wan
1of an unnatural or sickly pallor; pallid; lacking color: His wan face suddenly flushed.
showing or suggesting ill health, fatigue, unhappiness, etc.: a wan look; a wan smile.
lacking in forcefulness, competence, or effectiveness: their wan attempts to organize the alumni.
Archaic.
dark or gloomy.
pale in color or hue.
to become or make wan.
Origin of wan
1synonym study For wan
Other words for wan
Opposites for wan
Other words from wan
- wanly, adverb
- wanness, noun
Other definitions for wan (2 of 3)
Other definitions for WAN (3 of 3)
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use wan in a sentence
The pyrometers used at present are the Wanner optical pyrometer and the Fery radiation pyrometer.
Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers, vol. LXX, Dec. 1910 | Herbert M. WilsonJohn Wanner, the preacher of the cathedral of Constance, was the first that was attacked.
History of the Reformation in the Sixteenth Century, Vol 2 | J. H. Merle D'AubignHe felt also much concern for his kinsman, who rode at his side with a visage even wanner and more wo-begone than ordinary.
Calavar | Robert Montgomery BirdSome days she gone away all alone and de brack folks say she wanner all aroun' in de woods.
The Redemption of David Corson | Charles Frederic Goss
British Dictionary definitions for wan (1 of 2)
/ (wɒn) /
unnaturally pale esp from sickness, grief, etc
characteristic or suggestive of ill health, unhappiness, etc
(of light, stars, etc) faint or dim
to make or become wan
Origin of wan
1Derived forms of wan
- wanly, adverb
- wanness, noun
British Dictionary definitions for WAN (2 of 2)
wide area network
Nigeria (international car registration)
Origin of WAN
2Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for WAN
[ wăn ]
Short for wide area network.A communications network that uses such devices as telephone lines, satellite dishes, or radio waves to span a larger geographic area than can be covered by a LAN. The Internet is a WAN.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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