# wand
## English
### Etymology

From Middle English wand, wond, from Old Norse vǫndr (“switch, twig”), from Proto-Germanic *wanduz (“rod”), from Proto-Indo-European *wendʰ- (“to turn, twist, wind, braid”). Cognate with Icelandic vendi (“wand”), Danish vånd (“wand, switch”), German Wand (“wall, septum”), Gothic 𐍅𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌿𐍃 (wandus, “rod”).

### Pronunciation

* (Received Pronunciation) IPA: /wɒnd/
* (General American) IPA: /wɑnd/
* (General Australian) IPA: /wɔnd/
* Audio (US):(file)
* Rhymes: -ɒnd

### Noun

wand (plural wands)
* A hand-held narrow rod, usually used for pointing or instructing, or as a traditional emblem of authority.
** 1886 October – 1887 January, H[enry] Rider Haggard, She: A History of Adventure, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., published 1887, →OCLC:Then all of a sudden a number of armed men arranged in companies, and marshalled by officers who held ivory wands in their hands, came running swiftly towards us, having, so far as I could make out, emerged from the face of the precipice like ants from their burrows.
** A stick or rod used by a magician (a magic wand), conjurer or diviner (divining rod).
*** 1859, George Meredith, chapter 13, in The Ordeal of Richard Feverel. A History of Father and Son. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: Chapman and Hall, →OCLC:Love is that blessed wand which wins the waters from the hardness of the heart.
* (by extension) An instrument shaped like a wand, such as a curling wand.
** 1975, Popular Science, volume 207, number 4, page 135:Shop vac serves as blower to force vermiculite in fiber drum up through vacuum-cleaner wand and hose into wall opening
* A stick, branch, or stalk, especially of willow.
** c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iii]:The skillful shepherd peeled me certain wands.
** 1891, Thomas Hardy, Tess of the d'Urbervilles, volume 1, London: James R. Osgood, McIlvaine and Co., page 17:In addition to the distinction of a white frock, every woman and girl carried in her right hand a peeled willow-wand, and in her left a bunch of white flowers.
* A card of a particular suit of the minor arcana in tarot, the wands.
* (UK, soccer, figurative, informal) A player's foot used especially skillfully in football.
** 2013 October 17, Lee McCulloch, Simp-Lee the Best: My Autobiography, Black & White Publishing, →ISBN:Without question, he is the best left-footed player I've ever played with. Along with his wand of a left foot he also has great pace and can be as hard as nails.
** 2019 February 15, Chris Sweeney, Mad Dog Gravesen, eBook Partnership, →ISBN:Shortly afterwards, Thomas lined up a corner and with his wand of a right foot, landed it on the head of Campbell to get Everton's second.
** 2021 May 10, Danny Lewis, Boleyn's Farewell, eBook Partnership, →ISBN:Cresswell also had a wand of a left foot, which was a threat from open play and set-pieces – though his quality in the latter category wasn't used as often in 2015/16 due to Payet's presence.

#### Synonyms

* staff; rod
* See also Thesaurus:stick

#### Derived terms

* bubble wand
* golden wand
* knife wand
* love wand
* magic wand
* mill-wand
* optical wand
* princess wand
* royal wand
* search wand
* toilet wand
* violet wand
* wand mullein
* wand of peace
* wand work
* wandwork
* water wand

#### Translations
### Verb

wand (third-person singular simple present wands, present participle wanding, simple past and past participle wanded)
* (transitive) To scan (e.g. a passenger at an airport) with a handheld metal detector.
* (transitive) To use a handheld vibrator (the sex toy) on (a person or body part).

#### Derived terms

* handwand

### References

* ↑ Douglas Harper (2001–2025) “wand”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

### Further reading

* “wand”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
* “wand”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
* “wand”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.

### Anagrams

* Dawn, Dwan, dawn

## Dutch
### Etymology

From Middle Dutch want, from Proto-Germanic *wanduz (“wickerwork; barrier, fence”). Cognate with German Wand.

### Pronunciation

* IPA: /ʋɑnt/
* Audio:(file)
* Hyphenation: wand
* Rhymes: -ɑnt
* Homophone: want

### Noun

wand m (plural wanden, diminutive wandje n)
* wall
    De wand van het gebouw is bedekt met graffiti. ― The wall of the building is covered with graffiti.
    Er zijn schilderijen op elke wand van de galerij. ― There are paintings on every wall of the gallery.
    Het wandje in de tuin is versierd met klimplanten. ― The small wall in the garden is decorated with climbing plants.
* face (as in mountain face)
    Deze wand van de berg is erg steil. ― This face of the mountain is very steep.
    Hij is van plan de noordelijke wand van de Eiger te beklimmen. ― He plans to climb the north face of the Eiger.

#### Derived terms

* binnenwand
* buitenwand
* klimwand
* rotswand
* tussenwand
* wandbord
* wandcontactdoos
* wandtapijt
* zijwand

#### Descendants

* Afrikaans: wand
* Negerhollands: wand

## German
### Pronunciation

* Audio:(file)
* Rhymes: -ant

### Verb

wand
* first/third-person singular preterite of winden

## Old English
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /wɑnd/

### Etymology 1

From Proto-West Germanic *wand, from Proto-Germanic *wanduz (“mole”), from Proto-Indo-European *wendʰ- (“to turn, twist, wind, braid”).

#### Noun

wand f
* mole (animal)

##### Declension

Strong ō-stem:

##### Derived terms

* wandeweorpe

##### Descendants

* Middle English: want, wont
** English: want
** Scots: want

### Etymology 2

From windan.

#### Verb

wand
* first/third-person singular preterite of windan