Whig , a. Of or pertaining to the Whigs.
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.]
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 The terms Liberal and Radical have now generally superseded Whig in English politics.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.
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.
Whig (?), n. [See Whey.]
Acidulated whey, sometimes mixed with buttermilk and sweet herbs, used as a cooling
beverage. [Obs. or
Prov. Eng.]
Hear it pronounced