woo [ woo ] SHOW IPA
/ wu / PHONETIC RESPELLING
verb (used with object)
to seek the favor, affection, or love of, especially with a view to marriage.
to seek to win: to woo fame.
to invite (consequences, whether good or bad) by one's own action; court : to woo one's own destruction. to seek to persuade (a person, group, etc.), as to do something; solicit ; importune . verb (used without object)
to seek the affection or love of someone, usually a woman; court: He was reminded of his youth when he went wooing.
to solicit favor or approval; entreat : Further attempts to woo proved useless.
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Origin of woo First recorded before 1050; Middle English wowe, Old English wōgian; ultimate origin uncertain
OTHER WORDS FROM woo wooer, noun woo·ing·ly, adverb un·wooed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Words related to woo cultivate ,
pursue ,
solicit ,
address ,
beg ,
caress ,
charm ,
chase ,
court ,
date ,
entreat ,
importune ,
propose ,
rush ,
spark ,
spoon ,
bill and coo ,
butter up ,
curry favor ,
go steady
How to use woo in a sentence He wants to build a platform—that word Wall Street-woo ing techies love—to accommodate all offices’ computer-based needs.
The first video of a wrinkle-faced sexual encounter shows a male covering his face with a masklike flap of skin while woo ing and then, at a strategic moment, dropping the mask.
Even as Hispanics favored Democrats this week, some Republicans woo ed them ardently and made surprising inroads.
“Ben, who was as cunning and seductive as Diane, really woo ed Diane,” says an insider.
Bonifacio was standing by a van with the man who had woo ed her and promised her a wonderful new life in America.
Apparently Focus Features woo ed the former fanfictress with script, casting, and director approval.
Millennials all want to stand with Rand: the Kentucky Republican woo ed the younger crowd at CPAC.
And what humiliation to know that in your youth you are really woo ed for the sake of the race alone, no matter what the delusions.
"I dinna ken what to say," she at last answered, distress in her voice, yet pleased to be woo ed by this young man.
It is a little unfortunate, too, that the maiden to be woo ed and won should be the charming actress I have just mentioned.
Since the time that he died have I ruled the land; divers men have woo ed me, but none that I would wed, & my name is Gyda.
I was riding by the ranch of Mr. Blank, who had woo ed and won our cook after a courtship that was as brief as it was fervid.
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British Dictionary definitions for woo
verb woos , wooing or wooed
to seek the affection, favour, or love of (a woman) with a view to marriage
(tr) to seek after zealously or hopefully to woo fame
(tr) to bring upon oneself (good or evil results) by one's own action
(tr) to beg or importune (someone)
Derived forms of woo wooer , noun wooing , noun Word Origin for woo Old English wōgian, of obscure origin
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
Other Idioms and Phrases with woo
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.