I expected to hear back from them but I never heard a 'whisper'. [=I never heard from them again]
“I've had more than I can stand,” she complained in a 'stage whisper'.
I couldn't hear what they were saying because they were 'whispering'.
(..) Crabbe! Macnair! Goyle! Not even you... ...Lucius. My Lord, had I detected any sign, a whisper of your whereabouts... There were signs, my slippery friend. And more than whispers. I assure you, my Lord, I have never renounced the old ways. The face I have been obliged to present (..)2005 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire