Whig

5 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Whig \Whig\, n. [Said to be from whiggam, a term used in
     Scotland in driving horses, whiggamore one who drives horses
     (a term applied to some western Scotchmen), contracted to
     whig. In 1648, a party of these people marched to Edinburgh
     to oppose the king and the duke of Hamilton (the Whiggamore
     raid), and hence the name of Whig was given to the party


     opposed to the court. Cf. Scot. whig to go quickly.]
     [1913 Webster]
     1. (Eng. Politics) One of a political party which grew up in
        England in the seventeenth century, in the reigns of
        Charles I. and II., when great contests existed respecting
        the royal prerogatives and the rights of the people. Those
        who supported the king in his high claims were called
        Tories, and the advocates of popular rights, of
        parliamentary power over the crown, and of toleration to
        Dissenters, were, after 1679, called Whigs. The terms
        Liberal and Radical have now generally superseded Whig in
        English politics. See the note under {Tory}.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. (Amer. Hist.)
        (a) A friend and supporter of the American Revolution; --
            opposed to {Tory}, and {Royalist}.
        (b) One of the political party in the United States from
            about 1829 to 1856, opposed in politics to the
            Democratic party.
            [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Whig \Whig\, a.
     Of or pertaining to the Whigs.
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Whig \Whig\, n. [See {Whey}.]
     Acidulated whey, sometimes mixed with buttermilk and sweet
     herbs, used as a cooling beverage. [Obs. or Prov. Eng.]
     [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  Whig
       n 1: urged social reform in 19th century England
       2: a supporter of the American Revolution
       3: a member of the Whig Party in the United States in
          pre-Civil-War times

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  19 Moby Thesaurus words for "Whig":
     Conservative, Democrat, Labourite, Republican, Tory, heeler,
     loyalist, partisan, party faithful, party hack, party man,
     party member, party wheelhorse, registered Democrat,
     registered Republican, regular, stalwart, ward heeler,
     wheelhorse