wow

¹ American  

[wou] / waʊ /

interjection

1. (an exclamation of surprise, wonder, pleasure, or the like).

   Wow! Look at that!

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verb (used with object)

1. to gain an enthusiastic response from; thrill.

noun

1. an extraordinary success.

   His act is a real wow.

2. excitement, interest, great pleasure, or the like.

   a car that will add some wow to your life.

wow ² American  

[wou] / waʊ /

noun

1. Audio. a slow wavering of pitch in sound recording or reproducing equipment caused by uneven speed of the turntable or the tape.

2. Scot. and North England Dialect. a howl, wail, bark, whine, or mew.

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verb (used without object)

1. Scot. and North England Dialect. to howl, wail, bark, whine, or mew.

wow ¹ British  

/ waʊ /

interjection

1. an exclamation of admiration, amazement, etc

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noun

1. slang a person or thing that is amazingly successful, attractive, etc

verb

1. slang (tr) to arouse great enthusiasm in

WOW ² British  

abbreviation

1. waiting on weather: used esp in the oil industry

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wow ³ British  

/ waʊ, wəʊ /

noun

1. a slow variation or distortion in pitch that occurs at very low audio frequencies in sound-reproducing systems, such as a record player, usually due to variation in speed of the turntable, etc See also flutter

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Etymology

Origin of wow¹

1890–95; perhaps identical with Scots wow! exclamation of surprise or admiration

Origin of wow²

1800–10 wow ² for defs. 2, 3; 1930–35 wow ² for def. 1; imitative; the audio term is probably an independent formation

Example Sentences

In killing the video-generation app, the company’s priority is no longer wowing the media.

From The Wall Street Journal

In killing the video-generation app, the company’s priority is no longer wowing the media.

From The Wall Street Journal

Then she donned a Red Sox jersey and wowed the crowd by throwing a strike.

From The Wall Street Journal

Bill Plaschke used to ignore the World Baseball Classic, but he has been wowed by the dramatic tournament that feels bigger than the World Series.

From Los Angeles Times

"A tie, wow we didn't know that could happen," exclaimed The Singers' director Sam A Davis.

From BBC

Related Words

• charm
• entertain