wow

¹ American  

[wou] / waʊ /

interjection

1. (an exclamation of surprise, wonder, pleasure, or the like).

   Wow! Look at that!

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verb (used with object)

1. to gain an enthusiastic response from; thrill.

noun

1. an extraordinary success.

   His act is a real wow.

2. excitement, interest, great pleasure, or the like.

   a car that will add some wow to your life.

wow ² American  

[wou] / waʊ /

noun

1. Audio. a slow wavering of pitch in sound recording or reproducing equipment caused by uneven speed of the turntable or the tape.

2. Scot. and North England Dialect. a howl, wail, bark, whine, or mew.

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verb (used without object)

1. Scot. and North England Dialect. to howl, wail, bark, whine, or mew.

wow ¹ British  

/ waʊ /

interjection

1. an exclamation of admiration, amazement, etc

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noun

1. slang a person or thing that is amazingly successful, attractive, etc

verb

1. slang (tr) to arouse great enthusiasm in

WOW ² British  

abbreviation

1. waiting on weather: used esp in the oil industry

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wow ³ British  

/ waʊ, wəʊ /

noun

1. a slow variation or distortion in pitch that occurs at very low audio frequencies in sound-reproducing systems, such as a record player, usually due to variation in speed of the turntable, etc See also flutter

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Etymology

Origin of wow¹

1890–95; perhaps identical with Scots wow! exclamation of surprise or admiration

Origin of wow²

1800–10 wow ² for defs. 2, 3; 1930–35 wow ² for def. 1; imitative; the audio term is probably an independent formation

Example Sentences

"So when I came across terramation, I was like 'wow - do you know what, it could be a druid in the 21st Century that actually brings another facet of end-of-life and death care into being'."

From BBC

In the latest earnings announcement, Potter said Grocery Outlet left its shoppers disappointed — and their baskets mostly empty — because stores didn’t offer enough “wow” deals on name-brand products.

From Los Angeles Times

In killing the video-generation app, the company’s priority is no longer wowing the media.

From The Wall Street Journal

In killing the video-generation app, the company’s priority is no longer wowing the media.

From The Wall Street Journal

Then she donned a Red Sox jersey and wowed the crowd by throwing a strike.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• charm
• entertain