"whippersnapper" meaning in English

See whippersnapper in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

IPA: /ˈwɪpəˌsnæpə/ [Received-Pronunciation], /ˈʍɪpəɹˌsnæpəɹ/ [US] Audio: en-us-whippersnapper.ogg [US], en-au-whippersnapper.ogg [Australia] Forms: whippersnappers [plural]
Etymology: Extension of *whip-snapper (“a cracker of whips”), or perhaps from snipper-snapper. Compare also whipperginnie (“term of abuse for a woman”), late 16th c. Etymology templates: {{m|en|snipper-snapper}} snipper-snapper, {{m|en|whipperginnie|gloss=term of abuse for a woman}} whipperginnie (“term of abuse for a woman”) Head templates: {{en-noun}} whippersnapper (plural whippersnappers)
  1. (colloquial, dated) A young and cheeky or presumptuous person; often with a connotation of ignorance via inexperience. Tags: colloquial, dated Categories (topical): Children, People Synonyms: upstart, whipper-snapper, whipper snapper Translations (young, cheeky person): japsnoet (Afrikaans), калпазанин (kalpazanin) [masculine] (Bulgarian), snotneus (Dutch), branie (Dutch), broekie (Dutch), räkänokka (Finnish), märkäkorva (Finnish), junger Spund [masculine] (German), Jungspund [masculine] (German), Bengel [masculine] (German), Lümmel [masculine] (German), oflátungur [masculine] (Icelandic), merkikerti [neuter] (Icelandic), piccolo impertinente [masculine] (Italian), 青二才 (aonisai) (alt: あおにさい) (Japanese), frustum puerī [neuter] (Latin), chłystek [masculine] (Polish), metido [masculine] (Portuguese), mequetrefe [masculine] (Spanish), arrapiezo [masculine] (Spanish), chiquilicuatre (Spanish), chisgarabís (Spanish), pollastre (Spanish), pojkspoling [masculine] (Swedish), flicksnärta [feminine] (Swedish), snorvalp [common-gender] (Swedish)

Inflected forms

Alternative forms

Download JSON data for whippersnapper meaning in English (6.0kB)

{
  "etymology_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "snipper-snapper"
      },
      "expansion": "snipper-snapper",
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      "args": {
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        "gloss": "term of abuse for a woman"
      },
      "expansion": "whipperginnie (“term of abuse for a woman”)",
      "name": "m"
    }
  ],
  "etymology_text": "Extension of *whip-snapper (“a cracker of whips”), or perhaps from snipper-snapper. Compare also whipperginnie (“term of abuse for a woman”), late 16th c.",
  "forms": [
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      "form": "whippersnappers",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
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  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
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          "name": "English reduplications",
          "parents": [],
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        {
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Children",
          "orig": "en:Children",
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        {
          "text": "These whippersnappers have never had to walk far or carry water.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2004, Chris Wallace, Character: Profiles in Presidential Courage",
          "text": "Eisenhower thought that the President-elect, his junior by over 25 years, was merely a \"young whippersnapper.\"",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A young and cheeky or presumptuous person; often with a connotation of ignorance via inexperience."
      ],
      "id": "en-whippersnapper-en-noun-G14JFQHR",
      "links": [
        [
          "young",
          "young"
        ],
        [
          "cheeky",
          "cheeky"
        ],
        [
          "presumptuous",
          "presumptuous"
        ],
        [
          "ignorance",
          "ignorance#English"
        ],
        [
          "inexperience",
          "inexperience#English"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(colloquial, dated) A young and cheeky or presumptuous person; often with a connotation of ignorance via inexperience."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "upstart"
        },
        {
          "word": "whipper-snapper"
        },
        {
          "word": "whipper snapper"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "colloquial",
        "dated"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "code": "af",
          "lang": "Afrikaans",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "word": "japsnoet"
        },
        {
          "code": "bg",
          "lang": "Bulgarian",
          "roman": "kalpazanin",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "калпазанин"
        },
        {
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "word": "snotneus"
        },
        {
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "word": "branie"
        },
        {
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "word": "broekie"
        },
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "word": "räkänokka"
        },
        {
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "word": "märkäkorva"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "junger Spund"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "Jungspund"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "Bengel"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "Lümmel"
        },
        {
          "code": "is",
          "lang": "Icelandic",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "oflátungur"
        },
        {
          "code": "is",
          "lang": "Icelandic",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "merkikerti"
        },
        {
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "piccolo impertinente"
        },
        {
          "alt": "あおにさい",
          "code": "ja",
          "lang": "Japanese",
          "roman": "aonisai",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "word": "青二才"
        },
        {
          "code": "la",
          "lang": "Latin",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "frustum puerī"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "chłystek"
        },
        {
          "code": "pt",
          "lang": "Portuguese",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "metido"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "mequetrefe"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "arrapiezo"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "word": "chiquilicuatre"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "word": "chisgarabís"
        },
        {
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "word": "pollastre"
        },
        {
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "pojkspoling"
        },
        {
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "flicksnärta"
        },
        {
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "young, cheeky person",
          "tags": [
            "common-gender"
          ],
          "word": "snorvalp"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈwɪpəˌsnæpə/",
      "tags": [
        "Received-Pronunciation"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈʍɪpəɹˌsnæpəɹ/",
      "tags": [
        "US"
      ]
    },
    {
      "audio": "en-us-whippersnapper.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/5/57/En-us-whippersnapper.ogg/En-us-whippersnapper.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/En-us-whippersnapper.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "US"
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    },
    {
      "audio": "en-au-whippersnapper.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/8/86/En-au-whippersnapper.ogg/En-au-whippersnapper.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/86/En-au-whippersnapper.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Australia"
      ],
      "text": "Audio (AU)"
    }
  ],
  "word": "whippersnapper"
}
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      "expansion": "whipperginnie (“term of abuse for a woman”)",
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  "etymology_text": "Extension of *whip-snapper (“a cracker of whips”), or perhaps from snipper-snapper. Compare also whipperginnie (“term of abuse for a woman”), late 16th c.",
  "forms": [
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      "form": "whippersnappers",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
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      "expansion": "whippersnapper (plural whippersnappers)",
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  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
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        "English colloquialisms",
        "English countable nouns",
        "English dated terms",
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
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        "English entries with topic categories using raw markup",
        "English lemmas",
        "English nouns",
        "English reduplications",
        "English terms with IPA pronunciation",
        "English terms with audio links",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples",
        "en:Children",
        "en:People"
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      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "These whippersnappers have never had to walk far or carry water.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2004, Chris Wallace, Character: Profiles in Presidential Courage",
          "text": "Eisenhower thought that the President-elect, his junior by over 25 years, was merely a \"young whippersnapper.\"",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A young and cheeky or presumptuous person; often with a connotation of ignorance via inexperience."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "young",
          "young"
        ],
        [
          "cheeky",
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        ],
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          "presumptuous",
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        ],
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          "ignorance",
          "ignorance#English"
        ],
        [
          "inexperience",
          "inexperience#English"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(colloquial, dated) A young and cheeky or presumptuous person; often with a connotation of ignorance via inexperience."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "colloquial",
        "dated"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
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      "ipa": "/ˈwɪpəˌsnæpə/",
      "tags": [
        "Received-Pronunciation"
      ]
    },
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈʍɪpəɹˌsnæpəɹ/",
      "tags": [
        "US"
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    },
    {
      "audio": "en-us-whippersnapper.ogg",
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      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/En-us-whippersnapper.ogg",
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      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/86/En-au-whippersnapper.ogg",
      "tags": [
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  "synonyms": [
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      "word": "upstart"
    },
    {
      "word": "whipper-snapper"
    },
    {
      "word": "whipper snapper"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "af",
      "lang": "Afrikaans",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "word": "japsnoet"
    },
    {
      "code": "bg",
      "lang": "Bulgarian",
      "roman": "kalpazanin",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "калпазанин"
    },
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "word": "snotneus"
    },
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "word": "branie"
    },
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "word": "broekie"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "word": "räkänokka"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "word": "märkäkorva"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "junger Spund"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "Jungspund"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "Bengel"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "Lümmel"
    },
    {
      "code": "is",
      "lang": "Icelandic",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "oflátungur"
    },
    {
      "code": "is",
      "lang": "Icelandic",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "merkikerti"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "piccolo impertinente"
    },
    {
      "alt": "あおにさい",
      "code": "ja",
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "roman": "aonisai",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "word": "青二才"
    },
    {
      "code": "la",
      "lang": "Latin",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "frustum puerī"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "chłystek"
    },
    {
      "code": "pt",
      "lang": "Portuguese",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "metido"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "mequetrefe"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "arrapiezo"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "word": "chiquilicuatre"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "word": "chisgarabís"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "word": "pollastre"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "pojkspoling"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "flicksnärta"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "young, cheeky person",
      "tags": [
        "common-gender"
      ],
      "word": "snorvalp"
    }
  ],
  "word": "whippersnapper"
}

This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-04-24 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-04-21 using wiktextract (82c8ff9 and f4967a5). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

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