w

w or W (ˈdʌb^əlˌjuː)

—n , pl w's, W's, Ws
1.	the 23rd letter and 18th consonant of the modern English alphabet
2.	a speech sound represented by this letter, in English usually a bilabial semivowel, as in web

W or W

—n

w or W (ˈdʌb^əlˌjuː)

—n , pl w's, W's, Ws
1.	the 23rd letter and 18th consonant of the modern English alphabet
2.	a speech sound represented by this letter, in English usually a bilabial semivowel, as in web

W or W

—n

W

—*symbol for*
1.	watt
2.	West
3.	physics work
4.	chem tungsten
5.	women's (size)

[(sense 4) from New Latin wolframium, from German Wolfram]

w.

—*abbreviation for*
1.	week
2.	weight
3.	width
4.	wife
5.	with
6.	cricket
	a. wide
	b. wicket

W.

—*abbreviation for*
1.	Wales
2.	Welsh

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source

Etymonline

Word Origin & History

not in the Roman alphabet, but the Mod.Eng. sound it represents is close to the devocalized consonant expressed by Roman -U- or -V-. In O.E., this originally was written -uu-, but by 8c. began to be expressed by the runic character wyn (Kentish wen), which looked something like a cross between lower-case

-p- and -y-. In 11c., Norman scribes introduced -w-, a ligatured doubling of Roman -u- which had been used on the continent for the Gmc. "w" sound, and wyn disappeared c.1300.

American Heritage

Medical Dictionary

W ¹

The symbol for the element tungsten.

W ²

Abbr. watt

American Heritage

Science Dictionary

tungsten

(tŭng'stən) Pronunciation Key
Symbol W
A hard, gray to white metallic element that is very resistant to corrosion. It has the highest melting point of all elements, and it retains its strength at high temperatures. It is used to make light-bulb filaments and to increase the hardness and strength of steel. Atomic number 74; atomic weight 183.84; melting point 3,410°C; boiling point 5,900°C; specific gravity 19.3 (20°C); valence 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Also called wolfram. See Periodic Table.

w
Abbreviation of width