| would |
used as a past form of "will1" after verbs in the past tense that report speech or thoughts. [5 definitions] |
| would-be |
wanting or pretending to be. [2 definitions] |
| would just as soon |
used to indicate a secondary preference if a first option is not available, or a preference that may not be or may not appear to be highly desirable but is still more acceptable than the other option or options that one is given (usu. fol. by an infinitive without "to" but can also be followed by a noun). |
| would like |
used as a tentative form of "want" in order to express a greater degree of politeness than "want" expresses or when the possibility of doing what one wants is not considered likely or certain. |
| wouldn't |
contracted form of "would not." |
| would rather |
used to express a preference for one thing over another (usu. fol. by an infinitive of a verb without "to" or a clause in the subjunctive mood, but can also be followed by a noun). |
| would've |
contracted form of "would have." |
| wound1 |
an injury to living tissue, usu. involving penetration or cutting of the external surface. [4 definitions] |
| wound2 |
past tense and past participle of wind2. |
| wound up |
in a state of excitement, nervousness, or anxiety. |
| wove |
past tense of "weave" and also archaic past participle of "weave." |
| woven |
a past participle of weave. |
| wow1 |
(informal) used to express amazement, pleasure, enthusiasm, or the like. [2 definitions] |
| wow2 |
a slow variation or distortion of the pitch of sound reproduced from a recording. |
| WPA |
abbreviation of "Works Progress Administration," the New Deal program in the U.S. (1935-43) that provided work for the unemployed during the Great Depression (later known as Work Projects Administration). |
| wpm |
abbreviation of "words per minute." |
| wrack1 |
severe damage or destruction. |
| wrack2 |
that which remains after something has been destroyed; wreckage, esp. of a ship. [2 definitions] |
| wrack3 |
variant of rack4. |
| wraith |
an apparition of a living person, believed to foreshadow his or her imminent death. [2 definitions] |
| wrangle |
to quarrel noisily or heatedly. [6 definitions] |