variants
or less commonly whiney
whinier; whiniest
: characterized by whining:
a
: having a high-pitched, shrill or plaintive quality
a whiny voice
"So What'cha Want," despite its jittery organ, whiny guitar, and distorted vocals, turned out to be one of the least predictable-sounding hit singles of recent years.—
Alan Light
Alan Light
b
: characterized by or given to complaining
whiny children
Their whiny, even beggarly tone was hardly the supremely confident sound of the American Century.—Sidney Blumenthal
Sidney Blumenthal… offering little more than a whiny list of grievances …—Linda Chavez
Linda ChavezIn this conversational memoir, Nancy comes across as honest, if a little whiny, and a major-league worrier.—Ilene Cooper
Ilene Cooper
whininess
noun
A few years ago, thirtysomething was widely reviled for encouraging the yuppie ethos of materialism and whininess.
—Mark Harris
Mark Harris
… I heard something, a certain whininess in his voice, maybe, that led me to conclude that I wasn't about to get a pasting …
—Nick Hornby
Nick Hornby
Examples of whiny in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Daniels is morose and whiny and Reynolds is hammy and over-the-top, which allows Stone to steal the movie, giving it its only modicum of zest and soul.
—Tim Grierson, Vulture, 23 July 2025
The response was Pavlovian, the practice ingrained in her by her own mother, who spent much of her time pacifying her insecure and whiny husband.
—Literary Hub, 9 July 2025
Allen says the little one began salivating, was noticeably flushed in his face, and became very whiny and fussy.
—Meredith Wilshere, People.com, 8 June 2025
Often, gallery shows are better, on all counts and, these days, less whiny and earnest.
—Brian T. Allen, National Review, 7 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for whiny
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Tim Grierson, Vulture, 23 July 2025
The response was Pavlovian, the practice ingrained in her by her own mother, who spent much of her time pacifying her insecure and whiny husband.
—Literary Hub, 9 July 2025
Allen says the little one began salivating, was noticeably flushed in his face, and became very whiny and fussy.
—Meredith Wilshere, People.com, 8 June 2025
Often, gallery shows are better, on all counts and, these days, less whiny and earnest.
—Brian T. Allen, National Review, 7 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for whiny
Cite this Entry
“Whiny.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/whiny. Accessed 6 Aug. 2025.
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