whoa

American  

[hwoh, woh] / ʰwoʊ, woʊ /

Sometimes woah

interjection

1. (used to command an animal, especially a horse, to stop.)

2. (used to tell a person to stop, wait, or slow down).

   Whoa, you need to sit over there and calm yourself.

3. (an exclamation of surprise, wonder, pleasure, etc.).

   Whoa, that's a great photo!

---

whoa British  

/ wəʊ /

interjection

1. a command used esp to horses to stop or slow down

---

Usage

What does whoa mean? Whoa is used to express that something is impressive, surprising, or astounding, as in Whoa! Look at that sunset! In this sense, it’s very similar to wow. Whoa is also used as a command to stop. This command is especially associated with its use to get a horse to stop or slow down. Whoa is an interjection, meaning it’s typically used by itself outside of a sentence. Some people spell it woah. Example: When I told Keanu that the horse was running right at him, he just stood there and said, “Whoa.”

Etymology

Origin of whoa

First recorded in 1460–80; dialectal variant of ho ²

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

whoa

And I remember going to bed being like, “I’ve gotta go to New York, like whoa, this is crazy.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2026

He wanted to say hello, and he just showed up side-stage and our security was like, “Whoa, whoa — where’s your pass?”

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 7, 2025

“Scene Partners,” by John J. Caswell Jr., with the transcendent Dianne Wiest as Meryl, is definitely more like whoa.

From New York Times ● Nov. 15, 2023

She said: "I was like, whoa what on earth is that?"

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2023

“And why didn’t it hurt me? I mean, not that I’m complaining. Who are you? And whoa, what is that you’re wearing? Is that made of lion fur?”

From "The Titan's Curse" by Rick Riordan