w

• wthe 23rd letter of the Roman alphabet
• W-shapedshaped in the form of the letter W
• W. B. YeatsIrish poet and dramatist (1865-1939)
• W. C. FieldsUnited States comedian and film actor (1880-1946)
• W. C. HandyUnited States blues musician who transcribed and published traditional blues music (1873-1958)
• W. E. B. Du BoisUnited States civil rights leader and political activist who campaigned for equality for Black Americans (1868-1963)
• W. H. AudenUnited States poet (born in England) (1907-1973)
• W. H. HudsonEnglish naturalist (born in Argentina) (1841-1922)
• W. K. KelloggUnited States food manufacturer who (with his brother) developed a breakfast cereal of crisp flakes of rolled and toasted wheat and corn; he established a company to manufacture the cereal (1860-1951)
• W. Somerset MaughamEnglish writer (born in France) of novels and short stories (1874-1965)
• W. V. QuineUnited States philosopher and logician who championed an empirical view of knowledge that depended on language (1908-2001)
• W. W. JacobsEnglish writer of macabre short stories (1863-1943)
• W.C.a toilet in Britain
• W.M.D.a weapon that kills or injures civilian as well as military personnel (nuclear and chemical and biological weapons)
• WAa state in northwestern United States on the Pacific
• waagThe grivet.
• waahooThe burning bush; -- said to be called after a quack medicine made from it.
• Wabasha tributary of the Ohio River that rises in western Ohio and flows southwestward across Indiana
• Wabash Rivera tributary of the Ohio River that rises in western Ohio and flows southwestward across Indiana
• wabbleTo move staggeringly or unsteadily from one side to the other; to vacillate; to move the manner of a rotating disk when the axis of rotation is inclined to that of the disk; -- said of a turning or whirling body; as, a top wabbles; a buzz saw wabbles. wobble. A hobbling, unequal motion, as of a wheel unevenly hung; a staggering to and fro.
• wabblyInclined to wabble; wabbling.
• Wacan army corps that was organized in World War II but is no longer a separate branch of the United States Army
• wackeA soft, earthy, dark-colored rock or clay derived from the alteration of basalt.
• wackilyin a mildly insane manner
• wackoa person who is regarded as eccentric or mad
• wackyinformal or slang terms for mentally irregular
• Wacoa city in east central Texas
• wada wad of something chewable as tobacco
• wadd(a) An earthy oxide of manganese, or mixture of different oxides and water, with some oxide of iron, and often silica, alumina, lime, or baryta; black ocher. There are several varieties. (b) Plumbago, or black lead.
• waddieSee Waddy.
• waddingany material used especially to protect something
• waddlewalking with short steps and the weight tilting from one foot to the other
• waddlersomeone who walks with a waddling gait
• waddlinglyIn a waddling manner.
• waddyAn aboriginal war club.
• waddywoodAn Australian tree (Pittosporum bicolor); also, its wood, used in making waddies.
• wadeEnglish tennis player who won many women's singles titles (born in 1945)
• waderany of many long-legged birds that wade in water in search of food
• waderswaterproof hip boots (sometimes extending to the chest) worn by anglers
• wadigully or streambed in northern Africa and the Middle East that remains dry except during rainy season
• wadingwalking with your feet in shallow water
• wading birdany of many long-legged birds that wade in water in search of food
• wading poola shallow pool for children
• wadmolA coarse, hairy, woolen cloth, formerly used for garments by the poor, and for various other purposes. [Spelled also wadmal, wadmeal, wadmoll, wadmel, etc.] Beck (Draper's Dict.). Sir W. Scott.
• wadsa large number or amount
• wadsetA kind of pledge or mortgage. [Written also wadsett.]
• wadsetterOne who holds by a wadset.
• wadyA ravine through which a brook flows; the channel of a water course, which is dry except in the rainy season.
• waeA wave. [Obs.] Spenser.
• waegThe kittiwake. [Scot.]
• waferthin disk of unleavened bread used in a religious service (especially in the celebration of the Eucharist)
• wafer-likeresembling a thin crisp wafer
• wafer-thinvery thin
• wafererA dealer in the cakes called wafers; a confectioner. [Obs.] Chaucer.
• wafflepancake batter baked in a waffle iron
• waffle irona kitchen appliance for baking waffles; the appliance usually consists of two indented metal pans hinged together so that they create a pattern on the waffle
• wafflersomeone who speaks or writes in a vague and evasive manner
• wafta long flag; often tapering
• waftageConveyance on a buoyant medium, as air or water. Shak. Boats prepared for waftage to and fro. Drayton.
• wafterOne who, or that which, wafts. O Charon, Thou wafter of the soul to bliss or bane. Beau. & FL.
• wafturethe act of signaling by a movement of the hand
• wagcausing to move repeatedly from side to side
• wag-halterOne who moves or wears a halter; one likely to be hanged. [Colloq. & Obs.] I can tell you, I am a mad wag-halter. Marston.
• wagatiA small East Indian wild cat (Felis wagati), regarded by some as a variety of the leopard cat.
• wagesomething that remunerates
• wage claimthe wage demanded from management for workers by their union representatives
• wage concessionan agreement to raise wages
• wage earnersomeone who earn wages in return for their labor
• wage floorfloor below which wages are not allowed to fall
• wage freezea freeze of wages at a given level
• wage hikethe amount a salary is increased
• wage increasethe amount a salary is increased
• wage scalea schedule of wages paid for different jobs
• wage schedulea schedule of wages paid for different jobs
• wage setterany economic condition or variable that serves to set wage rates
• wage-earningof those who work for wages especially manual or industrial laborers
• wagelSee Waggel.
• wagenboomA south African proteaceous tree (Protea grandiflora); also, its tough wood, used for making wagon wheels.
• wagerthe act of gambling
• wagerersomeone who bets
• wageringHazarding; pertaining to the act of one who wagers. Wagering policy. (Com.) See Wager policy, under Policy.
• wagesa recompense for worthy acts or retribution for wrongdoing
• Wagga Waggaa town on the Murrumbidgee River in New South Wales; agricultural trading center
• waggelThe young of the great black-backed gull (Larus marinus), formerly considered a distinct species. [Prov. Eng.]
• waggerya quaint and amusing jest
• waggieThe pied wagtail. [Prov. Eng.]
• waggishwitty or joking
• waggishlyin a waggish manner
• waggishnesswaggish behavior
• wagglecausing to move repeatedly from side to side
• waggona car that has a long body and rear door with space behind rear seat
• waggonerthe driver of a wagon
• waggonwrighta wagon maker
• Wagnerthe music of Wagner
• wagnerianof or relating to Richard Wagner or his music
• wagneriteA fluophosphate of magnesia, occurring in yellowish crystals, and also in massive forms.
• wagona group of seven bright stars in the constellation Ursa Major
• wagon tirea metal hoop forming the tread of a wheel
• wagon traina procession (of wagons or mules or camels) traveling together in single file
• wagon wheela wheel of a wagon
• wagon-headedHaving a top, or head, shaped like the top of a covered wagon, or resembling in section or outline an inverted U, thus as, a wagonheaded ceiling.
• wagon-lita passenger car that has berths for sleeping
• wagon-roofedHaving a roof, or top, shaped like an inverted U; wagon-headed.
• wagonageMoney paid for carriage or conveyance in wagon.
• wagonerthe driver of a wagon
• wagonetteA kind of pleasure wagon, uncovered and with seats extended along the sides, designed to carry six or eight persons besides the driver.
• wagonfulAs much as a wagon will hold; enough to fill a wagon; a wagonload.
• wagonloadSame as Wagonful.
• wagonryConveyance by means of a wagon or wagons. [Obs.] Milton.
• wagonwrighta wagon maker
• Wagrama battle in the Napoleonic campaigns (1809); Napoleon defeated the Austrians
• wagtailOld World bird having a very long tail that jerks up and down as it walks
• wahThe panda.
• wahabeeA follower of Abdel Wahab (b. 1691; d. 1787), a reformer of Mohammedanism. His doctrines prevail particularly among the Bedouins, and the sect, though checked in its influence, extends to most parts of Arabia, and also into India. [Written also Wahaby.]
• Wahabia member of a strictly orthodox Sunni Muslim sect from Saudi Arabia; strives to purify Islamic beliefs and rejects any innovation occurring after the 3rd century of Islam
• Wahabisma conservative and intolerant form of Islam that is practiced in Saudi Arabia
• Wahhabia member of a strictly orthodox Sunni Muslim sect from Saudi Arabia; strives to purify Islamic beliefs and rejects any innovation occurring after the 3rd century of Islam
• Wahhabisma conservative and intolerant form of Islam that is practiced in Saudi Arabia
• wahoolarge fast-moving predacious food and game fish; found worldwide
• WahunsonacockIndian chief and founder of the Powhatan confederacy of tribes in eastern Virginia; father of Pocahontas (1550?-1618)
• Wahveya name for the God of the Old Testament as transliterated from the Hebrew consonants YHVH
• wai wu puThe Department of Foreign Affairs in the Chinese government. The Tsung-li Yamen, or Foreign Office, created by a decree of January 19, 1861, was in July, 1902, superseded by the formation of a new Foreign Office called the Wai Wu Pu, . . . with precedence before all other boards. J. Scott Keltie.
• waidOppressed with weight; crushed; weighed down. [Obs.] Tusser.
• waifa homeless child especially one forsaken or orphaned
• waiftA waif. [Obs.] Spenser.
• Waikikia well-known beach and resort area on Oahu Island to the southeast of Honolulu
• waila cry of sorrow and grief
• wailera mourner who utters long loud high-pitched cries
• waileressA woman who wails. [Obs.]
• wailfulvocally expressing grief or sorrow or resembling such expression
• wailingvocally expressing grief or sorrow or resembling such expression
• Wailing Walla wall in Jerusalem; sacred to Jews as a place of prayer and lamentation; its stones are believed to have formed part of the Temple of Solomon
• wailinglyIn a wailing manner.
• wailmentLamentation; loud weeping; wailing. [Obs.] Bp. Hacket.
• waimentSee Wayment. [Obs.]
• waina group of seven bright stars in the constellation Ursa Major
• wainableCapable of being plowed or cultivated; arable; tillable. [Obs.] Cowell.
• wainageA finding of carriages, carts, etc., for the transportation of goods, produce, etc. Ainsworth. See Gainage, a.
• wainboteSee Cartbote. See also the Note under Bote.
• wainscotwooden panels that can be used to line the walls of a room
• wainscotedfitted or decorated with panels or wainscoting
• wainscotingwooden panels that can be used to line the walls of a room
• wainscottingwooden panels that can be used to line the walls of a room
• wainwrighta wagon maker
• wairA piece of plank two yard Bailey.
• waistthe narrow part of the shoe connecting the heel and the wide part of the sole
• waist anchorspare anchor for use in emergency
• waist packa small pouch (usually with a zipper) that attaches to a belt and is worn around the waist
• waist-deepup to the waist
• waist-highup to the waist
• waist-length(of clothing) extending only to the waist
• waistbanda band of material around the waist that strengthens a skirt or trousers
• waistclotha band of material around the waist that strengthens a skirt or trousers
• waistcoata man's sleeveless garment worn underneath a coat
• waistcoateerOne wearing a waistcoat; esp., a woman wearing one uncovered, or thought fit for such a habit; hence, a loose woman; strumpet. [Obs.] Do you think you are here, sir, Amongst your waistcoateers, your base wenches Beau. & Fl.
• waistcoatingA fabric designed for waistcoats; esp., one in which there is a pattern, differently colored yarns being used.
• waisterA seaman, usually a green hand or a broken-down man, stationed in the waist of a vessel of war. R. H. Dana, Jr.
• waistlinethe narrowing of the body between the ribs and hips
• waitthe act of waiting (remaining inactive in one place while expecting something)
• wait onwork for or be a servant to
• wait--while(a) One of the Australian wattle trees (Acacia colletioides), so called from the impenetrability of the thicket which it makes. (b) = Wait-a-bit.
• wait-a-bitAny of several plants bearing thorns or stiff hooked appendages, which catch and tear the clothing, as: (a) The greenbrier. (b) Any of various species of hawthorn. (c) In South Africa, one of numerous acacias and mimosas. (d) The grapple plant. (e) The prickly ash.
• WaiteUnited States jurist who was appointed chief justice of the United States Supreme Court in 1874 by President Grant (1816-1888)
• waitera person whose occupation is to serve at table (as in a restaurant)
• waiter's assistanta restaurant attendant who sets tables and assists waiters and clears away dirty dishes
• waitingbeing and remaining ready and available for use
• waiting areaa room (as in a hotel or airport) with seating where people can wait
• waiting gamea strategy of delay
• waiting linea line of people or vehicles waiting for something
• waiting lista roster of those waiting to obtain something
• waiting rooma room (as in a hotel or airport) with seating where people can wait
• waitinglyBy waiting.
• waitressa woman waiter
• waivelose (s.th.) or lose the right to (s.th.) by some error, offense, or crime
• waivera formal written statement of relinquishment
• waivureSee Waiver. [R.]
• waiwodeSee Waywode.
• WajdaPolish filmmaker (born in 1929)
• Wakashana family of North American Indian languages of British Columbia and Washington
• Wakashan languagea family of North American Indian languages of British Columbia and Washington
• wakestop sleeping
• wake boarda buoyant board (resembling a surfboard) that is used to ride over water while being pulled behind a motorboat
• Wake Islandan island in the western Pacific between Guam and Hawaii
• wake upstop sleeping
• wake-robincommon American spring-flowering woodland herb having sheathing leaves and an upright club-shaped spadix with overarching green and purple spathe producing scarlet berries
• wake-up calla telephone call that you request be made a specific time in order to wake you up at that time (especially in hotels)
• wake-up signal(military) signal to wake up
• wakeboarda buoyant board (resembling a surfboard) that is used to ride over water while being pulled behind a motorboat
• wakefulcarefully observant or attentive; on the lookout for possible danger
• wakefulnessa periodic state during which you are conscious and aware of the world
• wakeless(of sleep) deep and complete
• wakenstop sleeping
• wakenerOne who wakens.
• wakeningthe act of waking
• wakera person who awakes
• waketimeTime during which one is awake. [R.] Mrs. Browning.
• wakfThe granting or dedication of property in trust for a pious purpose, that is, to some object that tends to the good of mankind, as to support a mosque or caravansary, to provide for support of one's family, kin, or neighbors, to benefit some particular person or persons and afterward the poor, etc.; also, the trust so created, or the property in trust.
• wakifThe person creating a wakf.
• wakingmarked by full consciousness or alertness
• waking upthe act of waking