wire

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[edit] English

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Stranded electrical wire.

[edit] Etymology

Old English wīr < Proto-Germanic *wiraz < Proto-Indo-European *wei- ('to turn,' 'to twist,' 'to plait'). Cognate with Swedish vira ('to twist'), Latin vieo, viere ('to weave together'), Welsh gwyr ('bent'), and Greek ίρις ('rainbow').

[edit] Pronunciation

[edit] Noun

Singular
wire

Plural
countable and uncountable; plural wires

wire (countable and uncountable; plural wires)

  1. (uncountable) Metal formed into a thin, even thread, now usually by being drawn through a hole in a steel die.
  2. A piece of such material; a thread or slender rod of metal, a cable
  3. A metal conductor that carries electricity.
  4. A fence made of usually barbed wire.
  5. (sports) A finish line of a racetrack.
  6. (informal) A telecommunication wire or cable; hence, an electric telegraph; a telegram
  7. (slang) A hidden listening device on the person of an undercover operative for the purposes of obtaining incriminating spoken evidence.
  8. (informal) A deadline or critical endpoint.
    This election is going to go right to the wire

[edit] Synonyms

[edit] Derived terms

[edit] Translations

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

[edit] See also

[edit] Verb

Infinitive
to wire

Third person singular
wires

Simple past
wired

Past participle
wired

Present participle
wiring

to wire (third-person singular simple present wires, present participle wiring, simple past and past participle wired)

  1. To fasten with wire, especially with reference to wine bottles, corks, or fencing.
    We need to wire that hole in the fence.
  2. To string on a wire.
    wire beads
  3. To equip with wires for use with electricity.
  4. To add something into an electrical system by means of wiring; to incorporate or include something.
    I'll just wire your camera to the computer screen.
  5. (informal) To send a message or a money value to another person through a telecommunications system, formerly predominately by telegraph.
    Urgent: please wire me another 100 pounds sterling.
  6. To make someone tense or psyched-up.
    I'm never going to sleep – I'm completely wired from all that coffee.
  7. (slang) To install eavesdropping equipment.
    We wired the suspects house.

[edit] Synonyms

  • (to equip for use with electricity): electrify
  • (informal: to send a message or a money value to another person through a telecommunications system): cable, telegraph

[edit] Antonyms

  • (to fasten with wire): unwire

[edit] Troponyms

  • (to fasten with wire): rewire
  • (to equip for use with electricity): rewire

[edit] Derived terms

[edit] Translations

[edit] Anagrams

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