wiz|ard|ry /w I zə r dri/ N‑UNCOUNT You can refer to a very clever achievement or piece of work as wizardry , especially when you do not understand how it is done. □ …a piece of technical wizardry.
wiz|ened /w I z ə nd/ ADJ A wizened person is old and has a lot of lines on their skin. □ …a little wizened old fellow with no teeth.
wk (wks ) wk is a written abbreviation for week . □ …6 wks holiday.
WMD /dʌ b ə ljuː em diː / N‑PLURAL WMD is an abbreviation for weapons of mass destruction .
wob|ble /wɒ b ə l/ (wobbles , wobbling , wobbled ) VERB If something or someone wobbles , they make small movements from side to side, for example because they are unsteady. □ [V ] The table wobbled when I leaned on it. □ [V prep/adv] I narrowly missed a cyclist who wobbled into my path. ● N‑VAR Wobble is also a noun. □ [+ in ] We might look for a tiny wobble in the position of a star.
wob|bly /wɒ bli/
1 ADJ Something that is wobbly moves unsteadily from side to side. □ I was sitting on a wobbly plastic chair. □ …a wobbly green jelly. □ …wobbly teeth.
2 ADJ If you feel wobbly or if your legs feel wobbly , you feel weak and have difficulty standing up, especially because you are afraid, ill, or exhausted. □ She could not maintain her balance and moved in a wobbly fashion.
wodge /wɒ dʒ/ (wodges ) also wadge N‑COUNT A wodge of something is a large amount of it or a large piece of it. [BRIT , INFORMAL ] □ [+ of ] …a wodge of syrupy sponge.
woe /woʊ / (woes )
1 N‑UNCOUNT Woe is very great sadness. [LITERARY ] □ He listened to my tale of woe.
2 N‑PLURAL [usu with poss] You can refer to someone's problems as their woes . [WRITTEN ] □ He did not tell his relatives and friends about his woes.
3 woe betide → see betide
woe|be|gone /woʊ b I gɒn/ ADJ Someone who is woebegone is very sad. [WRITTEN ] □ She sniffed and looked woebegone.
woe|ful /woʊ fʊl/
1 ADJ If someone or something is woeful , they are very sad. □ …a woeful ballad. ● woe|ful|ly ADV [ADV with v] □ He said woefully: 'I love my country, but it does not give a damn about me.'
2 ADJ [usu ADJ n] You can use woeful to emphasize that something is very bad or undesirable. [EMPHASIS ] □ …the woeful state of the economy. ● woe|ful|ly ADV [usu ADV adj, oft ADV before v] □ Public expenditure on the arts is woefully inadequate.
wog /wɒ g/ (wogs ) N‑COUNT Wog is an extremely offensive word for anyone whose skin is not white. [BRIT , VERY OFFENSIVE ]
wok /wɒ k/ (woks ) N‑COUNT A wok is a large bowl-shaped pan which is used for Chinese-style cooking.
woke /woʊ k/ Woke is the past tense of wake .
wok|en /woʊ kən/ Woken is the past participle of wake .
wolf /wʊ lf/ (wolves , wolfs , wolfing , wolfed )
1 N‑COUNT A wolf is a wild animal that looks like a large dog.
2 VERB If someone wolfs their food, they eat it all very quickly and greedily. [INFORMAL ] □ [V n] I was back in the changing-room wolfing tea and sandwiches. ● PHRASAL VERB Wolf down means the same as wolf . □ [V P n] He wolfed down the rest of the biscuit and cheese. □ [V n P ] She bought a hot dog from a stand on a street corner and wolfed it down.
3 PHRASE If someone cries wolf , they say that there is a problem when there is not, with the result that people do not believe them when there really is a problem.
▸ wolf down → see wolf 2
wolf|hound /wʊ lfhaʊnd/ (wolfhounds ) N‑COUNT A wolfhound is a type of very large dog.
wo lf-whistle (wolf-whistles , wolf-whistling , wolf-whistled ) also wolf whistle VERB If someone wolf-whistles , they make a whistling sound with a short rising note and a longer falling note. Some men wolf-whistle at a woman to show that they think she is attractive, and some women find this offensive. □ [V + at ] They wolf-whistled at me, and I was so embarrassed I tripped up. [Also V ] ● N‑COUNT Wolf whistle is also a noun. □ Her dancing brought loud cheers, wolf whistles and applause.
wolves /wʊ lvz/ Wolves is the plural of wolf .
wom|an ◆◆◆ /wʊ mən/ (women )
1 N‑COUNT A woman is an adult female human being. □ …a young Lithuanian woman named Dayva. □ …men and women over 75 years old. □ …a woman doctor.
2 N‑UNCOUNT You can refer to women in general as woman . □ …the oppression of woman.
3 → see also career woman
4 woman of the world → see world USAGE woman
It is more polite to call someone an old lady or an elderly lady , rather than an ‘old woman’. □ There’s an old lady who rides a bike around town.
-woman /-wʊmən/ COMB [ADJ n] -woman combines with numbers to indicate that something involves the number of women mentioned. □ …a seven-woman team.