1595
wrap
for him. | The food's not worth eating. | It's well worth making
the effort to learn how to do it. | It's such a minor detail that
it's hardly worth mentioning. 4 for all one is worth with all
possible effort: He tried and tried for all he was worth, but it
still wouldn't work. 5 for what it's worth though I'm not
sure it's of value: Here's the article I promised you, for what
it's worth. → compare such as it is/they are (SUCH) 6 not
worth the candle infml, especially BrE not worth the
effort 7 worth it useful; worth the trouble: Don't lock the
door; it isn't worth it. 8 worth one's salt infml worthy of
respect or of being so called: No poet worth his salt would
have used a terrible rhyme like that. 9 worth one's/
someone's while worthwhile to one/someone: If you'll tell
me when the night watchman will be off duty, I'll make it
worth your while. (=pay you)
worth² n [U] value: jewels of great worth | After his unkind-
ness, I know the true worth of his friendship. (=it is
worthless) | The storm did thousands of pounds' worth of
damage. (=did damage worth thousands of pounds)
worth·less /'wɜːθləs||'wɜːrθ-/ adj 1 of no value: The jewels
he sold us turned out to be completely worthless. → see
VALUABLE (USAGE) 2 (of a person) of bad character; with no
good qualities: a worthless member of society —ly adv
—ness n [U]
worth·while /ˌwɜːθˈwaɪl ǁ ˌwɜːrθ-/ adj deserving the effort
needed, the time or money spent etc: a worthwhile charity to
contribute to | We had a long wait, but it was worthwhile
because we got the tickets.
wor·thy¹ /'wɜːði||'wɜːrði/ adj 1 [A] deserving respect or
serious consideration: a worthy opponent | worthy aims | She
proved herself a worthy successor to the former cham-
pion. 2 [F+of/ to-v] deserving: worthy of admiration | a per-
formance worthy to be remembered 3 derog having
honourable and valuable qualities, but often not very excit-
ing or interesting: a worthy man 4 -worthy deserving:
| blameworthy | praiseworthy | The bank didn't consider him
creditworthy because he was very irresponsible with money.
—thily adv —thiness n [U]
worthy² n fml, sometimes humor a person of importance: local
worthies
wot /wɒt||wɑːt/ v -tt- [(that)] BrE old use or humor to know: other
times and places which we wot not of
Wo·tan /'vəʊtɑːn/ the German name for ODIN, the King of
the gods
wot·cher /'wɒtʃə ǁ 'wɑːtʃər/ interj BrE slang (especially in south-
eastern England) HELLO
would /wʊd/ v 3rd person sing. would, short form 'd, negative short
form wouldn't [modal→v] 1 a) (used instead of will to
describe what someone has said, asked etc): They said they
would/they'd meet us at 10.30. (their actual words were: 'We
will meet you at 10.30.') | I knew she would be annoyed. b)
(used instead of will with a past tense verb or when showing
what is likely or possible): I'd be surprised if he came. | Any
fall in the price of oil would have serious consequences for our
economy. | What would you do if you won a million pounds? |
They couldn't find any one who would (=was willing to) take
the job. | He said there had been a serious accident, but
wouldn't give (=refused to give) any details. 2 a) (shows
what always happened): We used to work in the same office
and we would often have coffee together. b) (shows that one
is annoyed at something that always happens or is typical):
That's exactly like him – he would lose the key! 3 would
rather (expressing a choice): Which would you rather do, go
to the cinema or stay at home? | I'd rather not say what I
think. | I'd rather you didn't tell him. 4 would that fml or lit
(expressing a strong wish) if only: Would that we had seen
her before she died. 5 would you (expressing a polite
request): Would you please lend me your pencil? | Shut the
door, would you? → see LIKE (USAGE), NOT (USAGE), SHOULD
(USAGE), USE (USAGE)
would-be adj [A] which one wants or intends to be, but is
not: a would-be musician | She managed to escape from her
would-be attacker. → compare WANNABE
would·n't /'wʊdnt/ short for would not
wouldst /wʊdst/ thou wouldst old use or bibl (when talking to
one person) you would
wound¹ /waʊnd/ past tense & participle of WIND³. 5
wound² /wuːnd/ n [(in)] a damaged place in the body, usually
a hole or tear through the skin, especially one made inten-
tionally by a weapon, such as a gun or knife: The president
received/sustained a serious stomach wound/a serious wound
in the stomach. | It's only a flesh wound. (=not deep) | a bullet
wound | The wound is healing fast. 1 (fig.) You'll only open old
wounds (=remind someone of an unpleasant and hurtful
experience, situation etc) if you bring up that subject. 1 (fig.) a
wound to her pride → see also rub salt into the/someone's
wound(s) (RUB)
wound³ /wuːnd/ v [T] to cause a wound to: The bullet
wounded his arm. | He wounded her in the arm. | Was he
seriously/badly wounded?
USAGE Compare wound, injure, and hurt when used of
bodily damage. You can be wounded or receive a wound
from any attack in which a gun or sharp instrument such
as a sword or knife is used. You can be injured, or
receive an injury, a when any other weapon such as a
heavy stick or bomb is used, b in an accident: He was
seriously injured in a car crash. Both wound and injure
are more serious than hurt: She slipped and hurt her
knee.
wound·ed /'wuːndɪd/ adj hurt; suffering from a wound:
wounded survivors | [(also n, the+P)] The wounded were taken
off to hospital. 1 (fig.) wounded pride
Wounded 'Knee, Battle of the last important battle
between the US army and the Native Americans, which took
place at Wounded Knee Creek in South Dakota. US soldiers
killed almost 200 Sioux people, including women and chil-
dren, and the battle brought an end to the INDIAN WARS.
wound-up /ˌwaʊnd ˈʌp/ adj anxiously excited
wove /wəʊv/ past tense of WEAVE
wov·en /'wəʊvən/ past participle of WEAVE
wow¹ /waʊ/ interj infml (an expression of surprise and admira-
tion): Wow! What a fantastic dress!
wow² n [S] slang a great success
wow³ v. [T] slang to cause surprise and admiration in (some-
one): His new show really wowed the critics.
wow⁴ n [U] faulty rising and falling sounds in a machine for
playing recorded sound, caused by an unevenness in the
speed of the motor → compare FLUTTER
Woz·ni·ak, Steve /'wɒzniæk||-'wɑːz-, stiːv/ (1950–) a US
computer engineer who, together with Steve Jobs, designed
and built the first real personal computer and started the
Apple computer company in 1977
WP /ˌdʌbəl'juː 'piː/ abbrev. for WORD PROCESSOR
WPC /ˌdʌbəl'juː piː 'siː/ n abbrev. for Woman Police Constable;
a female police officer of the lowest rank in the British
police. British police forces officially stopped using this title
in 1990 but policewomen are still often called WPCs: WPC
Jenkins | Two WPCs were attacked. → see also PC
WRAC, the /ræk/ abbrev. for the Women's Royal Army Corps;
the women's part of the British Army
wrack¹ /ræk/ n [U] RACK
wrack² n [U] a type of SEAWEED
WRAF, the /ræf/ abbrev. for the Women's Royal Air Force; the
women's part of the British Royal Air Force
wraith /reɪθ/ n lit an exact image of a person, especially seen
just before or just after their death
wran·gle¹ /'ræŋɡəl/ v [(with, over)] to argue, especially
angrily, noisily, and over a long period
wrangle² n an angry or noisy argument, especially one that
continues for a long time: We are involved in another wran-
gle with the management over our pay.
wran·gler /'ræŋɡlər/ n 1 a person who wrangles or is
wrangling 2 AmE a COWBOY, especially one who looks after
horses
Wran·glers /'ræŋɡlərz||-ərz/ trademark a popular type of
JEANS, made by a US company called Wrangler, which also
produces other kinds of informal clothes: a pair of Wranglers
wrap¹ /ræp/ v -pp- [T] 1 [(up, in)] to cover (something) in a
material folded around: I put the book in a box and wrapped
it up in brown paper before I posted it. | The shop assistant
offered to wrap the shoes, but I wanted to wear them at once. |