Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary

Wa ll Street ◆◇◇ N‑PROPER Wall Street is a street in New York where the Stock Exchange and important banks are. Wall Street is often used to refer to the financial business carried out there and to the people who work there. [BUSINESS ] □  On Wall Street, stocks closed at their second highest level today. □  Wall Street seems to be ignoring other indications that consumers are spending less.

wa ll-to-wa ll

1 ADJ [usu ADJ n] A wall-to-wall carpet covers the floor of a room completely.

2 ADJ [usu ADJ n] You can use wall-to-wall to describe something that fills or seems to fill all the available space. □  …television's wall-to-wall soccer coverage.

wal|ly /wɒ li/ (wallies ) N‑COUNT If you refer to someone as a wally , you think that they are stupid or foolish. [BRIT , INFORMAL , DISAPPROVAL ]

wal|nut /wɔː lnʌt/ (walnuts )

1 N‑COUNT Walnuts are edible nuts which have a wrinkled shape and a hard round shell that is light brown in colour. □  …chopped walnuts.

2 N‑VAR A walnut or a walnut tree is a tree on which walnuts grow. ● N‑UNCOUNT Walnut is the wood of this tree. □  …a handsome walnut desk.

wal|rus /wɔː lrəs/ (walruses ) N‑COUNT A walrus is a large, fat animal which lives in the sea. It has two long teeth called tusks that point downwards.

waltz /wɔː lts/ (waltzes , waltzing , waltzed )

1 N‑COUNT [oft in names] A waltz is a piece of music with a rhythm of three beats in each bar, which people can dance to. □  …Tchaikovsky's 'Waltz of the Flowers'.

2 N‑COUNT A waltz is a dance in which two people hold each other and move around the floor doing special steps in time to waltz music. □  Arthur Murray taught the foxtrot, the tango and the waltz.

3 VERB If you waltz with someone, you dance a waltz with them. □ [V + with ] 'Waltz with me,' he said, taking her hand. □ [V + around ] Couples are waltzing round the wooden floor. [Also V ]

4 VERB If you say that someone waltzes somewhere, you mean that they do something in a relaxed and confident way. [INFORMAL ] □ [V adv/prep] She's probably got herself a new man and gone waltzing off with him.

wan /wɒ n/ ADJ If you describe someone as wan , you mean that they look pale and tired. [LITERARY ] □  He looked wan and tired.

wand /wɒ nd/ (wands ) N‑COUNT A wand is the same as a magic wand . □  You can't simply wave a wand and get rid of nuclear weapons.

wan|der /wɒ ndə ^r / (wanders , wandering , wandered )

1 VERB If you wander in a place, you walk around there in a casual way, often without intending to go in any particular direction. □ [V prep/adv] They wandered off in the direction of the nearest store. □ [V n] Those who do not have relatives to return to are left to wander the streets and sleep rough. ● N‑SING Wander is also a noun. □ [+ around ] A wander around any market will reveal stalls piled high with vegetables.

2 VERB If a person or animal wanders from a place where they are supposed to stay, they move away from the place without going in a particular direction. □ [V adv/prep] Because Mother is afraid we'll get lost, we aren't allowed to wander far. □ [V ] To keep their bees from wandering, beekeepers feed them sugar solutions.

3 VERB If your mind wanders or your thoughts wander , you stop concentrating on something and start thinking about other things. □ [V ] His mind would wander, and he would lose track of what he was doing.

4 VERB If your eyes wander , you stop looking at one thing and start looking around at other things. □ [V prep/adv] His eyes wandered restlessly around the room.

wan|der|er /wɒ ndərə ^r / (wanderers ) N‑COUNT A wanderer is a person who travels around rather than settling in one place.