waved; waving
Definition of wave
(Entry 1 of 3)
1
: to motion with the hands or with something held in them in signal or salute
2
: to float, play, or shake in an air current : move loosely to and fro : flutter
flags waving in the breeze
4
: to become moved or brandished to and fro
signs waved in the crowd
5
: to move before the wind with a wavelike motion
field of waving grain
6
: to follow a curving line or take a wavy form : undulate
1
: to swing (something) back and forth or up and down
2
: to impart a curving or undulating shape to
waved her hair
3a
: to motion to (someone) to go in an indicated direction or to stop : signal
waved down a passing car
b
: to gesture with (the hand or an object) in greeting or farewell or in homage
c
: to dismiss or put out of mind : disregard
—usually used with aside or off
d
: to convey by waving
waved farewell
wave
noun (1)Definition of wave (Entry 2 of 3)
1a
: a moving ridge or swell on the surface of a liquid (as of the sea)
b
chiefly literary
: water, sea
… this our island in the wave …— Charles Dickens The buccaneer on the wave might relinquish his calling and become … a man of probity and piety on land …— Nathaniel Hawthorne The sea was open to them, and they achieved their victories on the briny wave. — The Book of Commerce by Sea and Land
2a
: a shape or outline having successive curves
b
: a waviness of the hair
c
: an undulating line or streak or a pattern formed by such lines
3
: something that swells and dies away: such as
a
: a surge of sensation or emotion
a wave of anger swept over her
b
: a movement sweeping large numbers in a common direction
waves of protest
c
: a peak or climax of activity
a wave of buying
4
: a sweep of hand or arm or of some object held in the hand used as a signal or greeting
5
: a rolling or undulatory movement or one of a series of such movements passing along a surface or through the air
6
: a movement like that of an ocean wave: such as
a
: a surging movement of a group
a big new wave of women politicians
b
: one of a succession of influxes of people migrating into a region
c(1)
: a moving group of animals of one kind
(2)
: a sudden rapid increase in a population
d
: a line of attacking or advancing troops or airplanes
e
: a display of people in a large crowd (as at a sports event) successively rising, lifting their arms overhead, and quickly sitting so as to form a swell moving through the crowd
7a
: a disturbance or variation that transfers energy progressively from point to point in a medium and that may take the form of an elastic deformation or of a variation of pressure, electric or magnetic intensity, electric potential, or temperature
b
: one complete cycle of such a disturbance
8
: a marked change in temperature : a period of hot or cold weather
9
: an undulating or jagged line constituting a graphic representation of an action
Wave
noun (2)Definition of Wave (Entry 3 of 3)
: a member of the women's component of the U.S. Navy formed during World War II and discontinued in the 1970s
Test Your Vocabulary
Odd Habits and Quirks
-
- Which of the following best describes an easily irritated person?

Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZ
A daily challenge for crossword fanatics.
TAKE THE QUIZLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share wave
Time Traveler for wave
The first known use of wave was in the 14th century
See more words from the same century