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# whale

noun (whale, whales)

«whale» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. A whale is a very large animal that lives in the sea, looks like a fish, but is a mammal and breathes air. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/whale/#m1)
2. «A whale of a time» means a really great, fun time. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/whale/#m2)

### In the lessons

In science lessons whales are mammals: they breathe air through a blowhole, are warm-blooded and feed their babies (calves) on milk. The blue whale is the largest animal that has ever lived. Some whales eat tiny krill, others eat fish and squid. Whale watching is popular in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland. Phrases: blue whale, killer whale, humpback whale, whale song, a whale of a time.

### Examples

- A whale is a mammal, not a fish. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/whale/#x1)
- The blue whale is the biggest animal on Earth. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/whale/#x2)
- We saw a whale spout water from its blowhole. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/whale/#x3)
- Humpback whales sing long songs. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/whale/#x4)
- A baby whale is called a calf. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/whale/#x5)
- Killer whales hunt in groups. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/whale/#x6)
- Whales must come up to the surface to breathe. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/whale/#x7)
- We had a whale of a time at the party. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/whale/#x8)
- A great whale came and swallowed her. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/whale/#x9)

### Note

Countable noun (whales); a group can be called a pod. Trap: whales live in the sea but are NOT fish — they breathe air with lungs, not gills. A killer whale (orca) is actually a kind of dolphin. Do not confuse «whale» with «wail» (a long cry) — they sound the same.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «whale» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/W/whale/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«whale» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/whale.html) on Mova free.