a noun referring to a complaint, but this use is much less common than its verb sense.The variant spelling winge is primarily used in Australia.Example: John’s mother told him not to whinge about having to spend time with his relatives.