writing desk
1598
'writing desk n a desk, especially with a place for writing
materials such as paper and pens
'writing paper also notepaper n [U] paper for writing
letters on, usually smooth and of quite good quality, which
can be bought in various standard sizes
writ-ings /'raItINz/ n [P] works of literature or other written
material, produced by the stated person: Darwin's scientific
writings
writ-ten /'rItn/ past participle of WRITE: a written request
WRNS, the /,dʌblju: a:r en 'es/ abbrev. for Women's Royal
Naval Service; the women's branch of the British Royal Navy
wrong1 /rɒ/ adj 1 not correct; not in accordance with
the facts or the truth: This sum is wrong. | the wrong answer |
You're doing it the wrong way. | We must be on the wrong road. |
No, you're wrong; she didn't say that. | The clock's wrong; it's 2
o'clock, not 3 o'clock. 2 [F] a) evil; against moral standards:
Telling lies is wrong. b) against correct socially acceptable
behaviour: [+to-v] You were wrong not to have mentioned
it. 3 [F(with)] not satisfactory in condition, health, results,
working etc: You look upset; is anything wrong? | The car won't
start. What's wrong with it? (=What is the problem/trouble?) |
The baby won't stop crying – I hope there's nothing wrong with
him. (=I hope he is not ill) 4 not suitable: This is the wrong
time to make a visit. | He's a good actor, but this is the wrong
part for him. | We got on the wrong bus (=not the one we
intended to catch) by mistake. 5 get (hold of) the wrong end
of the stick infml to misunderstand 6 on/from the wrong
side of the tracks especially AmE in/from the less respectable
part of a town or society, especially (the part lived in by) poor
people 7 on the wrong foot unprepared: I'm afraid you
rather caught me on the wrong foot, asking for it at such
short notice. → opposite RIGHT (for 1, 2, 4); see also get out of
bed on the wrong side (BED) → -ly adv: We believe he was
wrongly convicted of the murder. (=he was not guilty) | They
believe rightly or wrongly (=whether or not they are right to
believe this) that they have been badly treated.
wrong2 adv 1 wrongly: You've spelt the word wrong. 2 get
it/someone wrong to misunderstand something/someone:
Don't get me wrong; I'm not really criticizing you, but ... 3 go
wrong a) to make a mistake, e.g. in following a path or
method: The sum hasn't worked out, but I can't see where I
went wrong. b) to begin to fail or experience trouble: The
party was going well until my parents arrived, then every-
thing went wrong. c) to stop working properly: The car's
gone wrong. | Something's gone wrong with the car. d)
old-fash to act badly, immorally etc: I'm not surprised she's
gone wrong after mixing with such bad company.
wrong3 n 1 [U] action or behaviour that is not morally right
or correct: She's too young to know right from wrong. | She
seems to think he can do no wrong. 2 [C] fml a seriously bad
or unjust action: There are rights and wrongs on both sides of
the dispute. | Two wrongs do not make a right. (proverb) 3 in
the wrong mistaken or deserving blame: Which of the two
drivers was in the wrong? → opposite in the right (RIGHT4)
USAGE Compare wrong and fault. Wrong is a formal word
for a particular bad or unjust act: He committed a great
wrong. Fault is used, a of something bad in a person's
character: One of his faults is that he's always late, b of a
person's responsibility for bad results: It's your fault we
lost the watch.
wrong4 v [T] to be unfair to or cause difficulty, suffering etc,
to: I wronged him by/in saying he had lied. (=because he had
not)
wrong-do-ing /'rɒˌduɪŋ||rɒŋ'duːɪ/ n [C;U] (an example
of) bad, evil, or illegal behaviour: They found no evidence of
wrongdoing. | to commit a wrongdoing → -er n
wrong-'foot v [T] 1 (in tennis etc) to play in a way that
causes (one's opponent) to move in the wrong direction and
lose their balance 2 to surprise (someone) into a disadvan-
tageous position: The prime minister was unexpectedly
wrong-footed during yesterday's debate when the opposition
parties produced evidence of a cover-up.
wrong-ful /'rɒŋfəl||'rɒːŋ-/ adj 1 unjust: wrongful dismissal
from a job 2 illegal: wrongful imprisonment → -ly adv
wrong-head-ed /ˌrɒŋ'hedɪd ||ˌrɒːŋ-/ adj 1 derog sticking in
a determined way to a wrong idea or course of action:
wrongheaded students who think they can cure the world's
evils by destroying society 2 mistaken: a wrongheaded idea
→ -ly adv → -ness n [U]
wrote /rəʊt/ past tense of WRITE
wroth /rɒθ/ adj [F] old use bibl or poet very angry
wrought /rɔːt/ adj [oft] old use or lit made or done: carefully
wrought works of literature | wrought by hand | wrought of
stone
wrought 'iron n [U] iron shaped into a useful form or
pleasing pattern: a wrought-iron gate
wrought-'up adj very nervous and excited → compare
OVERWROUGHT
wrung /rʌŋ/ past tense & participle of WRING
WRVS, the /ˌdʌblju ɑː'viː 'esl-ɑːr-/ abbrev. for the Wom-
en's Royal Voluntary Service; a British organization of women
who help people that have difficulty taking care of them-
selves. The WRVS was known especially for its MEALS ON
WHEELS service, which brought meals to people who could
not cook because they were very old or very ill. The women
who work for the WRVS are VOLUNTEERS (=they are not paid
for their work).
wry /raɪ/ adj (especially of an expression on the face) showing
a mixture of amusement and displeasure, dislike, or disbe-
lief: a wry smile/wry humour → -ly adv
wt written abbrev. for weight
WTO, the /ˌdʌblju tiː 'əʊ/ abbrev. for WORLD TRADE ORGANI-
ZATION
W-2 /ˌdʌbljuː 'tuː/ also ,W-'2 form n a FORM (=official
document) that employers in the US prepare each year for
their workers, showing how much a worker has earned that
year and how much tax as been taken out of their wages.
The worker then sends this form with his or her INCOME TAX
RETURN to the IRS. → compare P60
Wuor-nos, Ai-leen /'wɔːnəs||'wɔːr-, 'ɑːliːn/ (1956-2002) a
woman SERIAL KILLER who murdered seven men while
working as a PROSTITUTE on the main roads of Florida
wuss /wʊs/ n AmE, slang derog a weak or useless person; WIMP
Wuth-ering Heights /ˌwʊðərɪŋ 'haɪts/ a NOVEL by the
British writer Emily BRONTË, which is one of the best-known
books in English literature. It is a romantic and exciting story
that takes place on the YORKSHIRE MOORS, and is about the
love between the two main characters, Catherine Earnshaw
and HEATHCLIFF.
WV written abbrev. for WEST VIRGINIA
WWF, the /ˌdʌblju dʌbljuː 'ef/ abbrev. for the WORLD WIDE
FUND FOR NATURE
WW I written abbrev. for World War I
WW II written abbrev. for World War II
WWW /ˌdʌbljuː dʌbljuː 'dʌbljuː/ abbrev. for World Wide
Web
WY written abbrev. for WYOMING
Wych-er-ley, William /'rɪtəliː-ər-/ (1640-1716) an English
RESTORATION COMEDY writer whose plays include The Coun-
try Wife
Wyc-liffe, John /'wɪklf/ (?1328-84) an English THEOLOGIAN
(=someone who studies religion and religious beliefs) known
for criticizing the political and economic power of the
Catholic Church. He also started the first complete transla-
tion of the Bible into English.
Wy-eth, Andrew /'waɪəθ/ (1917-) a US painter whose best-
known painting is Christina's World (1948). His son Jamie
Wyeth is also a painter.
Wyke-ham-ist /'wɪkəmɪst/ n someone who is, or has been,
a student at Winchester College, a famous private school in
southern England
Wynd-ham, John /'wɪndəm/ (1903-69) a British writer of
SCIENCE FICTION, whose novels include The Day of the Triffids
and The Midwich Cuckoos → see also TRIFFID
Wy-nette, Tam-my /wɪ'net, 'tæmi/ (1942-98) a US COUNTRY
AND WESTERN singer whose songs include D-I-V-O-R-C-E and
Stand by your Man, one of the most popular country and
western songs ever made
Wy-o-ming /waɪ'əʊmɪŋ/ written abbrev. WY a state in the
ROCKY MOUNTAINS in the northwestern US. Although it
covers a large area, it has the smallest population of any
state in the US. It produces minerals, BEEF, and wool.