wing
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: enpr: wĭng
ipa: /wɪŋ/
rhymes: -ɪŋ
Forms: form: wings
form: weng
form: whing
form: wyng
Etymology: From Middle English winge, wenge, from Old Norse vængr ("wing of a flying animal, wing of a building"; compare vængi (“ship's cabin”)), from Proto-Germanic *wēingijaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂weh₁- (“to blow”), thus related to wind.
Cognate with Danish, Norwegian Bokmål and Swedish vinge (“wing”), Elfdalian waingg (“wing”), Faroese vongur (“wing”), Icelandic vængur (“wing”), Norwegian Nynorsk veng (“wing”).
Replaced native Middle English fither (from Old English fiþre, from Proto-Germanic *fiþriją), which merged with Middle English fether (from Old English feþer, from Proto-Germanic *feþrō). More at feather.
Senses: examples: text: The bird was flapping its wings
topics: biology
natural-sciences
zoology
zootomy
glosses: An appendage of an animal's (bird, bat, insect) body that enables it to fly.
glosses: A fin at the side of a ray or similar fish.
glosses: Human arm.
examples: text: I took my seat on the plane, overlooking the wing.
topics: aeronautics
aerospace
aviation
business
engineering
natural-sciences
physical-sciences
glosses: Part of an aircraft that produces the lift for rising into the air.
glosses: One of the large pectoral fins of a flying fish.
glosses: One of the broad, thin, anterior lobes of the foot of a pteropod, used as an organ in swimming.
topics: biology
botany
natural-sciences
glosses: Any membranaceous expansion, such as that along the sides of certain stems, or one of the bracts on a dragon fruit, or of a fruit of the kind called samara.
topics: biology
botany
natural-sciences
glosses: Either of the two side petals of a papilionaceous flower.
glosses: A side shoot of a tree or plant; a branch growing up by the side of another.
examples: text: to take wing
text: Light thickens; and the crow / Makes wing to the rooky wood.
ref: c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii]:
glosses: Passage by flying; flight.
examples: text: Fiery expedition be my wing.
ref: c. 1593 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedy of Richard the Third: […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene iii]:
glosses: Limb or instrument of flight; means of flight or of rapid motion.
examples: text: the west wing of the hospital
text: the wings of a corkscrew
glosses: A part of something that is lesser in size than the main body, and located at the side, such as an extension from the main building.
glosses: One of the longer sides of crownworks or hornworks in fortification.
examples: text: They got bro-bro stuck on the wing, cah I picked up and bullet him
ref: 2021 July 18, “‘Woop’ Freestyle” (0:25 from the start), Trizz (lyrics):
glosses: Ellipsis of prison wing, a cellblock; or prison or doing time by extension.
examples: text: Fair ship, that from the Italian shore,
⁠Sailest the placid ocean-plains
⁠With my lost Arthur’s loved remains,
Spread thy full wings, and waft him o’er.
ref: 1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], “Canto IX”, in In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC:
glosses: Anything that agitates the air as a wing does, or is put in winglike motion by the action of the air, such as a fan or vane for winnowing grain, the vane or sail of a windmill, the sail of a ship, etc.
examples: text: It's a bit annoying but (like sanitary pads with wings) it's worth it if you want to stay extra secure.
ref: 2017, Laura Bates, Girl Up, page 8:
glosses: A protruding piece of material on a menstrual pad or diaper to hold it in place and prevent leakage.
glosses: An ornament worn on the shoulder; a small epaulet or shoulder knot.
glosses: A cosmetic effect where eyeliner curves outward and ends at a point.
glosses: A faction of a political movement. Usually implies a position apart from the mainstream center position.
glosses: An organizational grouping in a military aviation service:
A unit of command consisting of two or more squadrons and itself being a sub-unit of a group or station.
glosses: An organizational grouping in a military aviation service:
A larger formation of two or more groups, which in turn control two or more squadrons.
glosses: A panel of a car which encloses the wheel area, especially the front wheels.
topics: nautical
transport
glosses: A platform on either side of the bridge of a vessel, normally found in pairs.
examples: text: their ends may rest a little below the orlop-wing gratings
ref: 1864, William M. Brady, The Kedge-anchor:
topics: nautical
transport
glosses: That part of the hold or orlop of a vessel which is nearest the sides. In a fleet, one of the extremities when the ships are drawn up in line, or when forming the two sides of a triangle.
examples: text: Smith started the game in the centre of midfield, but moved to the wing after 30 minutes.
topics: hobbies
lifestyle
sports
glosses: A position in several field games on either side of the field.
examples: text: The Tottenham wing was causing havoc down the right and when he broke past the bemused Sasa Balic once again, Bellamy was millimetres from connecting with his cross as the Liverpool striker hurled himself at the ball.
ref: 2011 September 2, “Wales 2-1 Montenegro”, in BBC:
topics: hobbies
lifestyle
sports
glosses: A player occupying such a position, also called a winger
examples: text: ˇ wing, wedge, hǎcek, inverted circumflex (Karel Čapek)
ref: 1985, David Grambs, Literary Companion Dictionary, page 378:
topics: media
publishing
typography
glosses: A háček.
examples: text: The performers crowded breathlessly in the wings.
ref: 1930, Norman Lindsay, Redheap, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, →OCLC, page 176:
topics: entertainment
lifestyle
theater
glosses: One of the unseen areas on the side of the stage in a theatre.
examples: text: Anyone and everyone with wings - press officers, operations specialists, even General Curtis LeMay, commander of the U.S. Air Force in Europe - was put on flight duty and took turns flying double shifts for "Operation Vittles."
ref: 2004, Chris Wallace, Character: Profiles in Presidential Courage:
glosses: The insignia of a qualified pilot or aircrew member.
glosses: A portable shelter consisting of a fabric roof on a frame, like a tent without sides.
examples: text: Tom's a 4 on the enneagram, with a 3 wing.
glosses: On the enneagram, one of the two adjacent types to an enneatype that forms an individual's subtype of his or her enneatype.
Synonyms: sense: panel of a car
word: fender
sense: panel of a car
word: guard
topics: position
sports
hobbies
lifestyle
word: forward
sense: U.S. Air Force
word: delta
sense: U.S. Air Force
word: garrison
Hyponyms: left wing
right wing
Derived terms: air wing
angel wing
angel wings
anglewing
awing
bandwing
barwing
bastard wing
bat's wing
batswing
batwing
bat wing
bat-wing
beat the wing
beeswing
bewing
bingo wings
birdwing
bitewing
bite wing
blood wings
bluewing
broadwing
bronze-wing
bronzewing
buck-and-wing
buffalo wing
chicken wing
chicken-wing
clip someone's wings
clip the wings of
cloudywing
cloudy wing virus
corkwing
crimsonwing
crosswing
cross-wing
Crow Wing
cupwing
cut the pigeon wing
deformed wing virus
delta wing
dropwing
duckwing
duskywing
earn one's wings
expand one's wings
fixed-wing
flatwing
flexwing
flopwing
flying wing
fly with leaden wings
fore wing
front wing
goose wing
goose-wing
greater wing
greenwing
gullwing
gull-wing
Hawkwing
hindwing
hind wing
hot wing
if pigs had wings
if pigs had wings they would fly
interwing
lacewing
leafwing
leatherwing
left-wing
left-wing anarchism
left-wing anarchist
lesser wing
liver wing
longwing
mapwing
mealywing
midwing
mothwing
nosewing
notchwing
oblique wing
on a wing and a prayer
on the wing
on the wings of the wind
on wing
outwing
overwing
parawing
pigeonwing
rat with wings
Red Wing
redwing
red wings
Reich-wing
Reich wing
reich-wing
right-wing
right-wing socialism
ring wing
Rogallo wing
rotary wing
rotary-wing aircraft
rotary-wing intercept
roughwing
sabrewing
scallopwing
scorched wing
sea-wing
shortwing
shufflewing
shutwing
singe one's wings
slimwing
spoonwing
spread one's wings
spreadwing
spurwing
standard-wing
stretch one's wings
sunwing
swept wing
sweptwing
swept-wing
swiftwing
swing-wing
take under one's wing
take wing
tiltwing
try one's wings
twistwing
under one's wing
underwing
upon the wing
upperwing
upwing
wait in the wings
water wing
waxwing
whistlewing
whitewing
wing and prayer
wing-and-wing
wing attack
wingback
wing back
wing-back
wing bar
wingbase
wingbeat
wingcase
wing chair
wing collar
wing commander
wing corkscrew
wing defence
wingding
Wingdings
wingdog
wingdom
winged
winger
wingette
wing fence
wing fic
wingfic
wingfish
wing foiling
wing-footed
wing gear
wing-handed
winghead
winghold
wing in ground effect
wingism
wingist
wing it
wing king
wingless
winglet
winglike
wing loading
wingman
wingmate
wing mirror
wing nut
wing-nut
wingnut
wingover
wingpad
wingpit
wing-play
wing queen
wing rail
wingsail
wing sauce
wing-shell
wing shooter
wingshooting
wing-shot
wing snail
wingspan
wingspot
wingspread
wingstroke
wingsuit
wing surfing
wingtip
wing trimmer
wing walker
wing walking
wing wall
wing warping
wingwoman
wingy
with leaden wings
wyngz
x-wing
y-wing