Link Centre Dictionary

wag

UK/wæɡ/ US/wæɡ/ uncommon informal obsolete slang uk us
verb (1) noun (2)

verb

1.

move from side to side

  • “The happy dog wagged his tail”
Synonyms

noun

1.

a witty amusing person who makes jokes

Synonyms
2.

causing to move repeatedly from side to side

Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English waggen, probably from Old English wagian (“to wag, wave, shake”) with reinforcement from Old Norse vaga (“to wag, waddle”); both from Proto-Germanic *wagōną (“to wag”). Related to English way. The verb may be regarded as an iterative or emphatic form of waw (verb), which is often nearly synonymous; it was used, e.g., of a loose tooth. Parallel formations from the same root are the Old Norse vagga feminine, cradle (Swedish vagga, Danish vugge), Swedish vagga (“to rock a cradle”), vugge (“to rock a cradle”), Dutch wagen (“to move”), early modern German waggen (dialectal German wacken) to waver, totter. Compare waggle, verb

Phrases

  • hop the wag
  • play the wag
  • tail wagging the dog
  • wag a finger
  • wag hemp
  • wag it
  • wag one
  • wag the dog
  • wag-tail dance

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.