woof
Language: English
Part of speech: verb
Pronunciation: ipa: /wuːf/
enpr: wo͝of
ipa: /wʊf/
ipa: /wuf/
rhymes: -uːf
rhymes: -ʊf
ipa: /wʊf/
rhymes: -ʊf
ipa: /wuːf/
enpr: wo͝of
ipa: /wʊf/
ipa: /wuf/
rhymes: -uːf
rhymes: -ʊf
Forms: form: woofs
form: woofing
form: woofed
form: woofed
Etymology: The interjection and noun are onomatopoeic. Interjection sense 2 (“used to express strong physical attraction for someone”) probably alludes to the eager barking of a dog.
The verb is probably derived from the interjection and the noun. Verb sense 1.2 (“to eat (food) voraciously”) may be influenced by or, alternatively, derived from wolf (“to eat (food) voraciously, devour, gobble”).
Senses: qualifier: African-American Vernacular
glosses: To say (something) in an aggressive or boastful manner.
examples: text: [N]othing makes me feel better than to see my dog's woofing down their food.
ref: 2007 June 5, Patricia O’Grady, “Feeding a Homemade Diet”, in Woofing It Down: The Quick & Easy Guide to Making Healthy Dog Food at Home, Bloomington, Ind.: AuthorHouse, →ISBN, page 23:
text: The dog doesn't bark, it just stares at Tom. Tom pulls out the steaks. […] Tom throws them over and the dog woofs them down.
ref: 2020, Ian Horan, “The Return of Tom Fuller”, in Psychotic Episodes: Another Collection of Crazy Stories, [Morrisville, N.C.: Lulu.com], →ISBN, page 64:
qualifier: Royal Air Force slang
glosses: To eat (food) voraciously; to devour, to gobble, to wolf.
examples: text: A nondescript cur came out from behind the house, stopped in surprise, and started good-naturedly woof-woofing at me, his eyes slit, his shaggy belly all muddy, and then walked about a little and woofed once more.
ref: 1955, Vladimir Nabokov, chapter 28, in Lolita, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: G[eorge] P[almer] Putnam’s Sons, published August 1958, →OCLC, part 2, page 271:
text: At the same time, Prince and Shep, who were a part of the household, whined and woofed a time or two, then rose from their rag mats to welcome me with dignity, quite unlike the savage malamutes that would have taken a pound of flesh and enjoyed it if their chains had snapped as I came up the lane.
ref: 1988, May Wynne Lamb, “Arrival in Akiak”, in Dorothy Wynne Zimmerman, editor, Life in Alaska: The Reminiscences of a Kansas Woman, 1916–1919, Lincoln, Neb.; London: University of Nebraska Press, →ISBN, page 48:
text: Dogs effectively train us to be a chef, waiter, commissionaire, promenade companion, masseur, chauffeur, porter/caddy (the paraphernalia we carry for dogs), and personal trainer (throw the ball, throw the Frisbee, throw the ball, throw the Frisbee …). […] The dog woofs, or rings a bell on a string, and we get up and open the door for them to go outside, and then to come back inside, to get in the car, to get out of the car, to go into buildings … It never stops.
ref: 2023 December, Ian Dunbar, “Lure-reward Training Secrets”, in Barking Up the Right Tree: The Science and Practice of Positive Dog Training, Novato, Calif.: New World Library, →ISBN, part 1 (The Nature of Dogs and Reward-based Training), page 87:
glosses: Of a dog: to bark.
examples: text: A few minutes later a new [grizzly] bear came out on the big log upstream— […] Within seconds she knew something was wrong. She woofed, bounded off the log and came raging down toward us through the timber. There, not far away, she smashed back and forth, woofing and growling.
ref: 1963 November 8, Don Moser, “An Archer Stalks the Mighty Grizzly”, in Henry R[obinson] Luce, editor, Life, volume 55, number 19, Chicago, Ill.; New York, N.Y.: Time Inc., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 115, column 1:
text: An abrupt, loud wuu is occasionally emitted by a startled animal. For example, […] a cub woofed after a lioness slapped it suddenly at a kill. Once a monitor lizard lashed its tail at the face of a lioness and she woofed as she jumped back.
ref: 1972, George B[eals] Schaller, “Behavior within the Group”, in The Serengeti Lion: A Study of Predator–Prey Relations (Wildlife Behavior and Ecology Series), Chicago, Ill.: University of Chicago Press, published 1976, →ISBN, part II (The Lion), page 105:
glosses: Of a person or thing: to make a sound resembling a dog's bark.
examples: text: "Miss, you know uh heap uh dese hard heads wants to woof at you but dey skeered." / "How come, Mr. Pitts? Do I look like a bear or panther?" / "Naw, but dey say youse rich and dey ain't got de nerve to open dey mouf."
ref: 1935, Zora Neale Hurston, “‘John Henry’”, in Mules and Men, 1st Perennial Library edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Row, published 1970, →OCLC, part I (Folk Tales), section III, page 89:
text: Woofing, sometimes called "wolfing," is a communication strategy used to insult or threaten an opponent. […] Generally, woofing takes two forms. It can be an insult game or a demonstration of intimidation. […] Woofing builds esteem and identity, releases tension, and teaches self-control and verbal skill.
ref: 2010, “Woofing/Wolfing”, in Jessie Carney Smith, editor, Encyclopedia of African American Popular Culture, Santa Barbara, Calif.: Greenwood Publishing Group, →ISBN, page 1537:
qualifier: African-American Vernacular
glosses: To speak in an aggressive or boastful manner.
Derived terms: woof one's cookies