whore
noun
a person who engages in sex acts for money; prostitute.
whore
1 American
[hawr]
/ hɔr /
noun
whores
plural
-
a person who engages in sex acts for money; prostitute.
-
Disparaging and Offensive. a person who is sexually promiscuous.
-
a person who sacrifices personal principles or uses someone or something in a base or unworthy manner, usually for money.
a greedy publicity whore.
verb (used without object)
whores,
present (3rd person singular)
whored,
past participle, past
whoring
present participle
-
to act as a whore.
-
to consort with whores.
-
to seek after something that is base or unworthy.
those who practice idolatry and whore after other gods.
verb (used with object)
whores,
present (3rd person singular)
whored,
past participle, past
whoring
present participle
-
to put to a base or unworthy use (sometimes followed byout ).
He’s whoring out his skills by writing for popular magazines.
-
Obsolete. to make a whore of; corrupt; debauch.
who're
2
American
[hoo-er]
/ ˈhu ər /
whore
British
/ hɔː /
noun
verb
-
to be or act as a prostitute
-
(of a man) to have promiscuous sexual relations, esp with prostitutes
-
(often foll by after) to seek that which is immoral, idolatrous, etc
Usage
See contraction.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
whoresimple
-
whoressimple
-
have whoredperfect
-
has whoredperfect
-
am whoringprogressive
-
are whoringprogressive
-
is whoringprogressive
-
have been whoringperfect progressive
-
has been whoringperfect progressive
Past
-
whoredsimple
-
had whoredperfect
-
was whoringprogressive
-
were whoringprogressive
-
had been whoringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of whore
First recorded before 1100; Middle English, Old English hōre; cognate with German Hure, Old Norse hōra; akin to Gothic hors “harlot,” Latin cārus “beloved; expensive”
Explanation
In the original sense, a whore is a prostitute: someone who has sex for money. The word has since broadened to mean anyone who is money-hungry. Whores traditionally whored their bodies out for money. But today a whore can be a person that compromises himself in any kind of way for monetary gain. It's also a nasty thing to call someone (especially a woman) who has a lot of sex and is often used as a vulgar insult similar to bitch. It's not really an appropriate word to call someone, including actual prostitutes.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Italian actress and filmmaker Asia Argento writes in an essay that she has been called a whore, liar, traitor, opportunist and more since accusing Weinstein last year of sexually assaulting her in 1997.
From Washington Times ● Apr. 11, 2018
I was called a liar and a fame whore, despite the evidence I had and the fact that I never sought fame — I had turned over those texts with the promise of anonymity.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 28, 2018
About substance, I aim to be as honest as possible; about delivery I aim to be a media whore.
From Salon ● Mar. 19, 2017
Academics may pounce on Brenton's play, but it eschews mock-Tudor costume drama to offer a compelling portrait of a woman contentiously described by James I as "the whore who changed England".
From The Guardian ● Jul. 29, 2010
“Family! They’re the ones whore always gonna be there for you. You don’t ignore the family. They show their love. You take their love. You feel better. Capisce?”
From "A Heart in a Body in the World" by Deb Caletti
Nearly half of Americans who’re actively looking for work report it’s been a negative experience, with many saying they can’t get an interview, according to recent Gallup polls.
From Slate ● Apr. 20, 2026
“The reality is police are not the ones who’re allowed to decide who is press,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2025
This means that people who're more socially connected are less likely to die prematurely from any cause.
From Salon ● Apr. 8, 2024
"And there are others who're going down that road, such as Colombia with Mr Petro," he adds.
From BBC ● Mar. 28, 2024
Kids who’re a bit popular like Gilbert Swinyard have sort of respectful nicknames like “Yardy.”
From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell
“Maybe some of the fame whores, I don’t know,” said Dixon, a four-time IndyCar champion.
From Seattle Times ● May 25, 2017
“Among these unheroic transplants were roguish highwaymen, mean vagrants, Irish rebels, known whores, and an assortment of convicts shipped to the colonies for grand larcenies or other property crimes.”
From Washington Post ● Jun. 23, 2016
Kaling pooh-poohs the New Yorker, in which several of Novak’s stories appear; he replies in French, “We all must be whores for commerce, no?”
From Slate ● Feb. 2, 2016
Brett Ligon indicated that he plans to file a motion asking the judge to recuse himself after Case allegedly called the attorneys handling the case "media whores."
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2014
And so murderers, adulterers, thieves, whores, drunkards, idolaters, and all malefactors got protection under the Queen’s wings, under colour that they were of her religion.
From Life of Mary Queen of Scots, Volume I (of 2) by Bell, Henry Glassford
They will all, when they are boys, go whoring after strange gods, and they will become citizens—"fellow-citizens"—"illustrious fellow-citizens."
From Soldiers Three by Kipling, Rudyard
The words which follow in the verse—that all Israel went whoring after Gideon—are obviously an addition of the prophetic revision.
From The History of Antiquity, Vol. II (of VI) by Duncker, Max
Not whoring, not drunkenness, not covetousness shall they be the ministrants of, but in all ways lead just and sober lives.
From Woman under socialism by De Leon, Daniel
Sir 46:11 And concerning the judges, every one by name, whose heart went not a whoring, nor departed from the Lord, let their memory be blessed.
From Deuterocanonical Books of the Bible Apocrypha by Anonymous
They will all, when they are boys, go whoring after strange gods, and they will become citizens—'fellow-citizens'—'illustrious fellow-citizens.'
From Indian Tales by Kipling, Rudyard
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
