What does whimsy mean?
Word: Whimsy
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Whimsy means a light, fanciful kind of humour that is a little odd or unexpected. A story or picture with whimsy makes you smile because it is so full of imagination.
Synonyms: playfulness, fancy
How do you spell whimsy?
Syllables: whim - sy
Tricky part: The start is wh, which is easy to miss because it sounds like w. The ending is a plain -sy, not -zy, even though it sounds like z.
Watch out for: wimsy, whimzy, whimsie
Memory tip: Whimsy and whisper both begin whi-: a bit of whimsy is as light as a whisper.
Whimsy in a sentence
Example 1: The storybook was full of whimsy, with talking teapots and a flying bicycle.
Example 2: There is a touch of whimsy in our garden: a tiny fairy door at the foot of the mango tree.
Example 3: Grandpa's poems mix whimsy with good sense.
Fun Fact
Whimsy is linked to whim, which was shortened from an older word, whim-wham, meaning a fanciful little object or trinket.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word: whimsy
a) cheerfulness
b) seriousness
c) brightness
d) silliness
Show answer
b) seriousness. Whimsy is light and playful, so seriousness is its opposite.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
My little sister's drawings are full of whimsy, with purple elefants and smiling clouds.
a) whimsy
b) clouds
c) elefants
d) drawings
Show answer
c) elefants. Elephant is spelt with ph for the f sound, as in phone.
Spell-o-Spell
Choose the correctly spelt word:
a) whimsy
b) mischeif
c) cheerfull
d) riddel
Show answer
a) whimsy. Mischief has ie, riddle ends in -le and cheerful takes only one l.
Mingle-Mangle
Form a meaningful word from the jumbled letters:
mshywi
a) flimsy
b) clumsy
c) whimsy
d) whimper
Show answer
c) whimsy. Flimsy and clumsy have no w or h, and whimper needs a p, an e and an r.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. A writer who adds whimsy to a story wants readers to ____.
a) feel nervous and tense
b) argue about the ending
c) feel amused and charmed
d) memorise hard facts
Show answer
c) feel amused and charmed
2. Which object shows whimsy?
a) a grey filing cabinet
b) a plain steel bucket
c) a printed train timetable
d) a letterbox painted like a frog
Show answer
d) a letterbox painted like a frog
