a whale of a [noun]
用于夸张地形容某事物很大或很棒。
He told a whale of a story.
他讲了一个极其精彩的故事。
大块头；庞然大物；极好的人或物；出色的东西；豪赌客；下大注的人；出手阔绰的人；大主顾；体型巨大的人；在大小或特质上令人印象深刻
a very large sea mammal that breathes air through a blowhole on the top of its head
Any large cetacean, usually with the exclusion of dolphins and porpoises.
体型巨大的人；在大小或特质上令人印象深刻
a very large person; impressive in size or qualities
Any species of Cetacea.
任何大型鲸类哺乳动物,具有流线型的身体,通过头部的喷气孔呼吸
any of the larger cetacean mammals having a streamlined body and breathing through a blowhole on the head
Something, or someone, that is very large.
Something, or someone, that is excellent.
A gambler who routinely wagers large amounts of money.
A person who spends large amounts of money on things that are marketed to them.
The whale surfaced to breathe through its blowhole.
这条鲸鱼浮出水面，通过呼吸孔呼吸。
用法提示：whale 是名词，单数形式，指一条鲸鱼。
We saw a group of whales off the coast.
我们在海岸附近看到了一群鲸鱼。
用法提示：whales 是 whale 的复数形式，指多只鲸鱼。
Whales are mammals, not fish.
鲸鱼是哺乳动物，不是鱼。
用法提示：whales 是 whale 的复数形式，作主语，泛指鲸类动物。
用于夸张地形容某事物很大或很棒。
He told a whale of a story.
他讲了一个极其精彩的故事。
常与表示种类或特征的形容词连用。
The blue whale is the largest animal on Earth.
蓝鲸是地球上最大的动物。
较技术性，泛指鲸豚类
文学用词，常指巨大海兽
常用于普通人，不特指鲸鱼
常指巨大且令人印象深刻的事物或人
常用于形容极其庞大的人或物，带有夸张色彩
grammar · medium
易错句子He is a whale man.
正确表达He is a whale of a man.
“whale”作为名词不能直接修饰另一个名词。表示“非常大的人”时，常用固定搭配"a whale of a + 名词"，意为“极好的、巨大的”。
grammar · medium
易错句子We saw whale in the sea.
正确表达We saw a whale in the sea.
“whale”是可数名词，单数形式前通常需要限定词（如冠词）。中文没有冠词，容易遗漏。
发音相同但含义不同：whale指鲸鱼，wail指大声哭喊。注意拼写差异。
发音相同但拼写和含义不同：whale指鲸鱼，wale指皮肤上的伤痕或织物上的凸纹。
蓝鲸
The blue whale is the largest animal on Earth.
蓝鲸是地球上最大的动物。
虎鲸
Killer whales are highly intelligent marine mammals.
虎鲸是非常聪明的海洋哺乳动物。
座头鲸
We saw a humpback whale breaching during our boat tour.
在乘船游览时，我们看到一头座头鲸跃出水面。
观鲸
Whale watching is a popular tourist activity in Iceland.
观鲸是冰岛一项受欢迎的旅游活动。
鲸歌
Scientists study whale song to understand communication patterns.
科学家研究鲸歌以了解交流模式。
极大的，极好的
We had a whale of a time at the amusement park.
我们在游乐园玩得非常开心。
玩得非常愉快
We had a whale of a time at the party last night.
昨晚的派对我们玩得非常愉快。
巨大的差别
There is a whale of a difference between the two proposals.
这两个提案之间有天壤之别。
你会玩得非常开心！
When you get in a pickle, give a little whistle, and you'll have a whale of a time.
当你遇到麻烦时，吹个口哨，你会玩得非常开心。
拯救鲸鱼！
The 'Save the Whales' movement raised awareness about whaling.
“拯救鲸鱼”运动提高了人们对捕鲸的认识。
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.