W

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See also: Appendix:Variations of "w"

W U+0057, W
LATIN CAPITAL LETTER W
← V
[U+0056] 		Basic Latin X →
[U+0058]
Ｗ U+FF37, Ｗ
FULLWIDTH LATIN CAPITAL LETTER W
← Ｖ
[U+FF36] 		Halfwidth and Fullwidth Forms Ｘ →
[U+FF38]

Translingual[edit]

English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

Alternative forms[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From a modification of the Latin letter V (“ve”), from the Etruscan letter 𐌖 (u, “u”), from the Ancient Greek letter Υ (U, “ypsilon”), derived from the Phoenician letter 𐤅‎ (w, “waw”), from the Egyptian hieroglyph 𓏲.

Letter[edit]

W (lower case w)

  1. The twenty-third letter of the basic modern Latin alphabet.

See also[edit]

Symbol[edit]

W

  1. (chemistry) Symbol for tungsten.
  2. (metrology) Symbol for watt.
  3. (biochemistry) IUPAC 1-letter abbreviation for tryptophan
  4. (physics) work
  5. (Voice Quality Symbols) whisper

Gallery[edit]

  • Letter styles
  • Uppercase and lowercase versions of W, in normal and italic type

    Uppercase and lowercase versions of W, in normal and italic type

  • Uppercase and lowercase W in Fraktur

    Uppercase and lowercase W in Fraktur

See also[edit]

Other representations of W:

English[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (UK) IPA(key): /ˈdʌb(əl)juː/
  • (US) IPA(key): /ˈdʌbə(l)ju/, sometimes reduced to /ˈdʌbjə/.
  • (US, abbreviation, rare, nonstandard) IPA(key): /ˈdʌb/
  • Audio (AU)(file)
  • Rhymes: -ʌbəlju, -ʌbjə, -ʌb

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w, plural Ws or W's)

  1. The twenty-third letter of the English alphabet, called double U and written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Noun[edit]

W (plural Ws)

  1. Abbreviation of women (sign on toilet door).
    Coordinate term: M (“men”)
    • 2001, Jonathan Franzen, The Corrections:
      From the Kierkegaard Room he lopingly careened through a red-carpeted hallway that had previously vouchsafed him a comfort station but this morning seemed all business, no M or W in sight, just salons and boutiques and the Ingmar Bergman Cinema.
  2. (uncountable) Abbreviation of west.
    Coordinate terms: E (“east”), N (“north”), S (“south”)
  3. Abbreviation of Wednesday.
    Synonyms: Wed, Wed.
    Coordinate terms: Su, M, Tu, Th, F, Sa
  4. (sports) Abbreviation of wins (statistic).
    Coordinate terms: L (“losses”), T (“ties”)
  5. (cricket) Abbreviation of wicket.
  6. (law enforcement) Abbreviation of warrant.
  7. (Internet slang, countable) A win.
    Coordinate term: L
    Will this be a W live stream?

Derived terms[edit]

Translations[edit]

west — See also translations at west
Wednesday — See also translations at Wednesday

Noun[edit]

W

  1. (stenoscript) Abbreviation of week.
  2. (stenoscript) Abbreviation of west.

Proper noun[edit]

W

  1. (US politics, informal) George W. Bush (born 1946), the 43rd president of the United States (2001–2009).
    Synonyms: Dubya, GWB

Adjective[edit]

W (comparative more W, superlative most W)

  1. (slang) Excellent, top-notch.
    Antonym: L
    You, sir, are a W mans.

Afar[edit]

Letter[edit]

W

  1. The twentieth letter in the Afar alphabet.

See also[edit]

Afrikaans[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (letter name): IPA(key): /vɪə/

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w)

  1. The twenty-third letter of the Afrikaans alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Noun[edit]

W (plural W's, diminutive W'tjie)

  1. W

Basque[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /ube bikoi̯t͡s̻/, [u.β̞e̞ β̞i.ko̞i̯t͡s̻]

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w)

  1. The twenty-fourth letter of the Basque alphabet, called uve bikoitz and written in the Latin script.

Usage notes[edit]

  • Used chiefly in recent loanwords and foreign proper nouns.

See also[edit]

Central Franconian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

  • /ʋ/ is from West Germanic stem-initial *w.
  • For the origin of /v/, see V.

Pronunciation[edit]

  • /ʋ/, (chiefly Moselle Franconian also) /v/, (coda) [f]

Letter[edit]

W

  1. A letter in the German-based alphabet of Central Franconian.
  2. A letter in the Dutch-based alphabet of Central Franconian.

Usage notes[edit]

Systems for the use of W
  • /ʋ/ is regularly represented by w in all systems.
  • In the German-based spelling of Moselle Franconian, /v/ is normally spelt w as it is a post-vocalic allophone of /ʋ/.
  • In the German-based spelling of Ripuarian, /v/ is normally spelt v, but w may be used in iwig, Löw, Möw after the German cognate. A phonemic distinction from /ʋ/ is doubtful and exists at most in very rare cases.
  • In Aachen and the Netherlands there is a clear phonemic distinction between w /ʋ/ and v /v/, and these are thus kept apart.
Doubling of W and use in the syllable coda
  • In the German-based spelling, w is doubled after short vowels except in certain function words and when the letter is followed by another consonant within the word stem. In the syllable coda, the choice between w and f may be based on internal analogy, but f is often used throughout or after the German cognate.
  • In the Dutch-based spelling, w is doubled after short vowels if the syllable were otherwise open.

Chinese[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Numeral[edit]

W

  1. (Internet slang) Alternative form of 萬／万 (wàn).

Etymology 2[edit]

Pronunciation 1[edit]

Note: buliu often merged into one syllable..
Note: dap1 bou4 ju4, dap1 - Hong Kong.
Note:
  • 4peq can be voiced;
  • 3li&4eq often realised as one syllable.
Letter[edit]

W

  1. The twenty-third letter of the Latin alphabet.

Pronunciation 2[edit]

Letter[edit]

W

  1. The twenty-third letter used in Pinyin.
Usage notes[edit]
  • 《汉语拼音方案》 defines a standard pronunciation for each letter. However, these pronunciations are rarely used in education; another pronunciation is commonly used instead.
  • The pronunciation above are only used while referring to letters in Pinyin. They are not used in other context (such as English).

Danish[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): /dɔbəlveː/, [ˈd̥ʌb̥əlˌveːˀ]

Letter[edit]

W (lowercase w)

  1. the twenty-third letter of the Danish alphabet

See also[edit]


Dutch[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

W (capital, lowercase w)

  1. The twenty-third letter of the Dutch alphabet.

Adverb[edit]

W

  1. Abbreviation of west; west

See also[edit]

  • Previous letter: V
  • Next letter: X

Esperanto[edit]

Noun[edit]

W

  1. Abbreviation of uesto (“west”).

Finnish[edit]

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w)

  1. A letter of the Finnish alphabet, called kaksoisvee and written in the Latin script.

Usage notes[edit]

  • In the Finnish alphabet, W is a variant of V.
  • Used only in loanwords and proper names with old spelling (compare Wirtanen).

See also[edit]

German[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w)

  1. The twenty-third letter of the German alphabet.

Noun[edit]

W

  1. Abbreviation of West; west

Hungarian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (phoneme): IPA(key): [ˈv]
  • (letter name): IPA(key): [ˈduplɒveː]

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w)

  1. A letter of the extended Hungarian alphabet, called dupla vé and written in the Latin script.

Declension[edit]

Inflection (stem in long/high vowel, front unrounded harmony)
singular plural
nominative W W-k
accusative W-t W-ket
dative W-nek W-knek
instrumental W-vel W-kkel
causal-final W-ért W-kért
translative W-vé W-kké
terminative W-ig W-kig
essive-formal W-ként W-kként
essive-modal — —
inessive W-ben W-kben
superessive W-n W-ken
adessive W-nél W-knél
illative W-be W-kbe
sublative W-re W-kre
allative W-hez W-khez
elative W-ből W-kből
delative W-ről W-kről
ablative W-től W-ktől
non-attributive
possessive - singular 		W-é W-ké
non-attributive
possessive - plural 		W-éi W-kéi
Possessive forms of W
possessor single possession multiple possessions
1st person sing. W-m W-im
2nd person sing. W-d W-id
3rd person sing. W-je W-i
1st person plural W-nk W-ink
2nd person plural W-tek W-itek
3rd person plural W-jük W-ik

See also[edit]

Ido[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

W (lower case w)

  1. The twenty-third letter of the Ido alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Italian[edit]

Italian Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia it

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (letter name):
  • (phonemic realization) IPA(key): /v/, /w/ (varies depending on the source language of the loanword)

Letter[edit]

W f or m (invariable, upper case, lower case w)

  1. the twenty-third letter of the Latin alphabet, called doppia vu or vu doppia in Italian

Usage notes[edit]

  • The letter W is not considered part of the Italian alphabet. It is found mainly in loanwords.

Symbol[edit]

W

  1. viva, evviva (“up with”)
    Antonym: M (“down with”)

See also[edit]

Further reading[edit]

Japanese[edit]

Noun[edit]

W(ダブル) • (daburu) 

  1. Alternative spelling of ダブル (“double”)

See also[edit]

Lower Sorbian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

W (lower case w)

  1. The thirtieth letter of the Lower Sorbian alphabet, called wej and written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Malay[edit]

Malay Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia ms

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (Name of letter) IPA(key): [dabliu], [dabəliu], [dabəlju], [dablju]
  • (Phoneme) IPA(key): [w]

Letter[edit]

W

  1. The twenty-third letter of the Malay alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Norwegian[edit]

Letter[edit]

W (upper case W, lower case w)

  1. the 23th letter of the Norwegian alphabet

Usage notes[edit]

Only in loan words and foreign names. Also used in old inscriptions and texts instead of v.

Nupe[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w)

  1. The twenty-seventh letter of the Nupe alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Polish[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w)

  1. The twenty-eighth letter of the Polish alphabet, called wu and written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Further reading[edit]

  • W in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
  • W in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Portuguese[edit]

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w)

  1. The twenty-third letter of the Portuguese alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Romani[edit]

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w)

  1. A letter used to represent the voiced labial-velar approximant (/w/) in the International Standard orthography.

References[edit]

  • Yūsuke Sumi (2018), “w”, in ニューエクスプレス　ロマ（ジプシー）語 [New Express Romani (Gypsy)] (in Japanese), Tokyo: Hakusuisha, →ISBN, page 16

Romanian[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w)

  1. The twenty-eighth letter of the Romanian alphabet, called dublu ve or dublu vî and written in the Latin script.

Usage notes[edit]

Used chiefly in recent loanwords and foreign proper nouns.

See also[edit]

Saanich[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

W

  1. The thirty-third letter of the Saanich alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Somali[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • (phoneme): IPA(key): /w/, /u̯/, /ʉ̯/
  • (letter name): IPA(key): /wæʉ̯/

Letter[edit]

W upper case (lower case w)

  1. The twentieth letter of the Somali alphabet, called waw and written in the Latin script.

Usage notes[edit]

  1. The twentieth letter of the Somali alphabet, which follows Arabic abjad order. It is preceded by N and followed by H.

See also[edit]

Spanish[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

  • IPA(key): (phoneme) /w/, /ɡw/, /β/
  • IPA(key): (letter name) /ˌube ˈdoble/ [ˌu.β̞e ˈð̞o.β̞le]
  • IPA(key): (letter name) /ˈdoble ˌbe/ [ˈd̪o.β̞le ˌβ̞e]

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w)

  1. the 24th letter of the Spanish alphabet
    Synonyms: (Colombia, Mexico, Puerto Rico) doble u, (Latin America) doble ve, (Spain) uve doble, (Peru) ve doble

See also[edit]

Welsh[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w)

  1. The twenty-eighth letter of the Welsh alphabet, called w and written in the Latin script. It is preceded by U and followed by Y.

Mutation[edit]

  • W cannot be mutated but when representing a vowel, does take h-prothesis, for example with the word wy (“egg”):
Welsh mutation
radical soft nasal h-prothesis
wy unchanged unchanged hwy
Note: Some of these forms may be hypothetical. Not every possible mutated form of every word actually occurs.
  • However, when it represents the semivowel /w/, W cannot be mutated.
Welsh mutation
radical soft nasal h-prothesis
wal unchanged unchanged unchanged△
△Irregular.

See also[edit]

Further reading[edit]

  • R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “W”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies

Yoruba[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w)

  1. The twenty-fourth letter of the Yoruba alphabet, called wí and written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

Zulu[edit]

Letter[edit]

W (upper case, lower case w)

  1. The twenty-third letter of the Zulu alphabet, written in the Latin script.

See also[edit]

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