whoop

American  

[hwoop, hwoop, woop, woop] / ʰwup, ʰwʊp, wup, wʊp /

noun

1. a loud cry or shout, as of excitement or joy.

2. the sound made by a person suffering from whooping cough.

---

verb (used without object)

1. to utter a loud cry or shout in expressing enthusiasm, excitement, etc.

2. to cry as an owl, crane, or certain other birds.

3. to make the characteristic sound accompanying the deep intake of air following a series of coughs in whooping cough.

verb (used with object)

1. to utter with or as if with a whoop.

2. to whoop to or at.

3. to call, urge, pursue, or drive with whoops.

   to whoop dogs on.

interjection

1. (used as a cry to attract attention from afar, or to show excitement, encouragement, enthusiasm, etc.)

verb phrase

1. whoop up to promote or praise; extol.

   a class reunion where they whoop up the good old days.

idioms

1. whoop it up,

   1. to raise a disturbance, as to celebrate noisily.

      They whooped it up after winning the big game.

   2. to stir up enthusiasm, as for an idea or project.

      Every spring they whoop it up for the circus.

2. not worth a whoop, to be worthless.

   Their promises aren't worth a whoop.

whoop British  

/ wuːp /

verb

1. to utter (speech) with loud cries, as of enthusiasm or excitement

2. med to cough convulsively with a crowing sound made at each inspiration

3. (of certain birds) to utter (a hooting cry)

4. (tr) to urge on or call with or as if with whoops

5. informal

   1. to indulge in a noisy celebration

   2. to arouse enthusiasm

---

noun

1. a loud cry, esp one expressing enthusiasm or excitement

2. med the convulsive crowing sound made during a paroxysm of whooping cough

3. informal worthless

Etymology

Origin of whoop

1350–1400; Middle English whopen, Old English hwōpan to threaten; cognate with Gothic hwopan to boast

Example Sentences

Allow me to speculate: She may come knocking sooner rather than later, asking for house-insurance payments, upkeep and — whoops! — years of unpaid property tax.

From MarketWatch

In 1962, President Kennedy signed the Vaccination Assistance Act, which ensured that all children under five, regardless of income, could receive vaccines against polio, diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus.

From Salon

The smash-up of the fantastical and the familiar is disorienting and gets even stranger when the reckless kids start to whoop like they’re on Muscle Beach.

From Los Angeles Times

And now my breath is coming in and out in big, loud, whooping gasps.

From Literature

Unlike most vaccine-preventable diseases, such as whooping cough and chickenpox, hepatitis B is typically asymptomatic, often spreading silently until midlife, when 1 in 4 infected people develop liver cancer or cirrhosis.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• boo
• hoot
• howl
• jeer
• shriek
• squawk