wield
to exercise (power, authority, influence, etc.), as in ruling or dominating.
to use (a weapon, instrument, etc.) effectively; handle or employ actively.
Archaic. to guide or direct.
Archaic. to govern; manage.
Origin of wield
1Other words for wield
Other words from wield
- wield·a·ble, adjective
- wield·er, noun
- un·wield·a·ble, adjective
Words that may be confused with wield
- weald, wield
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use wield in a sentence
They are wielding the court’s impact on health care to get Democrats to the polls, but they can’t they do anything to stop an ultraconservative Supreme Court from deciding to take down Obamacare.
With no tools to halt Barrett’s confirmation, Democrats fall back on symbolic resistance | Amber Phillips | October 22, 2020 | Washington PostHumanity’s trajectory from tool-wielding hominins to the architects of grand metropolises has been interwoven with our ever-expanding sense of time.
Humanity is stuck in short-term thinking. Here’s how we escape. | Katie McLean | October 21, 2020 | MIT Technology ReviewHe said Democrats might wield them differently, working in conjunction with allies for instance, or use them to address different matters, such as environmental or human rights issues.
No matter who wins the election, US fashion manufacturing won’t be returning to China | Marc Bain | October 16, 2020 | QuartzOne year before he started giving out seditious language tickets, he shot a mentally ill man wielding scissors on the same street.
Officers Who Wrote Multiple Seditious Language Tickets Have Been Accused of Other Violations | Kara Grant | October 14, 2020 | Voice of San DiegoA robotic arm then wields a spatula and grabs baskets full of food to fry.
This Week’s Awesome Tech Stories From Around the Web (Through October 10) | Singularity Hub Staff | October 10, 2020 | Singularity Hub
In beauty thou art the most beautiful of all that exists, O Rudra, the strongest of the strong, thou wielder of the thunderbolt!
Sacred Books of the East | VariousArjun, wielder of gandiva, was for us no truer stay Than was Karna for the Kurus in the battle's dread array!
Maha-bharata | AnonymousThe sledge-wielder pours out more strength and certitude and joy in every blow than do you in your whole sheaf of songs.
The Kempton-Wace Letters | Jack LondonO wielder of the bow with the left hand, O thou of mighty arms, thou wert a god before, eternal (as other gods).
Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa Bk. 3 Pt. 1 | Krishna-Dwaipayana VyasaBut the wielder of the Pinaka, having borne that shower of arrows for a moment, stood unwounded, immovable like a hill.
Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa Bk. 3 Pt. 1 | Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa
British Dictionary definitions for wield
/ (wiːld) /
to handle or use (a weapon, tool, etc)
to exert or maintain (power or authority)
obsolete to rule
Origin of wield
1Derived forms of wield
- wieldable, adjective
- wielder, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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