W

(85 words)

wander

verb

[ I ] If your mind or your thoughts wander, you stop thinking about the subject that you should be giving your attention to and start thinking about other matters:

war

noun [ C or U ]

any situation in which there is strong competition between opposing sides or a great fight against something harmful:

warehouse

noun [ C ]

a large building for storing things before they are sold, used, or sent out to shops, or :

wary

adjective

not completely trusting or certain about something or someone:

wasted on sb

If you say that something is wasted on someone, you mean that its quality is too high for that person and they will not understand its true value:

(like) water off a duck’s back

criticisms of or warnings to a particular person that have no effect on that person:

hold water

If a reason, argument, or explanation holds water, it is true:

water

verb

[ I ] If your mouth waters, it produces a lot of saliva, usually because you can see or smell some food that you would like to eat:

wave

noun [ C ]

HAND MOVEMENT

the action of raising your hand and moving it from side to side as a way of greeting someone, etc.:

LARGE NUMBER

a larger than usual number of events of a similar, often bad, type, happening within the same period:

STRONG FEELING

A wave of an emotion or feeling is a sudden strong feeling that gets stronger as it spreads:

make waves

informal

to be very active so that other people notice you, often in a way that intentionally causes trouble:

wave

noun [ C ]

HAND MOVEMENT

the action of raising your hand and moving it from side to side as a way of greeting someone, etc.:

LARGE NUMBER

a larger than usual number of events of a similar, often bad, type, happening within the same period:

STRONG FEELING

A wave of an emotion or feeling is a sudden strong feeling that gets stronger as it spreads:

be on the same wavelength

(of two or more people) to think in a similar way and to understand each other well:

way

noun

[ S ] the space needed for a particular movement or action:

make your way

to be successful and make progress in your life and work:

go out of your way

to try very hard to do something, especially for someone else:

get sth out of the way

to finish something:

give way to sth / make way for sth

to be replaced by something, especially because it is better, cheaper, easier, etc.:

give way

to break, especially when under pressure from strong forces:

pave the way

If something paves the way for/to something else, it makes the other thing possible:

the hard way

If you learn something the hard way, you learn from unpleasant experiences rather than by being taught:

thread your way through, between, etc. sth

to move carefully through a crowded space, changing direction in order to avoid people or things:

weakness for

a strong liking, usually for something that might have unpleasant or unwanted effects:

wealth

noun

[ S ] a large amount of something good:

wear

verb

[ T ] to show a particular emotion on your face:

wear thin

informal

If your patience wears thin, you become less and less patient:

If something such as a joke wears thin, it becomes boring or annoying or stops being funny or effective, because it has been seen, heard, or used too much:

weary

adjective

very tired, especially after working hard for a long time:

weary of

bored with something because you have experienced too much of it:

under the weather

informal

If someone is or feels under the weather, they feel ill:

weed

noun

[ C ] any wild plant that grows in an unwanted place, especially in a garden or field where it prevents the cultivated plants from growing freely

weep

verb

[ I or T ] literary to cry tears:

pull your weight

to work as hard as other people in a group:

carry weight

outstay/overstay your welcome

to stay too long:

welfare

noun [ U ]

help given, especially by the state or an organization, to people who need it, especially because they do not have enough money:

mean well

to do what you think will be helpful, although by doing it you might cause problems without intending to:

what with

informal

used to talk about the reasons for a particular situation, especially a bad or difficult situation:

whereabouts

noun [ U, + sing/pl verb ]

the place where a person or thing is:

adverb

in what part or area:

whereby

adverb, conjunction

by which way or method:

be worth your while

to be an activity or action that you will get an advantage from:

whim

noun [ C ]

a sudden wish or idea, especially one that cannot be reasonably explained:

white

adjective

having a pale face because you are not well, or you are feeling shocked:

whole

adverb

as a single object and not in pieces:

wholeheartedly

adverb

in a way that is completely enthusiastic and without any doubt :

wholly

adverb

completely:

wicked

adjective

morally wrong and bad:

wield

verb [ T ]

to hold a weapon or tool and look as if you are going to use it:

wield influence, power, etc.

to have a lot of influence or power over other people:

run wild

disapproving

If someone, often a child, runs wild, that person behaves as they want to without being controlled by anyone.

wild accusation/guess/rumour

something that you say that is not based on facts and is probably wrong

wilderness

noun [ C usually singular ]

an area of land that has not been used to grow crops or had towns and roads built on it, especially because it is difficult to live in as a result of its extremely cold or hot weather or bad earth:

will

noun

[ C ] an official statement of what a person has decided should be done with their money and property after their death:

willpower

noun [ U ]

the ability to control your own thoughts and the way in which you behave:

win

verb

[ T ] to receive something positive, such as approval, loyalty, or love because you have earned it:

wing

noun [ C ]

a group within a political party or organization whose beliefs are in some way different from those of the main group:

wink

verb [ I ]

to close one eye for a short time as a way of greeting someone or showing friendliness, sexual interest, etc., or of showing that you are not serious about something you have said:

not sleep a wink; not get a wink of sleep

to not sleep at all:

wipe sth out

to destroy something completely:

wish

noun [ C ]

a hope that is made real with magical powers:

withdrawal

noun

TAKING OUT

[ C or U ] when you take money out of a bank account:

NOT AVAILABLE

[ U ] the act or process of taking something away so that it is no longer available, or of someone stopping being involved in an activity:

within limits

to some extent, but not allowing everything:

withstand

verb [ T ]

to be strong enough, or not be changed by something, or to oppose a person or thing successfully:

woodland

noun [ C or U ]

land on which many trees grow, or an area of this:

word for word

using exactly the same words:

in sb’s words

used when you repeat what someone said:

work sth out ; figure sth out

to understand something or to find the answer to something by thinking about it:

workaholic

noun [ C ]

a person who works a lot of the time and finds it difficult not to work:

workforce

noun [ C, + sing/pl verb ]

the group of people who work in a company, industry, country, etc.:

out of this world

informal

extremely good:

do sb a/the world of good

to make someone feel much healthier or happier:

not be the end of the world

INFORMAL

If something is not the end of the world, it will not cause very serious problems:

on top of the world

extremely happy:

worship

noun

[ U ] the act of worshipping God or a god, often through praying or singing:

fear the worst

to think something unpleasant might have happened:

be worth your while

to be an activity or action that you will get an advantage from:

worthless

adjective

having no value in money:

worthy of attention, notice, etc.

formal

deserving to be given attention, noticed, etc.:

would-be

adjective [ before noun ]

wanting or trying to be:

wreck

verb [ T ]

to destroy or badly damage something:

noun [ C ]

a vehicle or ship that has been destroyed or badly damaged:

informal someone who is in bad physical or mental condition:

wreckage

noun [ U ]

a badly damaged object or the separated parts of a badly damaged object:

wretched

adjective

BAD QUALITY

unpleasant or of low quality:

a wretched childhood
The people live in wretched conditions, with no running water.

FEELING BAD

very ill or very unhappy:

I think I must be coming down with flu – I’ve been feeling wretched all day.

wrinkle

noun [ C ]

a small line in the skin caused by old age:

wrinkled

adjective

(of skin) having small lines because of old age :

write sb/sth off

to decide that a particular person or thing will not be useful, important, or successful:

get off on the right/wrong foot

to make a successful/unsuccessful start in something

don’t get me wrong

said when you think someone might not understand what you say, or be upset by it: