whaler

noun

whal·​er ˈ(h)wā-lər How to pronounce whaler (audio)
1
: a person or ship engaged in whale fishing
2

Examples of whaler in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web After years of challenging whalers, the activist group Sea Shepherd will spend this season tracking krill fishers. Bill Weir, CNN, 4 Feb. 2024 They were mostly wiped out by diseases brought by the French in their warships and Americans and Europeans in their whalers. Peter Heller, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 Jan. 2024 Within 12 years, whalers stationed on the island had slaughtered 24,000 humpbacks. Douglas Main, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Jan. 2024 At the same time, missionaries from New England arrived to convert the Hawaiians to Christianity (and often clashed with drunken whalers). Rebecca Ellis, Anchorage Daily News, 12 Aug. 2023 Leavitt was known as not only a prominent political and corporate leader, but as a revered whaler and skin boat builder. Alena Naiden, Anchorage Daily News, 11 Jan. 2023 The whalers would then get out on the water as quickly as possible to hunt. Joshua Rapp Learn, Discover Magazine, 9 Nov. 2023 There were at least 30 individual orcas known that collaborated with the Eden whalers from 1840 to 1930. Joshua Rapp Learn, Discover Magazine, 9 Nov. 2023 In the early part of the past century, whalers who docked their ships in Lahaina, in western Maui, would drink at the saloon in the Pioneer Inn. Emily Heil, Washington Post, 11 Aug. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'whaler.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1684, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of whaler was in 1684

Dictionary Entries Near whaler

Cite this Entry

“Whaler.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/whaler. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

whaler

noun
whal·​er ˈhwā-lər How to pronounce whaler (audio)
ˈwā-
: a person or ship that hunts for whales

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