In a casino, a person who routinely bets at the maximum limit allowable.
An investor who deals with very large amounts of money.
A person who spends large amounts of money on things that are marketed to them.
Verb
To hunt for whales.
To thrash, to flog, to beat vigorously or soundly.
Origin
From Middle English whale, from Old English hwæl ("whale"), from Proto-West Germanic *hwal, from Proto-Germanic *hwalaz ("whale") (compare German Wal, Swedish val, Danish and Norwegian Bokmål hval, Norwegian Nynorsk kval; compare also Dutch walvis, West Frisian walfisk, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kʷálos ("sheatfish") (compare German Wels, Latin squalus ("big sea fish"), Old Prussian kalis, Ancient Greek ἄσπαλος, Avestan 𐬐𐬀𐬭𐬀 ("kind of fish")).
Uncertain. Perhaps a variant of wale influenced by whack, whap, etc.
Modern English dictionary
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