## Etymology
Of imitative origin, attested from the 16th century, mimicking the hissing or buzzing sound of something moving swiftly. The 'expert' sense (19th–20th century) was reinforced by association with wizard.

## AI Etymology
Whiz is traced through of imitative origin, attested from the 16th century, mimicking the hissing or buzzing sound of something moving swiftly. The 'expert' sense (19th–20th century) was reinforced by association with wizard. In current use it is a verb and noun meaning "to move swiftly with a hissing sound, or an expert person". That sense is explained by the older material without requiring a speculative semantic step: the inherited or borrowed base supplies the field of meaning, while the English formation fixes its modern role. The history is chiefly morphological, explaining how the modern form packages an older base into its present English use. A central historical form is onomatopoeic whiz. Related English forms include wizard. For dictionary purposes, the important point is the continuity between the older form, the route into English, and the present lexical sense.

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