whiz-bang

Or whiz·bang,

[hwiz-bang, wiz-, hwiz-bang, wiz-]

noun

1. Military.,  a small, high-speed shell whose sound as it flies through the air arrives almost at the same instant as its explosion.

2. a firecracker with a similar effect.

3. Informal.,  whiz.

adjective

1. Informal.,  first-rate; topnotch.

   a whiz-bang navigator.

Word History and Origins

Origin of whiz-bang¹

First recorded in 1910–15; imitative of the sound

Example Sentences

This might not be the last test where Beijing leans on its strength in work-a-day industrial semiconductors while Silicon Valley is entranced by whiz-bang artificial-intelligence-driven breakthroughs, though.

Read more on Barron's

The explanation for their propinquity lies not in the creation of some whiz-bang, life-changing, paradigm-bending consumer product, or the shining virtues or particularly fertile minds that grace Silicon Valley’s fruited plain.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The life-size portrait he produced is a whiz-bang spectacle of courtly pomp and dynastic circumstance.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

“The Phantom Menace” left no doubt of that, revealing Lucas to be less of some space opera guru than a guy more skilled at whiz-bang effects than character development or thoughtful exposition.

Read more on Salon

“We were really nervous because half this movie is people in rooms talking about their feelings, and the other half is all this whiz-bang stuff. We kept asking, ‘Are they going to stay interested in the intimate scenes?’

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• artist 
• authority 
• connoisseur 
• doctor 
• genius 
• guru 
• professional 
• scientist