Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The sixth letter of the Hebrew alphabet, corresponding to the English w or the Latin v (whence it appears as modern v in the English form of the Hebrew words. Its numerical value is VI.
  • TO stir; move; wave.
  • noun A wall.
  • See waul.
  • To cry as a cat; waul.
  • noun A wave.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun obsolete A wave (of water).
  • verb transitive, obsolete To stir; move; wave.
  • noun The twenty-seventh letter of the Arabic alphabet: و.
  • noun Alternative spelling of vav.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the 6th letter of the Hebrew alphabet

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English wawe, waȝe, from Old English wǣg ("motion, water, wave, billow, flood, sea"), from Proto-Germanic *wēgaz (“wave, storm”), from Proto-Indo-European *weǵhe- (“to drag, carry”). Cognate with North Frisian weage ("water, wave"), German Wag, Woge ("wave"), French vague ("wave"), Swedish våg ("wave").

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English wawen, waȝien, from Old English wagian ("to move, shake, swing, totter"), from Proto-Germanic *wagōnan (“to move”), from Proto-Indo-European *weǵhe- (“to drag, carry”). Cognate with German wagen ("to venture, dare, risk"), Swedish våga ("to dare").

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Arabic واو (wāw).

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Examples

  • The original says "and a tower," but without a doubt, the major purpose was the tower, therefore we have here the so-called waw speciale -- "and in particular."

    Exposition of Genesis: Volume 1 1892-1972 1942

  • Yes, in biblical Hebrew the sentences start with "waw"vav literally translated as "and."

    And now for something completely different DC 2010

  • The 30 volumes of Ibn 'Aashoor's tafseer (mentioned in the "Don't be a hater" post) can be downloaded as scanned PDFs from i'm curious about the use of "waw" (and).

    Arabic Gems ~ جواهر العربية arabicgems 2009

  • Waw waw waw waw waw waaaaawww | My [confined] Space

    Waw waw waw waw waw waaaaawww | My[confined]Space 2009

  • Getty Images One of Alexander McQueen's most influential ideas waw images of skulls as a design element.

    When Designer Clothes Become Museum Pieces Christina Binkley 2011

  • When you reach stillness, you go into the condition of “wang wo zhuang tai” pronounced wahng waw jwahng tye, which means forget yourself.

    Tao II Dr. 2010

  • “Ru jing wang wo” pronounced roo jing wahng waw means meditate deeply to go into stillness and forget yourself.

    Tao II Dr. 2010

  • “Xing zou zuo wo bu li zhe ge” pronounced shing dzoe dzwaw waw boo lee juh guh means anytime, anywhere in your whole life, always put your mind on your Jin Dan.

    Tao II Dr. 2010

  • Lemongrass is a stylish fusion restaurant, decked out in vivid greens and blues, that combines Thai, Chinese, and Indonesian dishes (lemongrass. waw.pl).

    Warsaw Comes of Age 2010

  • The menu gives eccentric flourishes to classic Polish dishes, like herring and potatoes with arugula, or ribs baked in the sweet honey-flavored liquor krupnik (nomia. waw.pl).

    Warsaw Comes of Age 2010

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