whiplash: Meaning and Definition of

whip•lash

1. the lash of a whip.
2. an abrupt snapping motion or change of direction resembling the lash of a whip.
3. a neck injury caused by a sudden jerking backward, forward, or both, of the head: Whiplash resulted when their car was struck from behind.
4. Also calleda connected series of reverse curves of more or less elliptical form, used as a major design motif in the Art Nouveau style.

1. to beat, hit, throw, etc., with or as if with a whiplash.
2. to affect adversely, as by a sudden change: new taxes whiplashing corporate earnings.