wing

noun, often attributive

\ ˈwiŋ

plural wings

Definition of wing

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : one of the movable feathered or membranous paired appendages by means of which a bird, bat, or insect is able to fly also : such an appendage even though rudimentary if possessed by an animal belonging to a group characterized by the power of flight

b : any of various anatomical structures (as of a flying fish or flying lemur) providing means of limited flight

2 : an appendage or part resembling a wing in appearance, position, or function: such as

a : a device worn under the arms to aid a person in swimming or staying afloat water wings

b : ala

c : a turned-back or extended edge on an article of clothing

d : a sidepiece at the top of an armchair

e(1) : a foliaceous, membranous, or woody expansion of a plant especially along a stem or on a samara or capsule

(2) : either of the two lateral petals of a papilionaceous flower

f : a vane of a windmill or arrow

g : sail

h : an airfoil that develops a major part of the lift which supports a heavier-than-air aircraft

i chiefly British : fender sense d

3 : a means of flight or rapid progress

4 : the act or manner of flying : flight take wing

5 : a side or outlying region or district

6 : a part or feature of a building usually projecting from and subordinate to the main or central part the servants' wing

7a : one of the pieces of scenery at the side of a stage

b wings plural : the area at the side of the stage out of sight

8a : a left or right section of an army or fleet : flank

b : one of the offensive positions or players on either side of a center position in certain team sports also : flanker

9a : either of two opposing groups within an organization or society : faction

b : a section of an organized body (such as a legislative chamber) representing a group or faction holding distinct opinions or policies — compare left wing, right wing

10a : a unit of the U.S. Air Force higher than a group and lower than a division

b : two or more squadrons of naval airplanes

11 : a dance step marked by a quick outward and inward rolling glide of one foot

12 wings plural : insignia consisting of an outspread pair of stylized bird's wings which are awarded on completion of prescribed training to a qualified pilot, aircrew member, or military balloon pilot

in the wings

1 : out of sight in the stage wings

2 : close at hand in the background : readily available had a plan waiting in the wings

on the wing

1 : in flight : flying

2 : in motion

under one's wing

: under one's protection : in one's care took her under his wing

wing

verb

winged; winging; wings

Definition of wing (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1a : to fit with wings

b : to enable to fly or move swiftly

2a : to traverse with or as if with wings

b : to effect or achieve by flying

3 : to let fly : dispatch would start to wing punches— A. J. Liebling

4a : to wound in the wing : disable the wing of winged the duck

b : to wound (as with a bullet) without killing winged by a sniper

5 : to do or perform without preparation or guidelines : improvise winging it

intransitive verb

: to go with or as if with wings : fly —often used with it winged it to Europe

Other Words from wing Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about wing

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Synonyms for wing

Synonyms: Noun

bloc, block, body, coalition, faction, party, sect, set, side

Synonyms: Verb

aviate, fly, glide, plane, soar

Examples of wing in a Sentence

Noun

In the library's north wing, you'll find the current periodicals. She works in the pediatric wing of the hospital. The guest room is in the east wing.

Verb

The team winged to Moscow for the finals. She winged the ball over to first base. The soldier was winged by a stray bullet.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

This year offered more demonstrable evidence that all animals—big, small, with wings, or with thumbs—will face the drastic effects of climate change. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Global Warming Could Make These Sea Turtles 98% Female," 27 Dec. 2018 Kalkin designed an open-floor plan house, separated by two different wings and linked by a courtyard in between. — Megan Barber, Curbed, "The 5 best shipping container houses of 2018," 27 Dec. 2018 Brush some melted chocolate on flat side of halves and dip into black sanding sugar for wingsCut a thin slice from the flat side of an orange spice drop and cut the slice in half to make feet (2 semicircles). — Woman's Day Kitchen, Woman's Day, "Snowy Cookie Truffles," 30 Nov. 2018 Regardless of size, all penguins have the same body plan, including wings that have evolved into flippers and dense bones to counter buoyancy. — Gemma Tarlach, Discover Magazine, "20 Things You Didn't Know About ... Penguins," 6 Nov. 2018 To address the skill disparity, Wargaming will change aircraft carriers from an RTS map to a third-person view, with the aircraft carrier player flying individual squadrons rather than commanding an entire air wing. — Gordon Mah Ung, PCWorld, "World of Warships dives deep for new players, adding submarines to popular naval combat game," 18 Sep. 2018 Ocasio-Cortez has become something of a national leader for progressives, pushing left-wing policies such as Medicare for all and the abolition of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). — Adam Shaw, Fox News, "Cuomo, after election win, dismisses socialist wave as 'not even a ripple'," 15 Sep. 2018 Most of the time, these tires—kit with the track package ($2,995), along with rear wing and front carbon-fiber splitter—made driving the ZR1 like wrestling a giant bipolar eel: powerful, slippery, hard to get a grip. — Dan Neil, WSJ, "2019 Corvette ZR1: The Last, and Best, of Its Kind," 28 Nov. 2018 The data confirms that a sensor that measures the plane’s angle of attack, the angle between the wings and the air flow, was feeding a faulty reading to the flight computer. — Dominic Gates, The Seattle Times, "Lion Air pilots struggled against Boeing’s 737 MAX flight-control system, black-box data shows," 27 Nov. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

For me, travel was all freedom, new places, and, well, winging it. — Crystal Paul, The Seattle Times, "A nightmare drive down the Pacific Coast Highway conjures childhood memories," 7 Aug. 2018 And all my practice winging it was added to the mix too. — Beth Woolsey, Woman's Day, "'My Father and I Approach the World Differently, But an Emergency Brought Us Together'," 4 Oct. 2018 The stiffer, shorter triangular shape also helps me easily create winged shadow, which is my one of my go-to looks. — Devon Abelman, Allure, "How I Inspired Moda's Triad Eye Brush, the Only Tool I Need for a Complete Shadow Look," 16 Aug. 2018 Another consequence: Trump winging it exhausts everyone around him. — James Hohmann, Washington Post, "The Daily 202: North Korea summit prep encapsulates Trump’s winging-it presidency," 11 June 2018 The love winging around the room scares her with its annihilating force. — Karen Russell, The New Yorker, "Orange World," 4 June 2017 The best airlines of 2017 Advertisement When planning your travel, don't wing it! — Lisa Gutierrez, kansascity, "JetBlue attendants who put oxygen mask on bulldog's face saved her life, owners say," 9 July 2018 The best airlines of 2017 Advertisement When planning your travel, don't wing it! — Lisa Gutierrez, kansascity, "JetBlue attendants who put oxygen mask on bulldog's face saved her life, owners say," 9 July 2018 The best airlines of 2017 Advertisement When planning your travel, don't wing it! — Lisa Gutierrez, kansascity, "JetBlue attendants who put oxygen mask on bulldog's face saved her life, owners say," 9 July 2018

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