wend

verb

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\ ˈwend

wended; wending; wends

Definition of wend

(Entry 1 of 2)

intransitive verb

: to direct one's course : travel

transitive verb

: to proceed on (one's way) : direct

Wend

noun

\ ˈwend

Definition of Wend (Entry 2 of 2)

: a member of a Slavic people of eastern Germany

Did you know? Example Sentences Learn More About wend

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Did you know?

Wend is related to the verb "wind," which means, among other things, "to follow a series of curves and turns." It is also a distant relative of the verb "wander." "Wend" itself began its journey in Old English as windan, meaning "to twist." "Wend" has twisted itself into various meanings over the years. Most of its senses-including "to come about," "to depart," "to change," and "to betake"-have since wandered off into obscurity, but its current sense of "to direct or to proceed" is holding steady on the path.

Examples of wend in a Sentence

Verb We wended through the narrow streets. We wended our way through the narrow streets.

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb This month's bus tour will wend through the South with stops in cities such as Nashville, Atlanta and Columbia, South Carolina. — Fredreka Schouten, CNN, 17 June 2021 The traditional parade has been replaced with a car caravan organizers call a Pridemobile Parade that will wend its way through the city for three hours on Saturday afternoon. — Washington Post, 12 June 2021 Nearly 2½ years later, case No. 18016887 continues to slowly wend its way through the court system. — Ron Kroichick, San Francisco Chronicle, 6 Mar. 2021 Before the extension, with the moratorium set to expire Jan. 31, Badon said the judges debated opening on weekends and running a night court to wend through the backlog. — John Simerman, NOLA.com, 22 Jan. 2021 The western segment of the parkway tunnels is being topped with fresh soil, and a trail will wend through the historic army batteries and mature trees. — John King, SFChronicle.com, 11 Dec. 2020 Spend time in the treetops on an elevated skywalk, trek a 500-foot trail through a woodland habitat that includes an adventure bridge, explore a cave’s stalactites and stalagmites and wend your way through a caterpillar maze. — Shannon Sutlief, Dallas News, 6 Nov. 2020 Once the park is complete — likely next summer or fall — walkways will wend along the river, through a pollinator garden and beside green spaces lined with flowers and reedy grasses native to the low-lying wetland area. — New York Times, 4 Dec. 2020 Spend time in the treetops on an elevated skywalk, trek a 500-foot trail through a woodland habitat that includes an adventure bridge, explore a cave’s stalactites and stalagmites and wend your way through a caterpillar maze. — Shannon Sutlief, Dallas News, 6 Nov. 2020

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