whipsaw

[ hwip-saw, wip- ]

/ ˈʰwɪpˌsɔ, ˈwɪp- /

noun

a saw for two persons, as a pitsaw, used to divide timbers lengthwise.

verb (used with object), whip·sawed, whip·sawed or whip·sawn, whip·saw·ing.

to cut with a whipsaw.

to win two bets from (a person) at one turn or play, as at faro.

to subject to two opposing forces at the same time: The real-estate market has been whipsawed by high interest rates and unemployment.

verb (used without object), whip·sawed, whip·sawed or whip·sawn, whip·saw·ing.

(of a trailer, railroad car, etc.) to swing suddenly to the right or left, as in rounding a sharp curve at high speed.

Nearby words

whippletree, whippoorwill, whippy, whipray, whips, whipsaw, whipsawed, whipscorpion, whipsnake, whipstall, whipstitch

Origin of whipsaw

First recorded in 1530–40; whip + saw¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for whipsaw

The whipsaw can and does go up with almost as much speed as it goes down—recall the snap back from the lows of March of 2009.
Wall Street Is Irrelevant|Zachary Karabell|August 5, 2011|DAILY BEAST
It took nice work to whipsaw lumber and keep it true to the line.
A Trip to California in 1853|Washington Bailey
Then the Indian brings over a whipsaw from the cabin at Surprise Lake and makes lumber enough for the box.
Lost Face|Jack London
“Jake Block, the owner of Whipsaw,” Wallingford was pleased to inform him.
Young Wallingford|George Randolph Chester

At the half, one of the three was dropping back, and Whipsaw slowly overtaking it.
Young Wallingford|George Randolph Chester
Try as she would, she could not get them out, and then she remembered that Hastings kept a whipsaw in a shed close by.
Masters of the Wheat-Lands|Harold Bindloss

British Dictionary definitions for whipsaw

whipsaw

/ (ˈwɪpˌsɔː) /

noun

any saw with a flexible blade, such as a bandsaw

verb -saws, -sawing, -sawed, -sawed or -sawn (tr)

to saw with a whipsaw

US to defeat in two ways at once

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