woo
[woo]
- to seek the favor, affection, or love of, especially with a view to marriage.
- to seek to win: to woo fame.
- to invite (consequences, whether good or bad) by one's own action; court: to woo one's own destruction.
- to seek to persuade (a person, group, etc.), as to do something; solicit; importune.
- to seek the affection or love of someone, usually a woman; court: He was reminded of his youth when he went wooing.
- to solicit favor or approval; entreat: Further attempts to woo proved useless.
Origin of woo
before 1050; Middle English wowe, Old English wōgian
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for woo
Contemporary Examples
Baghdadi and his supporters have attempted, and failed, to woo al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) on multiple occasions.
One Spinal Solutions sales representative said he suspected Williams was using perks to woo surgeons.
Democrats set out to woo a national network of extremely wealthy donors who could support the new breakneck fundraising pace.
David, the consummate suitor, naturally pulled out all the stops to woo his lady love.
Joni Ernst began as a compromise candidate, but attacked the EPA, Farm Bill, and more to woo conservatives.
Sarah Palin's Hog-Castrating Clone May Cost GOP Iowa’s Senate Seat if She Wins PrimaryBen Jacobs
June 3, 2014
Historical Examples
Death, which in any case awaits our friends, we woo to them by anticipations of demise.
The Conquest of FearBasil King
He had not come back to woo, but as the old friend, ambitious of helpfulness.
The Bacillus of BeautyHarriet Stark
If he were so entirely preoccupied with this creature, he would not woo me.
A Comedy of Marriage and Other TalesGuy De Maupassant
In vain they woo him with their beauteous eyes and breath of perfume.
I am to woo a man before he will pay me the homage of civility.
ScaramoucheRafael Sabatini
woo
- to seek the affection, favour, or love of (a woman) with a view to marriage
- (tr) to seek after zealously or hopefullyto woo fame
- (tr) to bring upon oneself (good or evil results) by one's own action
- (tr) to beg or importune (someone)
Word Origin
Old English wōgian, of obscure origin
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for woo
v.
Old English wogian, of uncertain origin and with no known cognates; perhaps related to woh, wog- "bent, inclined," as with affection.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Idioms and Phrases with woo
woo
see pitch woo.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.