Waves

American

[weyvz] / weɪvz /

Or WAVES

noun

(used with a singular or plural verb)

the Women's Reserve of the U.S. Naval Reserve, the distinct force of women enlistees in the U.S. Navy, organized during World War II.

WAVES British

/ weɪvz /

acronym

Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service; the women's reserve of the US navy

"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

Etymology

Origin of Waves

1942; W(omen) A(ccepted for) V(olunteer) E(mergency) S(ervice)

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.

In the 1920s and 1930s, the view informed three of her novels - Jacob's Room, The Waves and To the Lighthouse.

From BBC • Feb. 14, 2026

Battlefield 6 won best audio design, while open-world action RPG Wuthering Waves was a surprising winner in the fan-voted Player's Voice category.

From BBC • Dec. 12, 2025

Waves in any climate can reduce transit speed and lead to accidents.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 30, 2025

The arrest followed a US extradition request received by Guyana on Thursday, according to the Demerara Waves news outlet.

From Barron's • Nov. 1, 2025

She is thinking about her seventh-grade field trip to Wild Waves.

From "A Heart in a Body in the World" by Deb Caletti

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023