Whiplash

//ˈwɪpˌlæʃ// noun, verb

noun, verb ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun

1
The lash of a whip. countable
2
a quick blow delivered with a whip or whiplike object wordnet
3
An injury to the upper spine connected to a violent jerk of the head in either a backward or forward or side to side direction, resembling the motion of a whip. countable, uncountable
4
an injury to the neck (the cervical vertebrae) resulting from rapid acceleration or deceleration (as in an automobile accident) wordnet
5
An abrupt and unexpected change, or the resulting feeling of shock. countable, figuratively, uncountable
"Some parents, feeling too hurt by the push-off or taking their teenager’s rejections too personally, choose to make themselves unavailable. In some ways it does feel better to avoid episodes of emotional whiplash."

Verb

1
To jerk back and forth; to buffet.
"[…] Ms. Kennedy has been whiplashed by assertions that she is at once protected and presumptuous."
2
To lash as if with a whip.
"After a while, he let go of my hand in order to protect his own face from being whiplashed by the low branches."

Synonyms

lash whip whiplash injury astonisher belt blacksnake

Example

"I had a whiplash injury two months ago."

Etymology

Univerbation of whip + lash.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.