wan

¹

[ won ]

adjective

, wan·ner, wan·nest.

1. of an unnatural or sickly pallor; pallid; lacking color:

   His wan face suddenly flushed.

   Synonyms: ashen

   Antonyms: ruddy

2. showing or suggesting ill health, fatigue, unhappiness, etc.:

   a wan look; a wan smile.

3. lacking in forcefulness, competence, or effectiveness:

   their wan attempts to organize the alumni.

   Synonyms: limp, ineffectual, halfhearted, weak, feeble

4. Archaic.
   1. dark or gloomy.
   2. pale in color or hue.

verb (used with or without object)

, wanned, wan·ning.

1. to become or make wan.

wan

²

[ wahn ]

verb

, Obsolete.

1. a simple past tense of win ¹.

WAN

³

[ wan ]

noun

1. wide-area network.

wan

¹

/ wɒn /

adjective

1. unnaturally pale esp from sickness, grief, etc
2. characteristic or suggestive of ill health, unhappiness, etc
3. (of light, stars, etc) faint or dim

verb

1. to make or become wan

WAN

²

abbreviation for

1. wide area network
2. Nigeria (international car registration)

WAN

/ wăn /

1. Short for wide area network. A communications network that uses such devices as telephone lines, satellite dishes, or radio waves to span a larger geographic area than can be covered by a LAN. The Internet is a WAN.

Derived Forms

• ˈwanness, noun
• ˈwanly, adverb

Other Words From

• wanly adverb
• wanness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of wan¹

before 900; Middle English; Old English wann dark, gloomy

Word History and Origins

Origin of wan¹

Old English wann dark; related to wanian to wane

Origin of wan²

From W(est) A(frica) N(igeria)

Synonym Study

See pale ¹.

Example Sentences

“It makes sure that the WAN coming in is not going to be the bottleneck. You’re able to deploy the full extent of your WAN connection off a gateway Eero.”

From The Verge

The most sophisticated form of stylometric analysis so far has been WAN, or word adjacency networks, which register the frequency and proximity of function words in relation to one another.

From New York Times

On the back of the router are four gigabit LAN ports, and on the bottom, you’ll find a single WAN port.

From The Verge

WAN port for anyone lucky enough to have a service provider than can take full advantage of it.

From The Verge

TIM HO WAN This dim sum house — which originated in Hong Kong, has locations in Asia and Australia, and is notable for its low prices and Michelin star — has finally landed in New York.

From New York Times