Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary

whi stle-blowing also whistleblowing N‑UNCOUNT [oft N n] Whistle-blowing is the act of telling the authorities or the public that the organization you are working for is doing something immoral or illegal. □  It took internal whistle-blowing and investigative journalism to uncover the rot.

whi stle-stop ADJ [ADJ n] If someone, especially a politician, goes on a whistle-stop tour, they visit a lot of different places in a short time.

whit / ^h w I t/

1 PHRASE [with neg] You say not a whit or not one whit to emphasize that something is not the case at all. [mainly FORMAL or OLD-FASHIONED , EMPHASIS ] □  He cared not a whit for the social, political or moral aspects of literature.

2 N‑UNCOUNT [usu N n] Whit means the same as Whitsun . □  The orchestra gave its first performance on Whit Monday.

white ◆◆◆ / ^h wa I t/ (whiter , whitest , whites )

1 COLOUR Something that is white is the colour of snow or milk. □  He had nice square white teeth. □  He was dressed in white from head to toe. ●  white|ness N‑UNCOUNT □ [+ of ] Her scarlet lipstick emphasized the whiteness of her teeth.

2 ADJ A white person has a pale skin and belongs to a race which is of European origin. □  He was white, with brown shoulder-length hair and a moustache. ● N‑COUNT [usu pl] Whites are white people. □  It's a school that's brought blacks and whites and Hispanics together.

3 ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] If someone goes white , the skin on their face becomes very pale, for example because of fear, shock, anger, or illness. □  Richard had gone very white, but he stood his ground. □ [+ with ] His face was white with fury. ● PHRASE If someone looks white as a sheet or as white as a sheet , they look very frightened, shocked, or ill. □  He appeared in the doorway, white as a sheet, eyes wide with horror.

4 ADJ White wine is pale yellow in colour. □  Gregory poured another glass of white wine and went back to his bedroom. ● N‑VAR You can refer to white wine as white . □  I bought a bottle of Californian white.

5 ADJ White coffee has had milk or cream added to it. [BRIT ] □  Wayne has a large white coffee in front of him.

6 ADJ [ADJ n] White blood cells are the cells in your blood which your body uses to fight infection.

7 N‑VAR The white of an egg is the transparent liquid that surrounds the yellow part called the yolk.

8 N‑COUNT The white of someone's eye is the white part that surrounds the coloured part called the iris.

white|board / ^h wa I tbɔː ^r d/ (whiteboards ) N‑COUNT A whiteboard is a shiny white board on which people draw or write using special pens. Whiteboards are often used for teaching or giving talks.

whi te Chri st|mas (white Christmases ) N‑COUNT A white Christmas is a Christmas when it snows.

whi te-co llar also white collar

1 ADJ [ADJ n] White-collar workers work in offices rather than doing physical work such as making things in factories or building things. □  White-collar workers now work longer hours.

2 ADJ [ADJ n] White-collar crime is committed by people who work in offices, and involves stealing money secretly from companies or the government, or getting money in an illegal way.

whi te e l|ephant (white elephants ) N‑COUNT If you describe something as a white elephant , you mean that it is a waste of money because it is completely useless. [DISAPPROVAL ] □  The pavilion has become a £14 million steel and glass white elephant.

whi te goods N‑PLURAL People in business sometimes refer to fridges, washing machines, and other large pieces of electrical household equipment as white goods . Compare brown goods .

whi te-hai red ADJ Someone who is white-haired has white hair, usually because they are old.