. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
you have here. The definition of the word
will help you to be more precise and correct when speaking or writing your texts. Knowing the definition of
, as well as those of other words, enriches your vocabulary and provides you with more and better linguistic resources.
Translingual
Etymology
From a modification of the Latin letter V ( “ ve ” ) , from the Etruscan letter 𐌖 ( u , “ u ” ) , from the Ancient Greek letter Υ ( U , “ ypsilon ” ) , derived from the Phoenician letter 𐤅 ( w , “ waw ” ) , from the Egyptian hieroglyph 𓏲 .
Its use as a symbol for tungsten is based on German Wolfram .
Letter
W (lower case w )
The twenty-third letter of the basic modern Latin alphabet .
See also
Symbol
W
( chemistry ) Symbol for tungsten .
( metrology ) Symbol for watt .
( biochemistry ) IUPAC 1-letter abbreviation for tryptophan .
( physics ) work
( historical ) Wedgwood scale of temperature
( Voice Quality Symbols ) whisper
Derived terms
Gallery
See also
The template Template:Letter does not use the parameter(s): Character=W Please see Module:checkparams for help with this warning. Other representations of W:
English
Pronunciation
Name of letter
Etymology 1
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w , plural Ws or W's )
The twenty-third letter of the English alphabet , called double U and written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) letter ; A a , B b , C c , D d , E e , F f , G g , H h , I i , J j , K k , L l , M m , N n , O o , P p , Q q , R r , S s , T t , U u , V v , W w , X x , Y y , Z z
Etymology 2
Abbreviations of various words beginning with W.
Noun
W (plural Ws )
Abbreviation of women ( sign on toilet door ) .
Coordinate term: M ( “ men ” )
2001 , Jonathan Franzen, The Corrections , New York, NY: Farrar, Straus and Giroux , →ISBN , page 332 :From the Kierkegaard Room he lopingly careened through a red-carpeted hallway that had previously vouchsafed him a comfort station but this morning seemed all business, no M or W in sight, just salons and boutiques and the Ingmar Bergman Cinema.
( uncountable ) Abbreviation of west .
Coordinate terms: E ( “ east ” ) , N ( “ north ” ) , S ( “ south ” )
Abbreviation of Wednesday .
Synonyms: Wed , Wed.
Coordinate terms: Su , M , Tu , Th , F , Sa
( sports ) Abbreviation of wins (statistic).
Coordinate terms: L ( “ losses ” ) , T ( “ ties ” )
( countable , Internet slang ) Abbreviation of win .
Coordinate term: L ( “ loss ” )
You say that like it's not an absolute W .
( cricket ) Abbreviation of wicket .
( law enforcement ) Abbreviation of warrant .
Derived terms
( sports ) : OTW
( compass ) : NNW , NW , SSW , SW , WNW , WSW
( internet slang ) : dub
( others ) : C of W , W particle , W-2 employee , W-sitting , W chromosome , W-League , Lambert W function , W in the chat
Translations
Adjective
W (comparative more W , superlative most W )
( slang ) Excellent , top-notch (abbreviation of winner ). (Compare noun sense 4 and sense 5 .)
Antonym: L ( “ bad, subpar ” )
You, sir, are a W man.
You got her number? W rizz !
Proper noun
W
( US politics , informal ) George W. Bush (born 1946), the 43rd president of the United States (2001–2009).
Synonyms: Dubya , GWB
Noun
W
( stenoscript ) Abbreviation of week .
( stenoscript ) Abbreviation of west .
Afar
Letter
W
The twentieth letter in the Afar alphabet.
See also
( Latin-script letters) A a , B b , T t , S s , E e , C c , K k , X x , I i , D d , Q q , R r , F f , G g , O o , L l , M m , N n , U u , W w , H h , Y y
Afrikaans
Pronunciation
( letter name ) : IPA (key ) : /vɪə/
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
The twenty-third letter of the Afrikaans alphabet , written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) letter ; A a , B b , C c , D d , E e , F f , G g , H h , I i , J j , K k , L l , M m , N n , O o , P p , Q q , R r , S s , T t , U u , V v , W w , X x , Y y , Z z
Noun
W (plural W's , diminutive W'tjie )
W
Basque
Pronunciation
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
The twenty-fourth letter of the Basque alphabet , called uve bikoitz and written in the Latin script .
Usage notes
Used chiefly in recent loanwords and foreign proper nouns.
See also
( Latin-script letters) A a , B b , C c (Ç ç ), D d , E e , F f , G g , H h , I i , J j , K k , L l , M m , N n , Ñ ñ , O o , P p , Q q , R r , S s , T t , U u (Ü ü ), V v , W w , X x , Y y , Z z
Central Franconian
Etymology
/ʋ/ is from West Germanic stem-initial *w .
For the origin of /v/ , see V .
Pronunciation
/ʋ/ , ( chiefly Moselle Franconian also ) /v/ , ( coda )
Letter
W
A letter in the German-based alphabet of Central Franconian.
A letter in the Dutch-based alphabet of Central Franconian.
Usage notes
Systems for the use of W
/ʋ/ is regularly represented by w in all systems.
In the German-based spelling of Moselle Franconian, /v/ is normally spelt w as it is a post-vocalic allophone of /ʋ/ .
In the German-based spelling of Ripuarian, /v/ is normally spelt v , but w may be used in iwig , Löw , Möw after the German cognate. A phonemic distinction from /ʋ/ is doubtful and exists at most in very rare cases.
In Aachen and the Netherlands there is a clear phonemic distinction between w /ʋ/ and v /v/ , and these are thus kept apart.
Doubling of W and use in the syllable coda
In the German-based spelling, w is doubled after short vowels except in certain function words and when the letter is followed by another consonant within the word stem. In the syllable coda, the choice between w and f may be based on internal analogy, but f is often used throughout or after the German cognate.
In the Dutch-based spelling, w is doubled after short vowels if the syllable were otherwise open.
Chinese
Etymology 1
Pronunciation
Numeral
W
( Internet slang ) Alternative form of 萬 / 万 ( wàn )
Etymology 2
Pronunciation 1
Note : buliu often merged into one syllable..
Note : dap1 bou4 ju4, dap1 - Hong Kong.
Note : li eq - often realised as one syllable.
Letter
W
The twenty-third letter of the Latin alphabet.
Pronunciation 2
Letter
W
The twenty-third letter used in Pinyin .
Usage notes
《汉语拼音方案》 defines a standard pronunciation for each letter. However, these pronunciations are rarely used in education; another pronunciation is commonly used instead.
The pronunciation above are only used while referring to letters in Pinyin. They are not used in other context (such as English).
Danish
Pronunciation
Letter
W (lowercase w )
the twenty-third letter of the Danish alphabet
See also
( Latin-script letters) bogstav ; A a (Á á ), B b , C c , D d , E e (É é ), F f , G g , H h , I i (Í í ), J j , K k , L l , M m , N n , O o (Ó ó ), P p , Q q , R r , S s , T t , U u (Ú ú ), V v , W w , X x , Y y (Ý ý ), Z z , Æ æ (Ǽ ǽ ), Ø ø (Ǿ ǿ ), Å å
Dutch
Pronunciation
( letter name ) : IPA (key ) : /ʋeː/
Letter
W (capital , lowercase w )
the twenty-third letter of the Dutch alphabet
Adverb
W
Abbreviation of west ; west
See also
Previous letter: V
Next letter: X
Esperanto
Noun
W
Abbreviation of uesto ( “ west ” ) .
Finnish
Etymology
The Finnish orthography using the Latin script was based on those of Swedish, German and Latin, and was first used in the mid-16th century. No earlier script is known. See the Wikipedia article on Finnish for more information , and W for information on the development of the glyph itself.
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
A letter of the Finnish alphabet , called kaksoisvee and written in the Latin script .
Usage notes
In the Finnish alphabet, W is a variant of V .
Used only in loanwords, old/archaic language and proper names with old spelling (e.g. Wirtanen ). Specifically, W was still used when Finnish was typed in fraktur (blackletter), but as the Roman type replaced it in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, V took its place.
Derived terms
See also
( Latin-script letters) kirjain ; A a , B b , C c , D d , E e , F f , G g , H h , I i , J j , K k , L l , M m , N n , O o , P p , Q q , R r , S s (Š š ), T t , U u , V v (W w ), X x , Y y , Z z (Ž ž ), Å å , Ä ä , Ö ö
German
Pronunciation
( letter name ) IPA (key ) : /veː/
( phoneme ) IPA (key ) : /v/ , ,
/v/ is almost invariably in schw-, zw- (and qu- ). Otherwise both are in free variation; as a broad tendency is more northern, more southern.
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
The twenty-third letter of the German alphabet.
Noun
W
Abbreviation of West ( “ west ” )
Hungarian
Pronunciation
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
A letter of the extended Hungarian alphabet , called dupla vé and written in the Latin script .
Declension
See also
( Latin-script letters) betű ; A a , Á á , B b , C c , Cs cs , D d , Dz dz , Dzs dzs , E e , É é , F f , G g , Gy gy , H h , I i , Í í , J j , K k , L l , Ly ly , M m , N n , Ny ny , O o , Ó ó , Ö ö , Ő ő , P p , R r , S s , Sz sz , T t , Ty ty , U u , Ú ú , Ü ü , Ű ű , V v , Z z , Zs zs . Only in the extended alphabet: Q q W w X x Y y . Commonly used: ch . Also defined: à ë . In surnames (selection): ä aa cz ds eé eö ew oe oó th ts ÿ .
Ido
Pronunciation
Letter
W (lower case w )
The twenty-third letter of the Ido alphabet , written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) litero ; A a , B b , C c , D d , E e , F f , G g , H h , I i , J j , K k , L l , M m , N n , O o , P p , Q q , R r , S s , T t , U u , V v , W w , X x , Y y , Z z
Italian
Pronunciation
( letter name ) :
( phonemic realization ) IPA (key ) : /v/ , /w/ ( varies depending on the source language of the loanword )
Letter
W f or m (invariable , upper case , lower case w )
the twenty-third letter of the Latin alphabet , called doppia vu or vu doppia in Italian
Usage notes
The letter W is not considered part of the Italian alphabet. It is found mainly in loanwords.
Symbol
W
viva , evviva ( “ up with ” )
Antonym: M ( “ down with ” )
See also
( Latin-script letters) lettera ; A a (À à ), B b , C c , D d , E e (É é , È è ), F f , G g , H h , I i (Í í , Ì ì , Î î , J j , K k ), L l , M m , N n , O o (Ó ó , Ò ò ), P p , Q q , R r , S s , T t , U u (Ú ú , Ù ù ), V v (W w , X x , Y y ), Z z
Italian alphabet on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
Further reading
Japanese
Noun
W( ダブル ) • (daburu )
Alternative spelling of ダブル ( “ double ” )
See also
Kashubian
Etymology
The Kashubian orthography is based on the Latin alphabet. No earlier script is known. See the Kashubian alphabet article on Wikipedia for more, and W for development of the glyph itself.
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
The thirtieth letter of the Kashubian alphabet , written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) A a , Ą ą , Ã ã , B b , C c , D d , E e , É é , Ë ë , F f , G g , H h , I i , J j , K k , L l , Ł ł , M m , N n , O o , Ò ò , Ó ó , Ô ô , P p , R r , S s , T t , U u , Ù ù , W w , Y y , Z z , Ż ż
Lower Sorbian
Pronunciation
Letter
W (lower case w )
The thirtieth letter of the Lower Sorbian alphabet , called wej and written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) pismik ; A a , B b , C c , Č č , Ć ć , D d , E e , Ě ě , F f , G g , H h , Ch ch , I i , J j , K k , Ł ł , L l , M m , N n , Ń ń , O o (Ó ó ), P p , R r , Ŕ ŕ , S s , Š š , Ś ś , T t , U u , W w , Y y , Z z , Ž ž , Ź ź
( obsolete letters ) B́ b́ , Ė ė , Ḿ ḿ , Ṅ ṅ , Ṕ ṕ , Ṙ ṙ , ſ , ß , Ꞩ ẜ , Ẃ ẃ , Ẇ ẇ , Ż ż
Malay
Pronunciation
Letter
W
The twenty-third letter of the Malay alphabet , written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) A a , B b , C c , D d , E e , F f , G g , H h , I i , J j , K k , L l , M m , N n , O o , P p , Q q , R r , S s , T t , U u , V v , W w , X x , Y y , Z z
Navajo
Letter
W (lower case w )
A letter of the Navajo alphabet , written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) A a (Á á , Ą ą , Ą́ ą́ ), B b , Ch ch , Chʼ chʼ , D d , Dl dl , Dz dz , E e (É é , Ę ę , Ę́ ę́ ), G g , Gh gh , H h , Hw hw , X x , I i (Í í , Į į , Į́ į́ ), J j , K k , Kʼ kʼ , Kw kw , ʼ , L l , Ł ł , M m , N n (Ń ń ), O o (Ó ó , Ǫ ǫ , Ǫ́ ǫ́ ), S s , Sh sh , T t , Tʼ tʼ , Tł tł , Tłʼ tłʼ , Ts ts , Tsʼ tsʼ , W w , Y y , Z z , Zh zh
Norwegian
Letter
W (upper case W , lower case w )
the 23th letter of the Norwegian alphabet
Usage notes
Only in loan words and foreign names. Also used in old inscriptions and texts instead of v .
Nupe
Pronunciation
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
The twenty-seventh letter of the Nupe alphabet , written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) banki ; A a (Á á , À à ), B b , C c , D d , Dz dz , E e (É é , È è ), F f , G g , Gb gb , H h , I i (Í í , Ì ì ), J j , K k , Kp kp , L l , M m (Ḿ ḿ , M̀ m̀ , M̄ m̄ ), N n (Ń ń , Ǹ ǹ , N̄ n̄ ), O o (Ó ó , Ò ò ), P p , R r , S s , Sh sh , T t , Ts ts , U u (Ú ú , Ù ù ), V v , W w , Y y , Z z , Zh zh
Polish
Etymology
The Polish orthography is based on the Latin alphabet. No earlier script is known. See the history of Polish orthography article on Wikipedia for more, and W for development of the glyph itself.
Pronunciation
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
The twenty-eighth letter of the Polish alphabet , called wu and written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) A a , Ą ą , B b , C c , Ć ć , D d , E e , Ę ę , F f , G g , H h , I i , J j , K k , L l , Ł ł , M m , N n , Ń ń , O o , Ó ó , P p (Q q ), R r , S s , Ś ś , T t , U u (V v ), W w (X x ), Y y , Z z , Ź ź , Ż ż
Portuguese
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
The twenty-third letter of the Portuguese alphabet , written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) letra ; A a (Á á , À à , Â â , Ã ã ), B b , C c (Ç ç ), D d , E e (É é , Ê ê ), F f , G g , H h , I i (Í í ), J j , K k , L l , M m , N n , O o (Ó ó , Ô ô , Õ õ ), P p , Q q , R r , S s , T t , U u (Ú ú ), V v , W w , X x , Y y , Z z
Romani
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
A letter used to represent the voiced labial -velar approximant (/w/) in the International Standard orthography.
References
Yūsuke Sumi (2018 ) “w ”, in ニューエクスプレス ロマ(ジプシー)語 [New Express Romani (Gypsy) ] (in Japanese), Tokyo: Hakusuisha, →ISBN , page 16
Romanian
Pronunciation
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
The twenty-eighth letter of the Romanian alphabet , called dublu ve or dublu vî and written in the Latin script .
Usage notes
Used chiefly in recent loanwords and foreign proper nouns.
See also
( Latin-script letters) A a , Ă ă , Â â , B b , C c , D d , E e , F f , G g , H h , I i , Î î , J j , K k , L l , M m , N n , O o , P p , Q q , R r , S s , Ș ș , T t , Ț ț , U u , V v , W w , X x , Y y , Z z
Saanich
Pronunciation
Letter
W
The thirty-third letter of the Saanich alphabet , written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) A , Á , Ⱥ , B , C , Ć , Ȼ , D , E , H , I , Í , J , K , Ꝁ , Ꝃ , ₭ , Ḵ , Ḱ , L , Ƚ , M , N , Ṉ , O , P , Q , S , Ś , T , Ⱦ , Ṯ , Ŧ , U , W , W̱ , X , X̱ , Y , Z , s , ¸
Silesian
Etymology
The Silesian orthography is based on the Latin alphabet. No earlier script is known. See the Silesian language article on Wikipedia for more, and W for development of the glyph itself.
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
The thirtieth letter of the Silesian alphabet , written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) A a , Ã ã , B b , C c , Ć ć , D d , E e , F f , G g , H h , I i , J j , K k , L l , Ł ł , M m , N n , Ń ń , O o , Ŏ ŏ , Ō ō , Ô ô , Õ õ , P p , R r , S s , Ś ś , T t , U u , W w , Y y , Z z , Ź ź , Ż ż
Slovene
Letter
W (capital , lowercase w )
The thirty-second letter of the Slovene alphabet (Resian), written in the Latin script .
Somali
Pronunciation
( phoneme ) : IPA (key ) : /w/ , /u̯/ , /ʉ̯/
( letter name ) : IPA (key ) : /wæʉ̯/
Letter
W upper case (lower case w )
The twentieth letter of the Somali alphabet , called waw and written in the Latin script .
Usage notes
The twentieth letter of the Somali alphabet, which follows Arabic abjad order. It is preceded by N and followed by H .
See also
( Latin-script letters) ʼ , B b , T t , J j , X x , Kh kh , D d , R r , S s , Sh sh , Dh dh , C c , G g , F f , Q q , K k , L l , M m , N n , W w , H h , Y y , A a , E e , I i , O o , U u
Spanish
Pronunciation
IPA (key ) : ( phoneme ) /w/ , /ɡw/ , /β/
IPA (key ) : ( letter name ) /ˌube ˈdoble/
IPA (key ) : ( letter name ) /ˈdoble ˌbe/
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
the 24th letter of the Spanish alphabet
Synonyms: ( Colombia, Mexico, Puerto Rico ) doble u , ( Latin America ) doble ve , ( Spain ) uve doble , ( Peru ) ve doble
See also
( Latin-script letters) letra ; A a (Á á ), B b , C c , D d , E e (É é ), F f , G g , H h , I i (Í í ), J j , K k , L l , M m , N n , Ñ ñ , O o (Ó ó ), P p , Q q , R r , S s , T t , U u (Ú ú , Ü ü ), V v , W w , X x , Y y , Z z
Swedish
Etymology
Borrowed from German W and English W , derived from Latin V , derived from Latin U .[ 1] First attested in 1717.[ 2]
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
the 23rd (or optional) letter of the Swedish alphabet
Usage notes
Within most acronyms, the pronunciation of the separate letter is identical to that of V .
The letter is often described as an optional inclusion to the Swedish alphabet.
Since 2006 the letter has been categorised as a separate letter by the dictionary Svenska Akademins Ordlista (SAOL ). Before that, it was viewed as a variant of the letter V and sorted thereunder.[ 3]
References
Tagalog
Etymology
Borrowed from English W . Each pronunciation has a different source:
Filipino alphabet pronunciation is influenced by English W .
Abakada alphabet pronunciation is influenced by Baybayin character ᜏ ( wa ) .
Formerly, the letter U was used to represent /w/ in the Spanish-based orthography.
Pronunciation
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w , Baybayin spelling ᜇᜓᜊᜓᜎ᜔ᜌᜓ )
The twenty-fifth letter of the Tagalog alphabet (the Filipino alphabet ), called dobolyu and written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) titik ; A a , B b , C c , D d , E e , F f , G g , H h , I i , J j , K k , L l , M m , N n , Ñ ñ , Ng ng , O o , P p , Q q , R r , S s , T t , U u , V v , W w , X x , Y y , Z z
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w , Baybayin spelling ᜏ )
The nineteenth letter of the Tagalog alphabet (the Abakada alphabet ), called wa and written in the Latin script .
Further reading
“W ”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph , Manila, 2018
Welsh
Pronunciation
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
The twenty-eighth letter of the Welsh alphabet , called w and written in the Latin script . It is preceded by U and followed by Y .
Mutation
W cannot be mutated but when representing a vowel, does take h-prothesis , for example with the word wy ( “ egg ” ) :
Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in standard Welsh. All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.
However, when it represents the semivowel /w/ , W cannot be mutated.
See also
( Latin-script letters) llythyren ; A a (Á á , À à , Â â , Ä ä ), B b , C c , Ch ch , D d , Dd dd , E e (É é , È è , Ê ê , Ë ë ), F f , Ff ff , G g , Ng ng , H h , I i (Í í , Ì ì , Î î , Ï ï ), J j , L l , Ll ll , M m , N n , O o (Ó ó , Ò ò , Ô ô , Ö ö ), P p , Ph ph , R r , Rh rh , S s , T t , Th th , U u (Ú ú , Ù ù , Û û , Ü ü ), W w (Ẃ ẃ , Ẁ ẁ , Ŵ ŵ , Ẅ ẅ ), Y y (Ý ý , Ỳ ỳ , Ŷ ŷ , Ÿ ÿ )
Further reading
R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “W ”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies
Yoruba
Pronunciation
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
The twenty-fourth letter of the Yoruba alphabet , called wí and written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) lẹ́tà ; A a (Á á , À à , Ā ā ), B b , D d , E e (É é , È è , Ē ē ), Ẹ ẹ (Ẹ́ ẹ́ , Ẹ̀ ẹ̀ , Ẹ̄ ẹ̄ ), F f , G g , Gb gb , H h , I i (Í í , Ì ì , Ī ī ), J j , K k , L l , M m (Ḿ ḿ , M̀ m̀ , M̄ m̄ ), N n (Ń ń , Ǹ ǹ , N̄ n̄ ), O o (Ó ó , Ò ò , Ō ō ), Ọ ọ (Ọ́ ọ́ , Ọ̀ ọ̀ , Ọ̄ ọ̄ ), P p , R r , S s , Ṣ ṣ , T t , U u (Ú ú , Ù ù , Ū ū ), W w , Y y
( Benin ) ( Latin-script letters) lɛ́tà ; A a , B b , D d , E e , Ɛ ɛ , F f , G g , Gb gb , H h , I i , J j , K k , Kp kp , L l , M m , N n , O o , Ɔ ɔ , P p , R r , S s , Sh sh , T t , U u , W w , Y y
Zulu
Letter
W (upper case , lower case w )
The twenty-third letter of the Zulu alphabet , written in the Latin script .
See also
( Latin-script letters) A a , B b , C c , D d , E e , F f , G g , H h , I i , J j , K k , L l , M m , N n , O o , P p , Q q , R r , S s , T t , U u , V v , W w , X x , Y y , Z z