wag
verb (used with object)
to move from side to side, forward and backward, or up and down, especially rapidly and repeatedly.
wag
American
[wag]
/ wæg /
verb (used with object)
-
wags,
present (3rd person singular)
-
wagged,
past participle, past
-
wagging
present participle
-
to move from side to side, forward and backward, or up and down, especially rapidly and repeatedly.
a dog wagging its tail.
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to move (the tongue), as in idle or indiscreet chatter.
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to shake (a finger) at someone, as in reproach.
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to move or nod (the head).
verb (used without object)
-
wags,
present (3rd person singular)
-
wagged,
past participle, past
-
wagging
present participle
-
to be moved from side to side or one way and the other, especially rapidly and repeatedly, as the head or the tail.
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to move constantly, especially in idle or indiscreet chatter.
Her behavior caused local tongues to wag.
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to get along; travel; proceed.
Let the world wag how it will.
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to totter or sway.
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British Slang. to play truant; play hooky.
noun
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wags
plural
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the act of wagging.
a friendly wag of the tail.
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a person given to droll, roguish, or mischievous humor; wit.
wag
1
British
/ wæɡ /
verb
-
to move or cause to move rapidly and repeatedly from side to side or up and down
-
to move (the tongue) or (of the tongue) to be moved rapidly in talking, esp in idle gossip
-
to move (the finger) or (of the finger) to be moved from side to side, in or as in admonition
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slang to play truant (esp in the phrase wag it )
noun
WAG
2
British
abbreviation
Wag
3
British
/ wæɡ /
noun
wag
4
British
/ wæɡ /
noun
wag
Idioms
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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wagsimple
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wagssimple
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have waggedperfect
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has waggedperfect
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am waggingprogressive
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are waggingprogressive
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is waggingprogressive
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have been waggingperfect progressive
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has been waggingperfect progressive
Past
-
waggedsimple
-
had waggedperfect
-
was waggingprogressive
-
were waggingprogressive
-
had been waggingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of wag
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English waggen, from Old Norse vaga “to sway,” or from vagga “cradle”
Explanation
A wag is a quick, back-and-forth movement. A scolding teacher might give you an irritated wag of a finger, while a happy dog will give you a cheerful tail wag. Animals and people alike use wags to communicate various emotions, and when they do, they wag. Dogs are known to wag their tails in happiness or to express friendliness, but a very slow tail wag can mean a dog is uncertain or is trying to calm itself. Wag is at least partly rooted in the Old English wagian, "move backwards and forwards."
Vocabulary lists containing wag
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:
To paraphrase some anonymous wag, never let a cross-cultural calamity go to waste.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 7, 2026
You can’t wag your finger at people and say, “You should be going to the theater and having this theatrical experience,” but you feel it rising right now.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 19, 2025
“I tell clients, ‘Don’t let the tax tail wag the dog.’”
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 26, 2025
Cooper Connolly made a late 23 but the tail failed to wag as India turned the screws.
From Barron's ● Oct. 25, 2025
He had talked to her not with his voice, but with his ears, eyes, and lips; and he had even commended her with a wag of his tail.
From "Julie of the Wolves" by Jean Craighead George
In the meantime, Biles seems content to embrace a position on the sidelines—both as an NFL WAG and a supporter of gymnastics around the globe.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 23, 2025
But to do that, she knew she had to shed her other personas – the Spice Girl, the WAG.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2025
Because of her sleuthing tactics, Ms. Rooney became known as “Wagatha Christie,” a mash-up of WAG and Agatha Christie, the 20th-century mystery writer.
From New York Times ● Jul. 29, 2022
The battle has been dubbed the "WAGatha Christie" case, a reference to the "WAG" moniker given to the glamorous group of footballers' wives and girlfriends and Rooney's detective work.
From Reuters ● May 10, 2022
Some Tory WAG among the Hanging Committee may have taken this juxtaposition for wit: our readers will adopt a different view.
From Old Friends, Epistolary Parody by Andrew Lang
Wag Hotels, which has locations in Los Angeles and the Bay Area, has agreed to pay $150,000 to settle a consumer protection lawsuit.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 5, 2025
One row lower, you’ll find that this prime real estate goes to two more brands—Purina and Blue Buffalo—next to Amazon’s own, called Wag.
From Slate ● Oct. 4, 2023
You’ll also receive a complimentary month of Wag!
From New York Times ● May 15, 2023
That means Uber is subject to the law while pet-sitting service Wag, which has been called "Uber for dogs," is not.
From Reuters ● Mar. 17, 2023
Your name is Wag, I suppose?”—“Yes, sir,” replied the shopkeeper drily.
From Tales from Blackwood, Volume 7 by Herbert Willis
Noem and Miller are among those whom Washington wags say could also be on the chopping block.
From Salon ● Jan. 30, 2026
Wall Street wags say bigger investment managers will do worse, but Blackstone’s 2025 investment performance was pretty good.
From Barron's ● Jan. 29, 2026
Just inland from Rosie’s Dog Beach, Franklin Bean, a 10-month-old mini dachshund, greeted passersby with tail wags and belly rolls.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2025
The top order batters' minds are distracted from facing the opening overs of the following innings and if the tail really wags it can descend into chaos.
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2025
It stops in front of me, wags its stubby tail, and looks up at me with a panting smile.
From "Warcross" by Marie Lu
Trusty wagged a finger and sprinted to celebrate with the U.S. bench.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
Instead, he wagged a finger at the camera lens.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 13, 2026
His efforts seemed to have put his side on course to win, but the Brave tailed wagged to pull off a remarkable victory.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2025
As Stone wagged his finger at Milei, an aide tried to interpret the pronouncements into Spanish.
From Salon ● Jan. 21, 2025
She wagged her tail so hard that it whacked the admiral repeatedly on the side of his leg.
From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood
If a leveraged fund grows large enough, it can start to have a significant impact on the underlying stock to which it is tied, a phenomenon traders refer to as “the tail wagging the dog.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 29, 2026
“When he takes my sister to work, Jameson is in the car, wagging his tongue.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2026
In a sense, it is like the tail wagging the dog.
From MarketWatch ● May 26, 2026
Supermodel Heidi Klum got tongues wagging on the red carpet while taking comically short steps in a nude latex dress.
From BBC ● Feb. 2, 2026
Robin waits for me at the top of the stairs, stubby tail wagging, but I don’t move.
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
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.
