wave
a disturbance on the surface of a liquid body, as the sea or a lake, in the form of a moving ridge or swell.
any surging or progressing movement or part resembling a wave of the sea: a wave of the pulse.
a swell, surge, or rush, as of feeling or of a certain condition: a wave of disgust sweeping over a person; a wave of cholera throughout the country.
a widespread feeling, opinion, tendency, etc.: a wave of anti-intellectualism; the new wave of installment buying.
a mass movement, as of troops, settlers, or migrating birds.
an outward curve, or one of a series of such curves, in a surface or line; undulation.
an act or instance of waving.
a fluttering sign or signal made with the hand, a flag, etc.: a farewell wave.
natural waviness of the hair, or a special treatment to impart waviness: to have a wave in one's hair; to get a shampoo and a wave.
a period or spell of unusually hot or cold weather.
Physics. a progressive disturbance propagated from point to point in a medium or space without progress or advance by the points themselves, as in the transmission of sound or light.
Literary.
a body of water.
the sea.
(at sports events, especially baseball games) a momentary standing and sitting back down by spectators in a sequential, lateral way to create, en masse, a wavelike effect visually.
to move freely and gently back and forth or up and down, as by the action of air currents, sea swells, etc.: The flags were waving in the wind.
to curve alternately in opposite directions; have an undulating form: The road waved along the valley.
to bend or sway up and down or to and fro, as branches or plants in the wind.
to be moved, especially alternately in opposite directions: The woman's handkerchief waved in encouragement.
to give a signal by fluttering or flapping something: She waved to me with her hand.
to cause to flutter or have a waving motion in: A night wind waves the tattered banners.
to cause to bend or sway up and down or to and fro: The storm waved the heavy branches of the elm.
to give an undulating form to; cause to curve up and down or in and out.
to give a wavy appearance or pattern to, as silk.
to impart a wave to (the hair).
to move, especially alternately in opposite directions: to wave the hand.
to signal to by waving a flag or the like; direct by a waving movement: to wave a train to a halt; to wave traffic around an obstacle.
to signify or express by a waving movement: to wave a last goodbye.
Idioms about wave
make waves, Informal. to disturb the status quo; cause trouble, as by questioning or resisting the accepted rules, procedures, etc.: The best way to stay out of trouble at the office is not to make waves.
Origin of wave
1synonym study For wave
Other words for wave
Other words from wave
- waveless, adjective
- wave·less·ly, adverb
- wav·ing·ly, adverb
- wavelike, adjective
- outwave, verb (used with object), out·waved, out·wav·ing.
- un·der·wave, noun
- un·der·wav·ing, noun
- un·wav·ing, adjective
Words that may be confused with wave
- waive, wave
Words Nearby wave
How to use wave in a sentence
This year has marked a new wave of organizing among tech workers.
Human Capital: The battle over the fate of gig workers continues | Megan Rose Dickey | September 11, 2020 | TechCrunchIt’s a beach break, so the sand is constantly shifting and changing the way the wave breaks.
Influencer marketing is witnessing Micro-influencers making waves.
How businesses can use YouTube to tackle the COVID-19 business crisis | Catherrine Garcia | September 7, 2020 | Search Engine WatchHe suggested gravitational waves might be a good way to study the sun’s massive eddies.
Readers ask about neutrinos in the sun’s core, megaflashes and mussels | Science News Staff | September 6, 2020 | Science NewsTo keep the old one going, Newton will have to jump-start a mediocre offense, and Belichick will have to ride out an unprecedented wave of defensive defections.
Newton Can Replace Brady, But Can The Pats Replace Half Of Their Defense? | Neil Paine (neil.paine@fivethirtyeight.com) | September 3, 2020 | FiveThirtyEight
Thus it attracted a wave of cowboy operators to fly passengers and cargo between cities.
There have been previous waves of people moving to Texas, and we are now experiencing the latest wave.
The army has since conducted a brutal wave of jailings against activists and journalists.
Behind Bars for the Holidays: 11 Political Prisoners We Want to See Free In 2015 | Movements.Org | December 25, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTWe prefer to wave away the warning signs; like The Interview, Mulholland Drive was comfortably downplayed as over-the-top satire.
Pyongyang Shuffle: Hollywood In Dead Panic Over Sony Hack | James Poulos | December 19, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTWhat are your feelings about the wave of support that always immediately presents itself from the other side?
The Unbearable Whiteness of Protesting | Rawiya Kameir, Judnick Mayard | December 10, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTBut to wave this discourse of Heathens, how many self-contradicting principles are there held among Christians?
The wave-like movement of these animals is particularly graceful and cleverly done.
Women in the fine arts, from the Seventh Century B.C. to the Twentieth Century A.D. | Clara Erskine ClementWhile you were admiring the long roll of the wave, a sudden spray would be dashed over you, and make you catch your breath!
Music-Study in Germany | Amy Fay"Yes," said Punch, lifted up in his father's arms to wave good-bye.
Kipling Stories and Poems Every Child Should Know, Book II | Rudyard Kipling"I've brought ye thet Injun I wuz tellin' ye uv," she said, with a wave of her hand toward Alessandro.
Ramona | Helen Hunt Jackson
British Dictionary definitions for wave
/ (weɪv) /
to move or cause to move freely to and fro: the banner waved in the wind
(intr) to move the hand to and fro as a greeting
to signal or signify by or as if by waving something
(tr) to direct to move by or as if by waving something: he waved me on
to form or be formed into curves, undulations, etc
(tr) to give a wavy or watered appearance to (silk, etc)
(tr) to set waves in (the hair)
one of a sequence of ridges or undulations that moves across the surface of a body of a liquid, esp the sea: created by the wind or a moving object and gravity
any undulation on or at the edge of a surface reminiscent of such a wave: a wave across the field of corn
the waves the sea
anything that suggests the movement of a wave, as by a sudden rise: a crime wave
a widespread movement that advances in a body: a wave of settlers swept into the country
the act or an instance of waving
physics an oscillation propagated through a medium or space such that energy is periodically interchanged between two kinds of disturbance. For example, an oscillating electric field generates a magnetic oscillation and vice versa, hence an electromagnetic wave is produced. Similarly a wave on a liquid comprises vertical and horizontal displacements: See also antinode, longitudinal wave, node, standing wave, transverse wave
physics a graphical representation of a wave obtained by plotting the magnitude of the disturbance against time at a particular point in the medium or space; waveform
a prolonged spell of some weather condition: a heat wave
an undulating curve or series of curves or loose curls in the hair
an undulating pattern or finish on a fabric
short for wave moth
make waves to cause trouble; disturb the status quo
ride the wave US slang to enjoy a period of success and good fortune
Origin of wave
1Derived forms of wave
- waveless, adjective
- wavelike, adjective
Collins 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 wave
[ wāv ]
A disturbance, oscillation, or vibration, either of a medium and moving through that medium (such as water and sound waves), or of some quantity with different values at different points in space, moving through space (such as electromagnetic waves or a quantum mechanical wave described by the wave function). See also longitudinal wave transverse wave wave function. See Note at refraction.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for wave
In physics, any regularly recurring event, such as surf coming in toward a beach, that can be thought of as a disturbance moving through a medium. Waves are characterized by wavelength, frequency, and the speed at which they move. Waves are found in many forms.
Notes for wave
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Other Idioms and Phrases with wave
see make waves.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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