Wind — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

noun verb /ˈwind/ (noun) /ˈwīnd/ (verb)

Meaning & Definition of Wind

Wind (noun)

  1. a natural movement of air of any velocity; especially, the earth's air or the gas surrounding a planet in natural motion horizontally
  2. an artificially produced movement of air
  3. solar wind, stellar wind
  4. coil, turn
  5. a particular method of winding
  6. an act of winding, the state of being wound

Wind (verb)

  1. to make short of breath
  2. to detect or follow by scent
  3. to expose to the air or wind, dry by exposing to air
  4. to turn completely or repeatedly about an object, coil, twine
  5. to encircle or cover with something pliable, bind with loops or layers
  6. to raise to a high level (as of excitement or tension) —usually used with up
  7. to cause (something, such as a horn) to sound by blowing, blow
  8. to sound (a call or note) on a horn
  9. to produce a sound on a horn

Wind (noun) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. noticeable movement of air in a particular direction

    "there's a wind coming from underneath the front door"

    similar: current, draft
    related: blast, blow, flurry, gale, gust, headwind, squall, tailwind, tempest, tornado, windstorm, breath, breeze, puff, waft, zephyr

  2. a prevailing or general movement or inclination

    "the winds of public opinion are changing on this issue"

    similar: current, direction, drift, leaning, run, tendency, tide, trend
    related: curve, downside, shift, swing, turn, turnabout, upside, custom, habit, propensity, tenor, way, countercurrent, countertrend, undercurrent, undertow

  3. language that is impressive-sounding but not meaningful or sincere

    "the speech contained nothing of substance and was just a lot of wind"

    similar: bombast, fustian, gas, grandiloquence, hot air, oratory, rhetoric, verbiage
    related: claptrap, drivel, gibberish, hogwash, humbug, jabberwocky, jazz, moonshine, nonsense, affectedness, floweriness, grandiosity, loftiness, pomposity, pretension, pretentiousness, garrulity, garrulousness, verboseness, verbosity, windiness, wordiness

  4. something that curves or is curved

    "there's one last easterly wind to the river before it empties into the sea"

    similar: angle, arc, arch, bend, bow, crook, curvature, curve, inflection, turn
    related: kink, warp, circle, ring, ringlet, round, coil, curl, curlicue, buckle, convolution, flexure, fold, loop, spiral, swirl, twist, winding, incurvature, reflection, decline, inclination, incline, slope, corner, turnoff, dogleg, hairpin

Wind (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to follow a circular or spiral course

    "flowering vines wind around the porch's graceful columns"

    similar: coil, corkscrew, curl, entwine, spiral, twine, twist
    related: arc, arch, bend, crook, curve, hook, sweep, swerve, turn, veer, wheel, swirl, whirl, circle, encircle, loop, enlace, interlace, intertwine, lace, bow, bulge, meander, weave, zigzag
    near: straighten

  2. to introduce in a gradual, secret, or clever way

    "self-interest winds itself into everything that he does—even his alleged favors for other people"

    similar: infiltrate, insinuate, slip, sneak, work in, worm, wriggle
    related: creep, edge, wiggle, insert, interpolate, interpose, introduce

Related Entry: Wind down (verb)

Wind down is a different word from Wind. The synonyms below are for wind down, not for wind.

  1. to get rid of nervous tension or anxiety

    "not being one for alcoholic beverages, I prefer to wind down with a cup of tea every night"

    similar: chill, chill out (slang), de-stress, decompress, loosen up, mellow (out), relax, unwind, hang loose
    related: unbend, bask, kick back, loll, lounge, repose, rest, bum, dally, dawdle, dillydally, drone, footle, goof (off), hack (around), hang (around or out), idle, laze, loaf, vegetate, veg out, zone out, alleviate, comfort, ease, relieve, calm, compose, cool, quiet, settle
    opposite: tense (up)

Related Entry: Wind up (verb)

Wind up is a different word from Wind. The synonyms below are for wind up, not for wind.

  1. to bring (an event) to a natural or appropriate stopping point

    "try to wind up the performance, as we're almost out of time"

    similar: close, close out, complete, conclude, end, finish, round (off or out), terminate, wrap up, put paid to (chiefly British), ring down the curtain (on)
    related: climax, crown, consummate, perfect, halt, stop, suspend
    opposite: begin, commence, inaugurate, open, start

  2. to come to an end

    "her speeches usually wind up with one last joke"

    similar: break off, break up, cease, close, conclude, dead-end, determine, die, discontinue, elapse, end, expire, finish, go, halt, lapse, leave off, let up, pass, quit, stop, terminate, wink (out), bite the dust
    related: desist (from), lay off (of), refrain (from), give over (British), knock off, pack (up or in), break down, conk (out), cut out, stall, pause, stay, suspend, abate, peter (out), wind down
    opposite: continue, hang on, persist
    near: draw out, extend, prolong, protract

Related Entry: Get wind of (phrase)

Get wind of is a different word from Wind. The synonyms below are for get wind of, not for wind.

  1. to come to an awareness of

    "When I got wind of the open position, I did not waste one minute before applying."

    similar: ascertain, catch on (to), discover, find out, get on (to), hear, learn, realize, see, wise (up)
    related: hit (on or upon), tumble (to), descry, detect, encounter, espy, see, spot, calculate, dope (out), figure out, find, puzzle (out), discern, mind, note, observe, perceive, divine
    near: miss, overlook, disregard, ignore, forget, unlearn, blanket, blot out, cloak, conceal, cover, curtain, enshroud, hide, mask, occult, screen, shroud, veil

Related Entry: Straw in the wind (phrase)

Straw in the wind is a different word from Wind. The synonyms below are for straw in the wind, not for wind.

  1. something believed to be a sign or warning of a future event

    "He saw the increase of routine surveillance as another straw in the wind."

    similar: augury, auspice, boding, foreboding, foreshadowing, omen, portent, prefiguring, presage
    related: forerunner, harbinger, herald, precursor, foretaste, hint, inkling, intimation, suggestion, forewarning, forecast, foretelling, prediction, prognostication, prophecy, badge, mark, note, token, divination

Related Entry: Three sheets in the wind (phrase)

Three sheets in the wind is a different word from Wind. The synonyms below are for three sheets in the wind, not for wind.

  1. being under the influence of alcohol

    "Linda was not much of a drinker, and was three sheets in the wind by the time she finished her second glass of wine."

    similar: besotted, blasted (slang), blind, blitzed (slang), blotto (slang), bombed, boozy, canned (slang), cockeyed, crocked, drunk, drunken, fried, gassed, hammered (slang), high, impaired, inebriate, inebriated, intoxicated, juiced (slang), lit, lit up, loaded (slang), looped, oiled (slang), pickled, pie-eyed, plastered, potted (slang), ripped (slang), sloshed (slang), smashed (slang), sottish, soused, sozzled, squiffed, stewed, stiff, stinking (slang), stoned, tanked (slang), tiddly (chiefly British), tight, tipsy, wasted (slang), wet, wiped out (slang), in one's cups, in the bag (slang), under the influence, under the weather
    related: maudlin, beery, befuddled, bleary-eyed, crapulous, dopey, rocky, strung out, stupefied, debauched, dissipated, dissolute, alcoholic, bibulous, dipsomaniacal
    opposite: sober, straight
    near: abstemious, abstinent, dry, temperate, teetotal, clearheaded, cool, level, steady

Related Entry: Got wind of (phrase)

Got wind of is a different word from Wind. The synonyms below are for got wind of, not for wind.

  1. to come to an awareness of

    "When I got wind of the open position, I did not waste one minute before applying."

    similar: ascertained, caught on (to), discovered, found out, got on (to), heard, learned, realized, saw, wised (up)
    related: hit (on or upon), tumbled (to), descried, detected, encountered, espied, saw, spotted, calculated, doped (out), figured out, found, puzzled (out), discerned, minded, noted, observed, perceived, divined
    near: missed, overlooked, disregarded, ignored, forgot, unlearned, blanketed, blotted out, cloaked, concealed, covered, curtained, enshrouded, hid, masked, occulted, screened, shrouded, veiled

Related Entry: Straws in the wind (phrase)

Straws in the wind is a different word from Wind. The synonyms below are for straws in the wind, not for wind.

  1. something believed to be a sign or warning of a future event

    "He saw the increase of routine surveillance as another straw in the wind."

    similar: auguries, auspices, bodings, forebodings, foreshadowings, omens, portents, presages
    related: forerunners, harbingers, heralds, precursors, foretastes, hints, inklings, intimations, suggestions, forewarnings, forecasts, predictions, prognostications, prophecies, badges, marks, notes, tokens, divinations

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Wind

The most common words with a similar meaning to Wind:

current, draft, direction, drift, leaning, run, tendency, tide, trend, bombast, fustian, gas, grandiloquence, hot air, oratory, rhetoric, verbiage, angle, arc, arch, bend, bow, crook, curvature, curve, inflection, turn, coil, corkscrew, curl, entwine, spiral, twine, twist, infiltrate, insinuate, slip, sneak, work in, worm

Related Words for Wind

blast, blow, flurry, gale, gust, headwind, squall, tailwind, tempest, tornado, windstorm, breath, breeze, puff, waft, zephyr, downside, shift, swing, turnabout, upside, custom, habit, propensity, tenor, way, countercurrent, countertrend, undercurrent, undertow

Near Antonyms of Wind

straighten

Word Forms of Wind

Inflections: winded, winding, winds, wound

Derived words: windless (adjective), windlessly (adverb)

Origin & Etymology of Wind

Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old High German wint wind, Latin ventus, Greek aēnai to blow, Sanskrit vāti it blows

First known use: before 12th century

Vocabulary Lists & Topics for Wind

Words & Phrases Containing Wind

wind-bell, wind-borne, wind-broken

Frequently Asked Questions about Wind

What does "Wind" mean?

"Wind" means a natural movement of air of any velocity; especially, the earth's air or the gas surrounding a planet in natural motion horizontally. As an a noun and a verb, it is defined as: a natural movement of air of any velocity; especially, the earth's air or the gas surrounding a planet in natural motion horizontally. It has 6 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Wind"?

Other words for "Wind" include current, draft, direction, drift, leaning, run, tendency and tide. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Wind" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Wind"?

There are 139 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Wind". Common alternatives include current, draft, direction, drift, leaning, run, tendency, tide, trend and bombast.

How do you use "Wind" in a sentence?

Examples of "Wind" in a sentence: "there's a wind coming from underneath the front door"; "the winds of public opinion are changing on this issue"; "the speech contained nothing of substance and was just a lot of wind".

Is "Wind" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Wind" can be used as a noun and a verb, depending on the context.

Is "Wind" useful for IELTS, TOEFL, and other English exams?

As an A1-level word, "Wind" is typical of Cambridge A1 Movers (Young Learners), TOEIC Listening & Reading 120+.

How do you pronounce "Wind"?

"Wind" is pronounced /ˈwind/ as a noun and /ˈwīnd/ as a verb.

What is the origin of the word "Wind"?

"Wind" comes from Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old High German wint wind, Latin ventus, Greek aēnai to blow, Sanskrit vāti it blows. First known use: before 12th century.