aw ['ȯ] -interj

  1. used to express mild disappointment, gentle entreaty, or real or mock sympathy or sentiment

AW -abbr

  1. actual weight
  2. aircraft warning
  3. articles of war
  4. automatic weapon

AWACS -abbr

  1. airborne warning and control system

await [ə-'wāt] -vb

  1. to lie in wait for
  2. to wait for
    • await ing his arrival
  3. to remain in abeyance until
    • a treaty await ing ratification
  4. to be in store for
    • wonders what await s him next
  5. attend
  6. to stay or be in waiting : wait
  7. to be in store

awake [ə-'wāk] -vb

  1. to cease sleeping
  2. to become aroused or active again
  3. to become conscious or aware of something
    • awoke to the possibilities
  4. to arouse from sleep or a sleeplike state
    • awoken by the storm
  5. to make active : stir up
    • awoke old memories
  6. fully conscious, alert, and aware : not asleep

awak·en [ə-'wā-kən] -vb, n

  1. awake

award [ə-'wȯrd] -vt, adj, n

  1. to give by judicial decree or after careful consideration
  2. to confer or bestow as being deserved or merited or needed
    • award scholarships to disadvantaged students
  3. a judgment or final decision
  4. the decision of arbitrators in a case submitted to them
  5. the document containing the decision of arbitrators
  6. something that is conferred or bestowed esp. on the basis of merit or need

aware [ə-'wer] -adj, n

  1. watchful, wary
  2. having or showing realization, perception, or knowledge

awash [ə-'wȯsh, -'wäsh] -adj

  1. alternately covered and exposed by waves or tide
  2. washing about : afloat
  3. covered with water : flooded
  4. filled, covered, or completely overrun as if by a flood
    • a movie awash in sentimentality

away [ə-'wā] -adv

  1. on the way : along
    • get away early
  2. from this or that place
    • go away
  3. in a secure place or manner
    • locked away
  4. in another direction
    • look away
  5. out of existence : to an end
    • echoes dying away
  6. from one's possession
    • gave away a fortune
  7. steadily onward : uninterruptedly
    • clocks ticking away
  8. by a long distance or interval : far
    • away back in 1910
  9. absent from a place : gone
    • away for the weekend
  10. distant in space or time
    • a lake 10 miles away
    • the season is two months away
  11. played on an opponent's grounds
    • home and away games
  12. out
    • two away in the ninth

awd -abbr

  1. all-wheel drive

awe ['ȯ] -n

  1. an emotion variously combining dread, veneration, and wonder that is inspired by authority or by the sacred or sublime
    • stood in awe of the king
    • regard nature's wonders with awe
  2. dread, terror
  3. the power to inspire dread
  4. to inspire with awe
    • we were awed by the beauty of the mountains

aweary [ə-'wir-ē] -adj

  1. being weary

aweath·er [ə-'we-thər] -adv

  1. on or toward the weather or windward side

awed ['ȯd] -adj

  1. showing awe
    • awed respect

aweigh [ə-'wā] -adj

  1. raised just clear of the bottom used of an anchor

awe·less ['ȯ-ləs] -adj

  1. feeling no awe
  2. inspiring no awe

awe·some ['ȯ-səm] -adj, adv, n

  1. expressive of awe
    • awesome tribute
  2. inspiring awe
    • an awesome task
  3. terrific, extraordinary
    • had an awesome time

awe·struck [-,strək] -adj

  1. filled with awe

aw·ful ['ȯ-fəl] -adj, adv, n

  1. inspiring awe
  2. : filled with awe: as
  3. afraid, terrified
  4. deeply respectful or reverential
  5. extremely disagreeable or objectionable
    • awful food
  6. exceedingly great used as an intensive
    • an awful lot of money

awful -adv

  1. very, extremely
    • awful tired

awhile [ə-'hwī(-ə)l, ə-'wī(-ə)l] -adv

  1. for a while

awhirl [ə-'hwər(-ə)l, -'wər(-ə)l] -adj

  1. being in a whirl

awk·ward ['ȯ-kwərd] -adj, adv, n

  1. perverse
  2. unfavorable, adverse
  3. lacking dexterity or skill (as in the use of hands)
    • awkward with a needle and thread
  4. showing the result of a lack of expertness
    • awkward pictures
  5. lacking ease or grace (as of movement or expression)
    • awkward writing
  6. lacking the right proportions, size, or harmony of parts : ungainly
    • an awkward design
  7. lacking social grace and assurance
    • an awkward newcomer
  8. causing embarrassment
    • an awkward moment
  9. not easy to handle or deal with : requiring great skill, ingenuity, or care
    • an awkward load
    • an awkward diplomatic situation

awl ['ȯl] -n

  1. a pointed tool for marking surfaces or piercing small holes (as in leather or wood)

awn ['ȯn] -n, adj

  1. one of the slender bristles that terminate the glumes of the spikelet in some cereal and other grasses

aw·ning ['ȯ-niŋ, 'ä-niŋ] -n, adj

  1. a rooflike cover extending over or in front of a place (as over the deck or in front of a door or window) as a shelter

awoke [ə-'wāk] -vb

(variant of awake)

  1. to cease sleeping
  2. to become aroused or active again
  3. to become conscious or aware of something
    • awoke to the possibilities
  4. to arouse from sleep or a sleeplike state
    • awoken by the storm
  5. to make active : stir up
    • awoke old memories
  6. fully conscious, alert, and aware : not asleep

awoken [ə-'wāk] -vb

(variant of awake)

  1. to cease sleeping
  2. to become aroused or active again
  3. to become conscious or aware of something
    • awoke to the possibilities
  4. to arouse from sleep or a sleeplike state
    • awoken by the storm
  5. to make active : stir up
    • awoke old memories
  6. fully conscious, alert, and aware : not asleep

AWOL ['ā-,wȯl, ,ā-,də-bəl-yu̇-,ō-'el] -adj or adv

  1. absent without leave
  2. absent often without notice or permission
    • the place looked as if its caretaker had been AWOL for some time -- Daniel Ford
  3. a person who is AWOL

awry [ə-'rī] -adv or adj

  1. in a turned or twisted position or direction : askew
  2. off the correct or expected course : amiss

awshucks ['ȯ-,shəks] -adj

  1. being or marked by an unsophisticated, self-conscious, or self-effacing manner
    • an awshucks grin