make waves

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wave

[weyv]

noun, verb, waved, wav⋅ing.

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–noun

1.	a disturbance on the surface of a liquid body, as the sea or a lake, in the form of a moving ridge or swell.

2.	any surging or progressing movement or part resembling a wave of the sea: a wave of the pulse.

3.	a swell, surge, or rush, as of feeling or of a certain condition: a wave of disgust sweeping over a person; a wave of cholera throughout the country.

4.	a widespread feeling, opinion, tendency, etc.: a wave of anti-intellectualism; the new wave of installment buying.

5.	a mass movement, as of troops, settlers, or migrating birds.

6.	an outward curve, or one of a series of such curves, in a surface or line; undulation.

7.	an act or instance of waving.

8.	a fluttering sign or signal made with the hand, a flag, etc.: a farewell wave.

9.	natural waviness of the hair, or a special treatment to impart waviness: to have a wave in one's hair; to get a shampoo and a wave.

10.	a period or spell of unusually hot or cold weather.

11.	Physics. a progressive disturbance propagated from point to point in a medium or space without progress or advance by the points themselves, as in the transmission of sound or light.

12.

Literary.

water.

b.	a body of water.

the sea.

13.	(at sports events, esp. baseball games) a momentary standing and sitting back down by spectators in a sequential, lateral way to create, en masse, a wavelike effect visually.

–verb (used without object)

14.	to move freely and gently back and forth or up and down, as by the action of air currents, sea swells, etc.: The flags were waving in the wind.

15.	to curve alternately in opposite directions; have an undulating form: The road waved along the valley.

16.	to bend or sway up and down or to and fro, as branches or plants in the wind.

17.	to be moved, esp. alternately in opposite directions: The woman's handkerchief waved in encouragement.

18.	to give a signal by fluttering or flapping something: She waved to me with her hand.

–verb (used with object)

19.	to cause to flutter or have a waving motion in: A night wind waves the tattered banners.

20.	to cause to bend or sway up and down or to and fro: The storm waved the heavy branches of the elm.

21.	to give an undulating form to; cause to curve up and down or in and out.

22.	to give a wavy appearance or pattern to, as silk.

23.	to impart a wave to (the hair).

24.	to move, esp. alternately in opposite directions: to wave the hand.

25.	to signal to by waving a flag or the like; direct by a waving movement: to wave a train to a halt; to wave traffic around an obstacle.

26.	to signify or express by a waving movement: to wave a last good-bye.

—Idiom

27.	make waves, Informal. to disturb the status quo; cause trouble, as by questioning or resisting the accepted rules, procedures, etc.: The best way to stay out of trouble at the office is not to make waves.

Origin:
1325–75; ME waven (v.), OE wafian to wave the hands; c. MHG waben; cf. waver ¹

Related forms:

waveless, adjective

wave⋅less⋅ly, adverb

wav⋅ing⋅ly, adverb

wavelike, adjective

Synonyms:
1. undulation, whitecap. Wave, ripple, breaker, surf refer to a ridge or swell on the surface of water. Wave is the general word: waves in a high wind. A ripple is the smallest kind of wave, such as is caused by a stone thrown into a pool: ripples in a brook. A breaker is a wave breaking, or about to break, upon the shore or upon rocks: the roar of breakers. Surf is the collective name for breakers: Heavy surf makes bathing dangerous. 14. undulate, flutter, float, sway, rock; fluctuate.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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make (māk)

v. made (mād), mak·ing, makes

v. tr.

To cause to exist or happen; bring about; create: made problems for us; making a commotion.
To bring into existence by shaping, modifying, or putting together material; construct: make a dress; made a stone wall.
To form by assembling individuals or constituents: make a quorum.
To change from one form or function to another: make clay into bricks.
1. To cause to be or become: made her position clear; a decision that made him happy.
2. To cause to assume a specified function or role: made her treasurer; made Austin his home.
3. To cause to act in a specified manner: Heat makes gases expand.
4. To compel: made him quit.
5. To form in the mind: make an estimate.
6. To compose: make verses.
7. To prepare; fix: make dinner.
8. To get ready or set in order for use: made the bed.
9. To gather and light the materials for (a fire).
10. To engage in: make war.
11. To carry out; perform: make a phone call; make an incision.
12. To institute or establish; enact: make laws.
13. To draw up and execute in a suitable form: make a will.
14. To arrange or agree to: make a date.
15. To arrive at; reach: made Seattle in two hours.
16. To reach in time: just made the plane.
17. To attain the rank or position of: made lieutenant.
18. To acquire a place in or on: made the baseball team; made the newspapers.
19. To gain or earn, as by working: make money.
20. To behave so as to acquire: make friends.
21. To score or achieve, as in a sport: made a field goal.
22. To assure the success of: Favorable reviews can make a play.
23. To favor the development of: Practice makes a winning team.
24. To draw a conclusion as to the significance or nature of: don't know what to make of the decision.
25. To calculate as being; estimate: I make the height 20 feet.
26. To consider as being: wasn't the problem some people made it.
27. To constitute: Ten members make a quorum.
28. To add up to: Two and two make four.
29. To amount to: makes no difference.
1. To cause to act in a specified manner: Heat makes gases expand.
2. To compel: made him quit.
3. To form in the mind: make an estimate.
4. To compose: make verses.
5. To prepare; fix: make dinner.
6. To get ready or set in order for use: made the bed.
7. To gather and light the materials for (a fire).
8. To engage in: make war.
9. To carry out; perform: make a phone call; make an incision.
10. To institute or establish; enact: make laws.
11. To draw up and execute in a suitable form: make a will.
12. To arrange or agree to: make a date.
13. To arrive at; reach: made Seattle in two hours.
14. To reach in time: just made the plane.
15. To attain the rank or position of: made lieutenant.
16. To acquire a place in or on: made the baseball team; made the newspapers.
17. To gain or earn, as by working: make money.
18. To behave so as to acquire: make friends.
19. To score or achieve, as in a sport: made a field goal.
20. To assure the success of: Favorable reviews can make a play.
21. To favor the development of: Practice makes a winning team.
22. To draw a conclusion as to the significance or nature of: don't know what to make of the decision.
23. To calculate as being; estimate: I make the height 20 feet.
24. To consider as being: wasn't the problem some people made it.
25. To constitute: Ten members make a quorum.
26. To add up to: Two and two make four.
27. To amount to: makes no difference.
1. To form in the mind: make an estimate.
2. To compose: make verses.
3. To prepare; fix: make dinner.
4. To get ready or set in order for use: made the bed.
5. To gather and light the materials for (a fire).
6. To engage in: make war.
7. To carry out; perform: make a phone call; make an incision.
8. To institute or establish; enact: make laws.
9. To draw up and execute in a suitable form: make a will.
10. To arrange or agree to: make a date.
11. To arrive at; reach: made Seattle in two hours.
12. To reach in time: just made the plane.
13. To attain the rank or position of: made lieutenant.
14. To acquire a place in or on: made the baseball team; made the newspapers.
15. To gain or earn, as by working: make money.
16. To behave so as to acquire: make friends.
17. To score or achieve, as in a sport: made a field goal.
18. To assure the success of: Favorable reviews can make a play.
19. To favor the development of: Practice makes a winning team.
20. To draw a conclusion as to the significance or nature of: don't know what to make of the decision.
21. To calculate as being; estimate: I make the height 20 feet.
22. To consider as being: wasn't the problem some people made it.
23. To constitute: Ten members make a quorum.
24. To add up to: Two and two make four.
25. To amount to: makes no difference.
1. To prepare; fix: make dinner.
2. To get ready or set in order for use: made the bed.
3. To gather and light the materials for (a fire).
4. To engage in: make war.
5. To carry out; perform: make a phone call; make an incision.
6. To institute or establish; enact: make laws.
7. To draw up and execute in a suitable form: make a will.
8. To arrange or agree to: make a date.
9. To arrive at; reach: made Seattle in two hours.
10. To reach in time: just made the plane.
11. To attain the rank or position of: made lieutenant.
12. To acquire a place in or on: made the baseball team; made the newspapers.
13. To gain or earn, as by working: make money.
14. To behave so as to acquire: make friends.
15. To score or achieve, as in a sport: made a field goal.
16. To assure the success of: Favorable reviews can make a play.
17. To favor the development of: Practice makes a winning team.
18. To draw a conclusion as to the significance or nature of: don't know what to make of the decision.
19. To calculate as being; estimate: I make the height 20 feet.
20. To consider as being: wasn't the problem some people made it.
21. To constitute: Ten members make a quorum.
22. To add up to: Two and two make four.
23. To amount to: makes no difference.
1. To engage in: make war.
2. To carry out; perform: make a phone call; make an incision.
3. To institute or establish; enact: make laws.
4. To draw up and execute in a suitable form: make a will.
5. To arrange or agree to: make a date.
6. To arrive at; reach: made Seattle in two hours.
7. To reach in time: just made the plane.
8. To attain the rank or position of: made lieutenant.
9. To acquire a place in or on: made the baseball team; made the newspapers.
10. To gain or earn, as by working: make money.
11. To behave so as to acquire: make friends.
12. To score or achieve, as in a sport: made a field goal.
13. To assure the success of: Favorable reviews can make a play.
14. To favor the development of: Practice makes a winning team.
15. To draw a conclusion as to the significance or nature of: don't know what to make of the decision.
16. To calculate as being; estimate: I make the height 20 feet.
17. To consider as being: wasn't the problem some people made it.
18. To constitute: Ten members make a quorum.
19. To add up to: Two and two make four.
20. To amount to: makes no difference.
To achieve, produce, or attain: made peace between the two sides; not making sense; didn't make the quota.
1. To institute or establish; enact: make laws.
2. To draw up and execute in a suitable form: make a will.
3. To arrange or agree to: make a date.
4. To arrive at; reach: made Seattle in two hours.
5. To reach in time: just made the plane.
6. To attain the rank or position of: made lieutenant.
7. To acquire a place in or on: made the baseball team; made the newspapers.
8. To gain or earn, as by working: make money.
9. To behave so as to acquire: make friends.
10. To score or achieve, as in a sport: made a field goal.
11. To assure the success of: Favorable reviews can make a play.
12. To favor the development of: Practice makes a winning team.
13. To draw a conclusion as to the significance or nature of: don't know what to make of the decision.
14. To calculate as being; estimate: I make the height 20 feet.
15. To consider as being: wasn't the problem some people made it.
16. To constitute: Ten members make a quorum.
17. To add up to: Two and two make four.
18. To amount to: makes no difference.
1. To arrive at; reach: made Seattle in two hours.
2. To reach in time: just made the plane.
3. To attain the rank or position of: made lieutenant.
4. To acquire a place in or on: made the baseball team; made the newspapers.
5. To gain or earn, as by working: make money.
6. To behave so as to acquire: make friends.
7. To score or achieve, as in a sport: made a field goal.
8. To assure the success of: Favorable reviews can make a play.
9. To favor the development of: Practice makes a winning team.
10. To draw a conclusion as to the significance or nature of: don't know what to make of the decision.
11. To calculate as being; estimate: I make the height 20 feet.
12. To consider as being: wasn't the problem some people made it.
13. To constitute: Ten members make a quorum.
14. To add up to: Two and two make four.
15. To amount to: makes no difference.
1. To attain the rank or position of: made lieutenant.
2. To acquire a place in or on: made the baseball team; made the newspapers.
3. To gain or earn, as by working: make money.
4. To behave so as to acquire: make friends.
5. To score or achieve, as in a sport: made a field goal.
6. To assure the success of: Favorable reviews can make a play.
7. To favor the development of: Practice makes a winning team.
8. To draw a conclusion as to the significance or nature of: don't know what to make of the decision.
9. To calculate as being; estimate: I make the height 20 feet.
10. To consider as being: wasn't the problem some people made it.
11. To constitute: Ten members make a quorum.
12. To add up to: Two and two make four.
13. To amount to: makes no difference.
1. To gain or earn, as by working: make money.
2. To behave so as to acquire: make friends.
3. To score or achieve, as in a sport: made a field goal.
4. To assure the success of: Favorable reviews can make a play.
5. To favor the development of: Practice makes a winning team.
6. To draw a conclusion as to the significance or nature of: don't know what to make of the decision.
7. To calculate as being; estimate: I make the height 20 feet.
8. To consider as being: wasn't the problem some people made it.
9. To constitute: Ten members make a quorum.
10. To add up to: Two and two make four.
11. To amount to: makes no difference.
1. To assure the success of: Favorable reviews can make a play.
2. To favor the development of: Practice makes a winning team.
3. To draw a conclusion as to the significance or nature of: don't know what to make of the decision.
4. To calculate as being; estimate: I make the height 20 feet.
5. To consider as being: wasn't the problem some people made it.
6. To constitute: Ten members make a quorum.
7. To add up to: Two and two make four.
8. To amount to: makes no difference.
To be suited for: Oak makes strong furniture.
To develop into: will make a fine doctor.
1. To draw a conclusion as to the significance or nature of: don't know what to make of the decision.
2. To calculate as being; estimate: I make the height 20 feet.
3. To consider as being: wasn't the problem some people made it.
4. To constitute: Ten members make a quorum.
5. To add up to: Two and two make four.
6. To amount to: makes no difference.
1. To constitute: Ten members make a quorum.
2. To add up to: Two and two make four.
3. To amount to: makes no difference.
To cover (a distance): made 200 miles before sunset
To constitute the essence or nature of: Clothes make the man.
To cause to be especially enjoyable or rewarding: You made my day.
To appear to begin (an action): She made to leave.
Slang To persuade to have sexual intercourse.

v. intr.

To act or behave in a specified manner: make merry; make free.
To begin or appear to begin an action: made as if to shake my hand.
To cause something to be as specified: make ready; make sure.
To proceed in a certain direction: made for home; made after the thief.
Slang To pretend to be; imitate. Used with like: made like a ballerina.
To undergo fabrication or manufacture: This wool makes up into a warm shawl.
To rise or accumulate: The tide is making.

The act or process of making; manufacturing.
The style or manner in which a thing is made: disliked the make of my coat.
The amount produced, especially the output of a factory.
A specific line of manufactured goods, identified by the manufacturer's name or the registered trademark: a famous make of shirt.
The physical or moral nature of a person; character or disposition: found out what make of man he was.
Slang Identification of a person or thing, often from information in police records: Did you get a make on the thief?
To have or produce (a particular effect or result): small details that make for comfort.
To help promote; further: makes for better communication.
To discern or see, especially with difficulty: I could barely make out the traffic signs through the rain.
To understand: could not make out what she said.
To write out; draw up: made out the invoices.
To fill in (a form, for example).
Informal To represent as being: made me out to be a liar.
Informal To try to establish or prove: He made out that he was innocent.
To get along in a given way; fare: made out well in business.
Slang
1. To neck; pet.
2. To have sexual intercourse.
3. To alter one's appearance for a role on the stage, as with a costume and cosmetics.
4. To apply cosmetics.
5. To make good (a deficit or lack): made up the difference in the bill.
6. To compensate for: make up for lost time.
To redo; renovate.
To change or transfer the ownership of, usually by means of a legal document: made over the property to her son.
To put together; construct or compose: make up a prescription.
To constitute; form: Ten years make up a decade.
1. To alter one's appearance for a role on the stage, as with a costume and cosmetics.
2. To apply cosmetics.
3. To make good (a deficit or lack): made up the difference in the bill.
4. To compensate for: make up for lost time.
To devise as a fiction or falsehood; invent: made up an excuse.
1. To make good (a deficit or lack): made up the difference in the bill.
2. To compensate for: make up for lost time.
To resolve a quarrel: kissed and made up.
To make ingratiating or fawning overtures. Used with to: made up to his friend's boss.
To take (an examination or course) again or at a later time because of previous absence or failure.
To set in order: make up a room.
Printing To select and arrange material for: made up the front page.
To bring into use: a flirt making with the eyes.
To put forth; produce: always making with the jokes.

Phrasal Verb(s):
make for

To have or produce (a particular effect or result): small details that make for comfort.
To help promote; further: makes for better communication.

make offTo depart in haste; run away.
make out

To discern or see, especially with difficulty: I could barely make out the traffic signs through the rain.
To understand: could not make out what she said.
To write out; draw up: made out the invoices.
To fill in (a form, for example).
Informal To represent as being: made me out to be a liar.
Informal To try to establish or prove: He made out that he was innocent.
To get along in a given way; fare: made out well in business.
Slang
1. To neck; pet.
2. To have sexual intercourse.

make over

To redo; renovate.
To change or transfer the ownership of, usually by means of a legal document: made over the property to her son.

make up

To put together; construct or compose: make up a prescription.
To constitute; form: Ten years make up a decade.
1. To alter one's appearance for a role on the stage, as with a costume and cosmetics.
2. To apply cosmetics.
3. To make good (a deficit or lack): made up the difference in the bill.
4. To compensate for: make up for lost time.
To devise as a fiction or falsehood; invent: made up an excuse.
1. To make good (a deficit or lack): made up the difference in the bill.
2. To compensate for: make up for lost time.
To resolve a quarrel: kissed and made up.
To make ingratiating or fawning overtures. Used with to: made up to his friend's boss.
To take (an examination or course) again or at a later time because of previous absence or failure.
To set in order: make up a room.
Printing To select and arrange material for: made up the front page.

make with Slang

To bring into use: a flirt making with the eyes.
To put forth; produce: always making with the jokes.

Idiom(s):
make a clean breast ofTo confess fully.

Idiom(s):
make a faceTo distort the features of the face; grimace.

Idiom(s):
make a go ofTo achieve success in: have made a go of the business.

Idiom(s):
make away with

To carry off; steal.
To use up or consume.
To kill or destroy.

Idiom(s):
make believeTo pretend.

Idiom(s):
make boldTo venture: I will not make so bold as to criticize such a scholar.

Idiom(s):
make bookTo accept bets on a race, game, or contest.

Idiom(s):
make doTo manage to get along with the means available: had to make do on less income.

Idiom(s):
make ends meetTo manage so that one's means are sufficient for one's needs.

Idiom(s):
make eyesTo ogle.

Idiom(s):
make fun ofTo mock; ridicule.

Idiom(s):
make good

To carry out successfully: made good his escape.
To fulfill: made good her promise.
To make compensation for; make up for: made good the loss.
To succeed: made good as a writer.

Idiom(s):
make hayTo turn to one's advantage: The candidate's opponents made hay of the scandal.

Idiom(s):
make heads or tails ofTo understand: I couldn't make heads or tails of the report.

Idiom(s):
make historyTo do something memorable or spectacular enough to influence the course of history: The first space flight made history.

Idiom(s):
make it

Informal To achieve a goal; be successful. finally made it as an actor.
Slang To have sexual intercourse.

Idiom(s):
make light ofTo treat as unimportant: He made light of his illness.

Idiom(s):
make love

To engage in amorous caressing.
To engage in sexual intercourse.

Idiom(s):
make much ofTo treat as of great importance.

Idiom(s):
make no bones aboutTo be forthright and candid about; acknowledge freely: They make no bones about their dislike for each other.

Idiom(s):
make off withTo snatch or steal: made off with the profits.

Idiom(s):
make (one's) dayTo give one great pleasure.

Idiom(s):
make (one's) peace withTo bring oneself to accept; reconcile oneself to.

Idiom(s):
make (one's) way

To go forward; advance.
To succeed, especially in making a living.

Idiom(s):
make sail

To begin a voyage.
To set sail.

Idiom(s):
make sense

To be coherent or intelligible: an explanation that made sense.
To be practical or advisable: It makes sense to go now.

Idiom(s):
make something ofTo start a fight or quarrel over.

Idiom(s):
make the gradeTo measure up to a given standard.

Idiom(s):
make the most ofTo use to the greatest advantage.

Idiom(s):
make the scene Slang

To put in an appearance: made the scene at the party.
To participate in a specified activity: made the drug scene.

Idiom(s):
make time

To travel speedily.
To travel at a specified rate: We made good time getting to town.
Slang To make progress toward attracting someone: tried to make time with the new neighbor.

Idiom(s):
make tracks Slang To move or leave in a hurry.

Idiom(s):
make up (one's) mindTo decide between alternatives; come to a definite decision or opinion.

Idiom(s):
make waves Slang To cause a disturbance or controversy.

Idiom(s):
make way

To give room for passage; move aside.
To make progress.

Idiom(s):
on the make Slang

Aggressively striving for financial or social improvement: a young executive on the make.
Eagerly seeking a sexual partner.

[Middle English maken, from Old English macian; see mag- in Indo-European roots.]
mak'a·ble, make'a·ble adj.

Cultural Dictionary

wave

In physics, any regularly recurring event, such as surf coming in toward a beach, that can be thought of as a disturbance moving through a medium. Waves are characterized by wavelength, frequency, and the speed at which they move. Waves are found in many forms.

Note: The motion of a wave and the motion of the medium on which the wave moves are not the same: ocean waves, for example, move toward the beach, but the water itself merely moves up and down. Sound waves are spread by alternating compression and expansion of air.

Slang Dictionary

make waves

tv.
to cause difficulty. (Often in the negative.) : If you make waves too much around here, you won't last long.

Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source

Word Origin & History

wave (n.)

"moving billow of water," 1526, from wave (v.), replacing M.E. waw, which is from O.E. wagian "to move to and fro" (cf. O.S., O.H.G. wag, O.Fris. weg, O.N. vagr "water in motion, wave, billow," Goth. wegs "tempest;" see wag (v.)). The usual O.E. word for "moving billow of water" was yð. The "hand motion" meaning is recorded from 1688; meaning "undulating line" is recorded from 1662. Of people in masses, first recorded 1852; in physics, from 1832. Sense in heat wave is from 1843. The crowd stunt in stadiums is attested under this name from 1984, the thing itself said to have been done first Oct. 15, 1981, at the Yankees-A's AL championship series game in the Oakland Coliseum; soon picked up and popularized at University of Washington. To make waves "cause trouble" is attested from 1962. Wavy is recorded from c.1586.

Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: wave
Pronunciation: 'wAv
Function: noun
1 a : a disturbance or variation that transfers energy progressively from point to point in amedium and that may take the form of an elastic deformation or of a variation of pressure, electrical or magnetic intensity, electrical potential, or temperature b : one complete cycleof such a disturbance
2 : an undulating or jagged line constituting a graphic representation of an action wave>

Medical Dictionary

wave (wāv)
n.

A disturbance traveling through a medium by which energy is transferred from one particle of the medium to another without causing any permanent displacement of the medium itself.
A graphic representation of the variation of such a disturbance with time.
A single cycle that is representative of such a disturbance.

Science Dictionary

wave (wāv) Pronunciation Key

(click for larger image in new window)

A disturbance, oscillation, or vibration, either of a medium and moving through that medium (such as water and sound waves), or of some quantity with different values at different points in space, moving through space (such as electromagnetic waves or a quantum mechanical wave described by the wave function). See also longitudinal wave , transverse wave , wave function. See Note at refraction.

Idioms & Phrases

make waves

Cause a disturbance or controversy, as in We've finally settled our differences, so please don't make waves. This expression alludes to causing turbulence in the water. [Slang; mid-1900s] Also see rock the boat.

Search another word or see make waves on Thesaurus | Reference

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