Etymology
From Middle English wolf, from Old English wulf, ƿulf, from Proto-West Germanic *wulf, from Proto-Germanic *wulfaz, from Proto-Indo-European *wĺ̥kʷos. See also Saterland Frisian Wulf, West Frisian and Dutch wolf, German Wolf, Norwegian and Danish ulv; also Sanskrit वृक or vṛ́ka, Persian گرگ or gorg, Lithuanian vilkas, Russian волк or volk, Albanian ujk, Latin lupus, Greek λύκος or lýkos, Tocharian B walkwe. Doublet of lobo and lupus.
Noun
wolf (plural wolves)
- Canis lupus; the largest wild member of the canine subfamily, once found throughout forested areas of northern Europe, Asia, and America; it shares a common ancestry with the domestic dog.
- Any of several related canines that resemble Canis lupus in appearance, especially those of the genus Canis.
- (music) A wolf tone or wolf note.
- The soft violin solo was marred by persistent wolves.
- (figurative) Any very ravenous, rapacious, or destructive person or thing; especially, want; starvation.
- They toiled hard to keep the wolf from the door.
- One of the destructive, and usually hairy, larvae of several species of beetles and grain moths.
- A white worm which infests granaries, the larva of Nemapogon granella, a tineid moth.
- A wolf spider.
- A willying machine, to cleanse wool or willow.
Derived terms
- cry wolf
- grey wolf
- Mexican wolf
- red wolf
- seawolf
- Tasmanian wolf
- werewolf
- white wolf
- wolf cub
- wolf in sheep's clothing
- wolf interval
- wolfish
- wolflike
- wolf tone
- wolf worm
Verb
wolf (third-person singular simple present wolfs, present participle wolfing, simple past and past participle wolfed)
- To devour; to gobble; to eat (something) voraciously.
- She wolfed down the entire bowl of spaghetti in just a few minutes.
- To hunt for wolves.
Credits
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