or whapper, subs. (common).—Anything very large, fine, good: a generic intensive (GROSE): also WHOPPING = extremely fine, very large, A1 (q.v.).
[1520. HAZLITT, Remains of the Early Popular Poetry of England, II. 94. An admiring woman calls a stalwart youth a WHYPPER; in our day she would use WHOPPER or whacker.]
1706. WARD, The Wooden World Dissected, 69. He looks then most formidable … in his Fur-cap and WHAPPING large Watchcoat.
1829. MARRYAT, Frank Mildmay, xx. This is a WHOPPER that’s after us.
1847. ROBB, Streaks of Squatter Life, 61. A WHAPPIN’ big pan of mush stood rite in the centre [of a table], and a large pan of milk beside it, with lots of corn bread and butter.
1841. E. G. PAIGE (‘Dow, Jr.’), Short Patent Sermons, I. 91. Before you lie, brethren, make up your minds to go it strong; for a little callow fib stands but a small chance among the big, bouncing WHOPPERS that are let loose nowadays. Ibid., III. 21. A few years ago, WHAPPING great sleeves and big antecedents were all the rage; and what a funny figure our bellies did then cut.
1861. T. HUGHES, Tom Brown at Oxford, xlvii. There’s a WHOPPER rising not more than ten yards below the rail.
1834. C. A. DAVIS, Letters of Jack Downing, Major, 67. We’ve got only one crib, and that’s a WHAPPIN one too.
1886. Harper’s Magazine, lxxii. Jan., 213. But he hardly deserves mercy, having told ‘WHOPPERS.’
1888. St. James’s Gazette, 2 March. Not content with two WHOPPERS, as Mr. Jo Gargery might call them, Surtees goes on to invent a perfectly incredible heraldic bearing.
1901. W. S. WALKER, In the Blood, 23. ‘Blime, she’s a WHOPPER!’ says Billy.
