The Indian Sea breedeth the most and the biggest fishes that are; among
which the whales and whirlpools, called "balænæ," take up in length as
much as four . . . arpents of land.
Holland.
Whirl"wig` (?), n. [Cf. Earwig.] (Zoöl.) A whirligig.
Whirl"wind` (?), n. [Cf. Icel. hvirfilvindr, Sw. hvirfvelvind, Dan.
hvirvelvind, G. wirbelwind. See Whirl, and Wind, n.]
1. A violent windstorm of limited extent, as the tornado, characterized
by an inward spiral motion of the air with an upward current in the
center; a vortex of air. It usually has a rapid progressive motion.
The swift dark whirlwind that uproots the woods. And drowns the
villages.
Bryant.
Some meteorologists apply the word whirlwind to the larger rotary storm
also, such as cyclones.
2. Fig.: A body of objects sweeping violently onward. "The whirlwind of
hounds and hunters." Macaulay.