wave

verb \ ˈwāv \

Updated on: 21 Apr 2018

Definition of wave

waved; waving

intransitive verb

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

3 of water : to move in waves : heave

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

transitive verb

1 : to swing (something) back and forth or up and down

2 : to impart a curving or undulating shape to

waved her hair

3 a : 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

4 : brandish, flourish

waved a pistol menacingly

See wave defined for English-language learners

See wave defined for kids

Examples of wave in a Sentence

We waved to our friends through the window.
She was waving in the direction of the bridge.
Flags were waving in the breeze.
The magician waved his magic wand.
The leader of the parade waved a flag.
It was so hot that we were all waving our hands in front of our faces to cool off.

Recent Examples of wave from the Web

And the president– waved him away and had him close the door.

— time staff, Time, "Read the Full Transcript From James Comey's ABC Interview," 17 Apr. 2018
The crowds that gathered in the Damascus also expressed scorn, waving portraits of Assad and mocking Trump.

— author: louisa loveluck, liz sly, Anchorage Daily News, "Assad is defiant as US-led strikes in Syria show no sign of threatening his hold on power," 15 Apr. 2018
Crowds gathered in central Damascus expressed defiance, waving portraits of Assad and mocking Trump.

— the washington post, NOLA.com, "Syria defiant as Trump orders missile strikes after chemical attack," 14 Apr. 2018
The woman attempted to get back inside her vehicle but the passenger side door was locked, allowing the attacker to wave a knife in her face and hit her with the weapon's handle on her shoulder and arms, CAIR said.

— fernando ramirez, Houston Chronicle, "31-year-old Houston nurse victim of Islamophobic stabbing, civil rights group says," 6 Apr. 2018
Outside the court, hundreds of supporters of Park had gathered, waving Korean and US flags and calling for the former president's release.

— paula hancocks, CNN, "Former South Korean President Park Geun-hye sentenced to 24 years in prison," 6 Apr. 2018
Anaya said to a raucous crowd of several thousand waving white Anaya flags inside a university gymnasium, and thousands more watching his speech on large screens outside.

— aaron nelsen, San Antonio Express-News, "Mexican presidential hopeful vows not to pay one cent for Trump’s wall," 3 Apr. 2018
The Uber driver waved down traffic for help, and when another man stopped, Doherty jumped in the Uber vehicle and drove off, prosecutors said.

— travis andersen, BostonGlobe.com, "Suspended Boston police officer convicted of racially motivated attack on Uber driver," 2 Apr. 2018
There was a festive atmosphere outside many polling stations, with groups of women waving Egyptian flags and dancing to nationalist songs.

— The Economist, "Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi wins a second term in Egypt," 30 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'wave.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of wave

Middle English, from Old English wafian to wave with the hands; akin to Old English wæfan to clothe and perhaps to Old English wefan to weave

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 2

See Words from the same year

wave Synonyms

Synonyms

beckon, flag, gesture, motion, signal;

Related Words

nod;

gesticulate, mime, pantomime, sign;

signalize;

acquaint, advise, inform, relate, tell;

flourish, shrug;

Synonym Discussion of wave

swing, wave, flourish, brandish, thrash mean to wield or cause to move to and fro or up and down. swing implies regular or uniform movement.

- swing the rope back and forth

wave usually implies smooth or continuous motion.

- waving the flag

flourish suggests vigorous, ostentatious, graceful movement.

- flourished the winning lottery ticket

brandish implies threatening or menacing motion.

- brandishing a knife

thrash suggests vigorous, abrupt, violent movement.

- an infant thrashing his arms about

wave

noun

Definition of wave

1 a : a moving ridge or swell on the surface of a liquid (as of the sea)

b : open water

2 a : 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

7 a : 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

—

waveless

play \ˈwāv-ləs\ adjective

—

wavelessly

adverb

—

wavelike

play \-ˌlīk\ adjective

See wave defined for English-language learners

Examples of wave in a Sentence

The waves crashed onto the rocks.
She has a wave in her hair.
Waves of warm air washed over us.
We got a wave from the Queen.
The rabbit disappeared with a wave of the magician's wand.

Recent Examples of wave from the Web

But then a second wave is expected to hit, pouring more freezing rain throughout the Fox River Valley and changing to snow as temperatures drop.

— rick barrett, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Winter Storm Evelyn set to shatter record for April storms in northeastern Wisconsin," 14 Apr. 2018
The second wave of takes, via scolding media members, assured everyone that the race was actually very close.

— ben golliver, SI.com, "2018 NBA Awards Picks: Has James Harden Finally Earned His MVP Moment?," 11 Apr. 2018
This is the second recent wave of hearings involving Facebook.

— mike snider, USA TODAY, "What's at stake for Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg as he testifies before Congress," 10 Apr. 2018
An analysis completed in late March for the city’s pension system estimates that these raises, combined with the second wave coming later, will increase San Diego’s pension debt $15.8 million.

— david garrick, sandiegouniontribune.com, "San Diego council approves pay raises for several hundred city workers," 9 Apr. 2018
Leading up to a second wave of attacks in August 2017, the number of posts again exploded with a 200% increase in interactions, according to Serrato.

— laignee barron, Time, "Could Facebook Have Helped Stop the Spread of Hate in Myanmar?," 6 Apr. 2018
Sontag, Ephron and Malcolm all wrote critically of second-wave feminism.

— kate tuttle, latimes.com, "The women who wielded a pen like a weapon: Michelle Dean's 'Sharp'," 5 Apr. 2018
But the Dallas Cowboys’ top needs have remained the same even with a handful of signings in the second wave of free agency.

— drew davison, star-telegram, "2018 NFL Mock Draft 2.0: Can defense-needy Cowboys afford to pass on Calvin Ridley? | Fort Worth Star-Telegram," 4 Apr. 2018
My mother was someone who was affected in a positive way by the women’s movement and second-wave feminism.

— thomas gebremedhin, WSJ, "Q&A with Meg Wolitzer: The Author of ‘The Female Persuasion’," 4 Apr. 2018

First Known Use of wave

1526

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

wave Synonyms

Synonyms

billow, surge, swell;

Related Words

sea(s);

surf;

breaker, whitecap;

comber, curl;

riffle, ripple, wavelet;

ground swell, roller;

tidal wave, tsunami;

Wave

noun \ ˈwāv \

Definition of Wave

: a member of the women's component of the U.S. Navy formed during World War II and discontinued in the 1970s

See Wave defined for kids

Origin and Etymology of wave

Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1942

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

Other History Terms

agonistic, carpetbagger, enceinte, fief, historiography, paladin

Financial Definition of WAVE

wave

noun

What It Is

In investing, a wave is a pattern found in stock prices, technology, consumer trends or other areas. In technical analysis, the term often refers to Elliot Wave Theory.

How It Works

Elliot Wave Theory is a method for predicting stock prices by identifying certain trading patterns. Specifically, the theory states that markets move up in a series of five waves but move down in a series of three waves. The theory looks to investor psychology for key information.

Generally speaking, though, a "wave" is a term used to describe a new way of doing things. For example, Congress could pass new legislation to encourage "crowdfunding," which in turn could drive a new wave of startups who get their capital from online, fund-raising websites. The change could forever change the pathways through which capital reaches companies, and as a result more people may engage in the startup economy. This in turn could create markets for other crowdfunding websites, due diligence consulting firms, startup legal services and branding work.

Why It Matters

It's easy to see how investing ahead of waves could be extremely profitable. New waves can spur significant economic growth in certain sectors, and learning how to identify or predict waves accurately can lead to very good investment decisions.

Source: Investing Answers

WAVE Defined for English Language Learners

wave

verb

Definition of wave for English Language Learners

: to move your hand or something held in your hand usually in a repeated motion in order to signal or greet someone
: to float, shake, or move back and forth because of wind
: to move (something) back and forth

wave

noun

Definition of wave for English Language Learners

: an area of moving water that is raised above the main surface of an ocean, a lake, etc.
: something that has the shape or movement of a wave
: a usually repeated movement of your hand or of something held in your hand especially as a signal or greeting

WAVE Defined for Kids

wave

verb \ ˈwāv \

Definition of wave for Students

waved; waving

1 : to move (as the hand) to and fro as a signal or in greeting

2 : to move (something) back and forth

The Black Knight waved his lance weakly over our heads.
—Jon Scieszka, Knights of the Kitchen Table

3 : to curve slightly

Her hair waves naturally.

4 : to flutter with a rolling movement Flags waved in the wind.

wave

noun

Definition of wave for Students

1 : a moving ridge on the surface of water

2 : a waving motion

a wave of the hand

3 : something that swells and dies away

A wave of anger came over her.

4 : a rolling movement passing along a surface or through the air

waves of grain

5 : a curving shape or series of curving shapes

hair with waves

6 : a sudden increase in something

a crime wave

7 : a motion that is somewhat like a wave in water and transfers energy from point to point

sound waves

Medical Dictionary

wave

noun \ ˈwāv \

medical Definition of wave

1 a : 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, electrical or magnetic intensity, electrical potential, or temperature

b : one complete cycle of such a disturbance

2 : an undulating or jagged line constituting a graphic representation of an action

an electroencephalographic wave

Learn More about wave

See words that rhyme with wave Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for wave Spanish Central: Translation of wave Nglish: Translation of wave for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of wave for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about wave

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wave

Definition of wave

Examples of wave in a Sentence

Recent Examples of wave from the Web

Origin and Etymology of wave

wave Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

Synonym Discussion of wave

wave

Definition of wave

waveless

wavelessly

wavelike

Examples of wave in a Sentence

Recent Examples of wave from the Web

First Known Use of wave

wave Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

Wave

Definition of Wave

Origin and Etymology of wave

Other History Terms

Financial Definition of WAVE

What It Is

How It Works

Why It Matters

Phrases Related to WAVE

Related Phrases

WAVE Defined for English Language Learners

wave

Definition of wave for English Language Learners

wave

Definition of wave for English Language Learners

WAVE Defined for Kids

wave

Definition of wave for Students

wave

Definition of wave for Students

Medical Dictionary

wave

medical Definition of wave

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