wavy
1 Americanadjective
-
wavier,
comparative
-
waviest
superlative
-
curving alternately in opposite directions; undulating.
a wavy course;
wavy hair.
-
abounding in or characterized by waves.
the wavy sea.
-
resembling or suggesting waves.
a cotton material with a wavy pattern.
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vibrating or tremulous; wavering; unsteady.
noun
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wavies
plural
adjective
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abounding in or full of waves
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moving or proceeding in waves or undulations
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(of hair) set in or having waves and curls
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unstable or wavering
Usage
What does wavy mean? Popularized by hip-hop artist Max B, wavy is slang for something "cool," "chill," or "excellent."
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of wavy
Explanation
If something is wavy, it's either very slightly curly, like your sister's wavy hair, or it has a surface or edge that curves back and forth, like the wavy corrugated metal on a barn roof. Anything wavy is in some way composed of waves, whether it's your dog's wavy coat or the wavy surface of Lake Michigan. The adjective can describe an undulating movement or a still, static shape: "The wavy fries just taste better to me than the straight ones." Both wave and wavy stem from the Old English wagian, "to move to and fro."
Vocabulary lists containing wavy
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Look for wavy lines on straight structures like iron beams.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 2, 2026
Ceuzany's voice ranges from crystalline highs to deep lows, as she performs everything from jazz to slam, commanding the stage with wavy blonde hair and earrings framing her radiant face.
From Barron's ● Jul. 2, 2026
Portugal will look wavy in this kit inspired by the Atlantic Ocean, which borders the country.
From BBC ● Apr. 22, 2026
Rodents achieve a similar effect with wavy nerve fibers that add flexibility.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 19, 2025
She put the wig back on and began to brush it; the wavy hair, parted in the middle, fell to her chin.
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
On fair days the sun flashed from white fleets of "wavies," bound through seas of April skies to far Arctic ports.
From The Whelps of the Wolf by George P. Marsh
High in the air, invisible, migrating wavies winged into the south, the distant gabble of their passing falling weirdly earthward.
From Deep Furrows by Hopkins Moorhouse
We would never have been such good friends," said Nan on one occasion, "if I hadn't wanted to go to your house, Gabriel, to see how your grandmother wavies her hair.
From Gabriel Tolliver A Story of Reconstruction by Joel Chandler Harris
September waned, and the laggard rear-guard of the brant and Hutchins geese, riding the first stinging northers, passed south in the wake of the wavies.
From The Whelps of the Wolf by George P. Marsh
When cooler and warmer waters meet, the sharp contrast changes the air above, making the jet stream wavier and slower, according to researchers.
From Barron's ● Jun. 26, 2026
They say that global warming is making these currents increasingly "wavier", which means it's meandering and not following a steady path.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2025
A 2022 study suggests the jet stream will became wavier and stagnant as the planet warms, allowing weather like extreme rainfall to "park" over a region and causing dangerous flooding.
From National Geographic ● Jan. 26, 2024
The basic idea, he said, is that the warmer conditions create larger and more energetic atmospheric waves that make the jet stream wavier, with greater peaks and troughs.
From New York Times ● Dec. 22, 2022
Seven looked up and saw a picture of what looked like Thorn with shorter, wavier hair.
From "Witchlings" by Claribel A. Ortega
Last year was the waviest example of this pressure phenomenon in 145 years, said Overland.
From Scientific American ● Jan. 5, 2011
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
