[f. WHIZZ v. + -ER1.] Something that whizzes; spec. a. a toy that makes a whizzing noise when whirled round; b. a machine for drying various articles by the centrifugal force of rapid revolution; a hydro-extractor.
1881. Tylor, in Academy, 9 April, 265/3. The action of this simple contrivance is mechanically curious, and it is known as a country boy’s plaything in Europe, called in England a ‘whizzer’ or ‘bull-roarer,’ in Germany a ‘brummer.’
1887. Pall Mall Gaz., 6 July, 14/1. The most interesting machine is the whizzer, which dries clothes in 1,000 revolutions a minute.
1888. Sci. Amer. XXV. 24 March, Supp. 10198/3 (Cent. Dict.) Ritchie’s Steam Whizzer.—A machine for treating musty grain.
