woo

play

verb \ˈwü\

Definition of woo

transitive verb
1 : to sue for the affection of and usually marriage with : court
2 : to solicit or entreat especially with importunity woo new customers
3 : to seek to gain or bring about
intransitive verb
: to court a woman

wooer

noun

See woo defined for English-language learners

See woo defined for kids

Examples of woo in a Sentence

The store had a sale in an effort to woo new customers.
The company must find creative ways to woo new employees.

Recent Examples of woo from the Web

A Clermont County hotel-tax hike designed to woo an FC Cincinnati training facility to Batavia has survived a battle to remove it from the state budget.

— jeanne houck, Cincinnati.com, "Clermont hotel-tax budget battle over but bruises remain", 30 June 2017
From the late 1970s, the elder Mr. Xi was a senior official in Guangdong Province, next to Hong Kong, and wooed cross-border investment by backing new special economic zones.

— chris buckley, New York Times, "Struggle for Control Underlies Xi Jinping’s Visit to Hong Kong", 28 June 2017
There was new talk among key GOP figures about wooing moderates by altering the bill’s Medicaid changes, according to two people involved who would not speak publicly.

— david weigel, Washington Post, "Senate Republicans face key week as more lawmakers waver in support for health-care bill", 25 June 2017
Levine lobbied fellow mayors to bring the Conference’s annual meeting to Miami Beach in 2017, and securing the event required him to form a host committee and raise more than $4 million in cash and donations to woo attendees and put on the event.

— douglas hanks, miamiherald, "At mayors conference in Miami Beach, a battleground for the Airbnb debate", 23 June 2017
But guests arriving at the Cerruti display witnessed one — and flocked to take in a major aquatic spectacle happening on and below the gilded Alexandre III bridge as Paris tried to woo Olympic officials in its bid to host the 2024 Summer Olympics.

— thomas adamson, The Seattle Times, "Olympic spectacle upstages menswear Fashion Week in Paris", 23 June 2017
Immediate Future Metro isn’t waiting until 2019 to try to woo riders back.

— neal broverman, Los Angeles Magazine, "Metro Hustles to Turn Bus Ridership Around With WiFi and 24-Hour Service", 23 June 2017
The other enticement to woo movie patrons, especially women, was a promotional gimmick very popular during these same Great Depression years, which promised a cup or dish to anyone who purchased a movie ticket.

— philip potempa, Post-Tribune, "Pantry dishes have special movie theater connection", 16 June 2017
Open since March, the new industrial-chic Channel Brewing Co. taproom woos passers-by with its huge sunlit windows, airy interior and blond wood tables.

— jackie burrell, The Mercury News, "Brewery Adventure: Stockton’s new Channel Brewing", 15 June 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of woo

Middle English wowen, from Old English wōgian

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First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

WOO Defined for English Language Learners

woo

play

verb

Definition of woo for English Language Learners

: to try to make (someone) love you : to try to have a romantic relationship with (someone)
: to try to attract (someone, such as a customer, voter, worker, etc.) : to attempt to persuade (someone) to buy something from you, vote for you, work for you, etc.