whit

[hwit, wit]

See more synonyms for whit on Thesaurus.com

noun

a particle; bit; jot (used especially in negative phrases): not a whit better.

Origin of whit

1470–80; perhaps alteration of Middle English wiht wight¹

Can be confusedwhit wit

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for whit

Contemporary Examples

In 1997, Whit Stillman re-created Studio 54 in its ornate lobby for his film The Last Days of Disco.
How to Save Silent Movies: Inside New Jersey’s Cinema Paradiso
Rich Goldstein
October 2, 2014
Have you and Whit wanted to hook up again since The Last Days of Disco?
Chloe Sevigny on ‘The Cosmopolitans,’ New York’s Frat Boy Takeover, and ‘Asshole’ Michael Alig
Marlow Stern
August 24, 2014
Two decades on from his masterpiece on anti-Americanism abroad, Whit Stillman remains obsessed with native-expat dynamics.
Whit Stillman on the 20th Anniversary of ‘Barcelona’, His New Amazon Series, and the Myth of the Ugly Expat
Michael Weiss
August 10, 2014
Even so, the comments were illuminating in that they show that Obama is of no frame of mind to change the current policy a whit.
That Fascinating Obama–Charlie Rose Interview
Michael Tomasky
June 18, 2013
The tone was set early when Republican pollster Whit Ayers declared that “we are in an epic struggle against secular socialism.”
CPAC Defiant in Obama Era
Howard Kurtz
March 14, 2013

Historical Examples

They all came, and they looked not one whit better than on the Monday evening before.
Ester Ried Yet Speaking
Isabella Alden
"This room looks every whit as grand as it used to look to me when I was a boy," he said.
The Yates Pride
Mary E. Wilkins Freeman
But the colonel did not abate one whit of his craft or caution.
The Rock of Chickamauga
Joseph A. Altsheler
Strange to say, they appeared not a whit more afraid than the birds or hares.
The Field of Ice
Jules Verne
But yet his horse was not a whit Inclined to tarry there; For why?
Graded Poetry: Second Year
Various

British Dictionary definitions for whit

whit

noun

(usually used with a negative) the smallest particle; iota; jothe has changed not a whit

Word Origin

C15: probably variant of wight 1

Whit

noun

See Whitsuntide

adjective

of or relating to Whitsuntide

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

Word Origin and History for whit

n.

"smallest particle," 12c., in na whit "no amount," from Old English nan wiht, from wiht "amount," originally "person, human being" (see wight).

whit

Origin of .css-1fxfie5{font-size:22px;}@media (max-width:768px){.css-1fxfie5{font-size:18px;margin:0 10px 10px 0;word-break:break-all;word-wrap:break-word;-webkit-hyphens:auto;-moz-hyphens:auto;-ms-hyphens:auto;hyphens:auto;line-height:22px;}}whit

Related Words

Examples from the Web for whit

Contemporary Examples

In 1997, Whit Stillman re-created Studio 54 in its ornate lobby for his film The Last Days of Disco.

Have you and Whit wanted to hook up again since The Last Days of Disco?

Two decades on from his masterpiece on anti-Americanism abroad, Whit Stillman remains obsessed with native-expat dynamics.

Even so, the comments were illuminating in that they show that Obama is of no frame of mind to change the current policy a whit.

The tone was set early when Republican pollster Whit Ayers declared that “we are in an epic struggle against secular socialism.”

Historical Examples

They all came, and they looked not one whit better than on the Monday evening before.

"This room looks every whit as grand as it used to look to me when I was a boy," he said.

But the colonel did not abate one whit of his craft or caution.

Strange to say, they appeared not a whit more afraid than the birds or hares.

But yet his horse was not a whit Inclined to tarry there; For why?

whit

Word Origin

Whit

Word Origin and History for whit

n.

Origin of whit