whiz

UK:**UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/wɪz/US:USA pronunciation: IPA and respellingUSA pronunciation: IPA/hwɪz, wɪz/ ,USA pronunciation: respelling(hwiz, wiz)

Inflections of 'whiz' (v): (⇒ conjugate)
whizzes
v 3rd person singular
whizzing
v pres p
whizzed
v past
whizzed
v past p

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
whiz1 or whizz /hwɪz, wɪz/USA pronunciation   v., whizzed, whiz•zing, n. 
v. [no object]
  1. to make or move with a humming, buzzing, or hissing sound, as of an object flying quickly through the air:A cloud of hornets whizzed by.

n. [countable]
  1. Informal Termsa very skillful person;
    expert:She's always been a whiz at math.
  2. a whizzing sound:the whiz of the bullets passing by.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
whiz1  (hwiz, wiz),USA pronunciation v., whizzed, whiz•zing, n. 
v.i. 
  1. to make a humming, buzzing, or hissing sound, as an object passing swiftly through the air.
  2. to move or rush with such a sound:The angry hornets whizzed by in a cloud.

v.t. 
  1. to cause to whiz.
  2. to treat with a whizzer.

n. 
  1. Informal Termsa person who is quite good at a particular activity, in a certain field, etc.:She's a whiz at math.
  2. the sound of a whizzing object.
  3. a swift movement producing such a sound.
Also, whizz. 
  • 1540–50; imitative; compare fizz
whiz′zing•ly, adv. 

whiz2  (hwiz, wiz),USA pronunciation n. 
  1. Informal Termswizard (def. 3).
  • by shortening

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
whizz, whiz /wɪz/ vb (whizzes, whizzing, whizzed)
  1. to make or cause to make a loud humming or buzzing sound
  2. to move or cause to move with such a sound
  3. (intransitive) informal to move or go rapidly
 n
  1. a loud humming or buzzing sound
  2. informal a person who is extremely skilful at some activity
  3. a slang word for amphetamine
  4. take a whizz ⇒ US informal to urinate
Etymology: 16th Century: of imitative origin
'whiz' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
whizz - whizz-bang - whizz kid - bound - gee whiz - whine - whish - whiz-bang - whiz kid - whizzer - whizzo - wizard

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