wand

From Middle English wand, wond, from Old Norse vǫndr (“switch, twig”), from Proto-Germanic *wanduz (“rod”), from Proto-Indo-European *wendʰ- (“to turn, twist, wind, braid”). Cognate with Icelandic vendi (“wand”), Danish vånd (“wand, switch”), German Wand (“wall, septum”), Gothic 𐍅𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌿𐍃 (wandus, “rod”).

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /wɒnd/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /wɑnd/

• Audio (General American):

  (file)

• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /wɔnd/
• Rhymes: -ɒnd

wand (plural wands)

2. A hand-held narrow rod, usually used for pointing or instructing, or as a traditional emblem of authority.
   • 1886 October – 1887 January, H Rider Haggard, She: A History of Adventure, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., published 1887, →OCLC:

     Then all of a sudden a number of armed men arranged in companies, and marshalled by officers who held ivory wands in their hands, came running swiftly towards us, having, so far as I could make out, emerged from the face of the precipice like ants from their burrows.

   2. A stick or rod used by a magician (a magic wand), conjurer or diviner (divining rod).
      • 1859, George Meredith, chapter 13, in The Ordeal of Richard Feverel. A History of Father and Son.  In Three Volumes.">…], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: Chapman and Hall, →OCLC:

        Love is that blessed wand which wins the waters from the hardness of the heart.

4. (by extension) An instrument shaped like a wand, such as a curling wand.
   • 1975, Popular Science, volume 207, number 4, page 135:

     Shop vac serves as blower to force vermiculite in fiber drum up through vacuum-cleaner wand and hose into wall opening

6. A stick, branch, or stalk, especially of willow.
   • c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, :

     The skillful shepherd peeled me certain wands.

   • 1891, Thomas Hardy, Tess of the d'Urbervilles, volume 1, London: James R. Osgood, McIlvaine and Co., page 17:

     In addition to the distinction of a white frock, every woman and girl carried in her right hand a peeled willow-wand, and in her left a bunch of white flowers.

8. A card of a particular suit of the minor arcana in tarot, the wands.
9. (UK, soccer, figurative, informal) A player's foot used especially skillfully in football.
   • 2013 October 17, Lee McCulloch, Simp-Lee the Best: My Autobiography, Black & White Publishing, →ISBN:

     Without question, he is the best left-footed player I've ever played with. Along with his wand of a left foot he also has great pace and can be as hard as nails.

   • 2019 February 15, Chris Sweeney, Mad Dog Gravesen, eBook Partnership, →ISBN:

     Shortly afterwards, Thomas lined up a corner and with his wand of a right foot, landed it on the head of Campbell to get Everton's second.

   • 2021 May 10, Danny Lewis, Boleyn's Farewell, eBook Partnership, →ISBN:

     Cresswell also had a wand of a left foot, which was a threat from open play and set-pieces – though his quality in the latter category wasn't used as often in 2015/16 due to Payet's presence.

• staff; rod
• See also Thesaurus:stick

wand (third-person singular simple present wands, present participle wanding, simple past and past participle wanded)

2. (transitive) To scan (e.g. a passenger at an airport) with a handheld metal detector.
4. (transitive) To use a handheld vibrator (the sex toy) on (a person or body part).

• handwand

• “wand”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
• “wand”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
• “wand”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.

• Dawn, Dwan, dawn

From Middle Dutch want, from Proto-Germanic *wanduz (“wickerwork; barrier, fence”). Cognate with German Wand.

• IPA^(key): /ʋɑnt/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Hyphenation: wand
• Rhymes: -ɑnt
• Homophone: want

wand m (plural wanden, diminutive wandje n)

1. wall

   De wand van het gebouw is bedekt met graffiti. ― The wall of the building is covered with graffiti.

   Er zijn schilderijen op elke wand van de galerij. ― There are paintings on every wall of the gallery.

   Het wandje in de tuin is versierd met klimplanten. ― The small wall in the garden is decorated with climbing plants.

2. face (as in mountain face)

   Deze wand van de berg is erg steil. ― This face of the mountain is very steep.

   Hij is van plan de noordelijke wand van de Eiger te beklimmen. ― He plans to climb the north face of the Eiger.

• Afrikaans: wand
• Negerhollands: wand

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ant

wand

1. first/third-person singular preterite of winden

• IPA^(key): /wɑnd/

From Proto-West Germanic *wand, from Proto-Germanic *wanduz (“mole”), from Proto-Indo-European *wendʰ- (“to turn, twist, wind, braid”).

wand f

1. mole (animal)

Strong ō-stem:

• wandeweorpe

• Middle English: want, wont
  • English: want
  • Scots: want

From windan.

wand

1. first/third-person singular preterite of windan