Wind

/wɪnd/ name, noun, verb, slang

name, noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level

Meaning at a glance

  • Primary sense: Real or perceived movement of atmospheric air usually caused by convection or differences in air pressure.
  • Grammar: wind is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
  • Nearest alternatives: air current, flatus, hint, twist.
  • Useful contrasts: no wind, becalming, calm.
  • Usage evidence: Someday I'll run like the wind.

How to use "wind"

  1. Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
  2. Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "wind" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
  3. Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.

Meaning check

  • Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
  • Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
  • Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
  • Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?

Source and review context

This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "wind" in a final draft.

If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.

Before you rely on this definition

Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "wind" as the right word for your sentence.

If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "wind" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.

Compare nearby meanings

  • Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
  • Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
  • Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
  • Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.

Definition decision workflow

1. Identify the role

Check whether "wind" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.

2. Test the nearest option

Compare it with "air current" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.

3. Confirm with context

Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.

Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.

Final meaning check

Before publishing a sentence with "wind", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.

When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    Real or perceived movement of atmospheric air usually caused by convection or differences in air pressure. countable, uncountable

    "The wind blew through her hair as she stood on the deck of the ship."

  2. 2
    The act of winding or turning; a turn; a bend; a twist.
  3. 3
    the act of winding or twisting wordnet
  4. 4
    Air artificially put in motion by any force or action. countable, uncountable

    "the wind of a cannon ball"

  5. 5
    breath wordnet
Show 21 more definitions
  1. 6
    The ability to breathe easily. countable, uncountable

    "After the second lap he was already out of wind."

  2. 7
    a reflex that expels intestinal gas through the anus wordnet
  3. 8
    News of an event, especially by hearsay or gossip. countable, figuratively, uncountable

    "to catch wind of something"

  4. 9
    a musical instrument in which the sound is produced by an enclosed column of air that is moved by bellows or the human breath wordnet
  5. 10
    A tendency or trend. countable, figuratively, uncountable

    "the wind of change"

  6. 11
    an indication of potential opportunity wordnet
  7. 12
    One of the four elements of the ancient Greeks and Romans; air. countable, uncountable
  8. 13
    empty rhetoric or insincere or exaggerated talk wordnet
  9. 14
    One of the five basic elements in Indian and Japanese models of the Classical elements. countable, uncountable
  10. 15
    a tendency or force that influences events wordnet
  11. 16
    Flatus. colloquial, uncountable

    "to pass wind"

  12. 17
    air moving (sometimes with considerable force) from an area of high pressure to an area of low pressure wordnet
  13. 18
    Breath modulated by the respiratory and vocal organs, or by an instrument. countable, uncountable

    "Their instruments were various in their kind, / Some for the bow, and some for breathing wind."

  14. 19
    The woodwind section of an orchestra. Occasionally also used to include the brass section. countable, uncountable
  15. 20
    A woodwind instrument. Occasionally also used to describe a brass instrument. countable, uncountable
  16. 21
    A direction from which the wind may blow; a point of the compass; especially, one of the cardinal points. countable, uncountable

    "the four winds"

  17. 22
    Types of playing-tile in the game of mah-jongg, named after the four winds. countable, uncountable
  18. 23
    A disease of sheep, in which the intestines are distended with air, or rather affected with a violent inflammation. It occurs immediately after shearing. countable, uncountable
  19. 24
    Mere breath or talk; empty effort; idle words. countable, figuratively, uncountable

    "Nor think thou with wind / Of airy threats to awe."

  20. 25
    A bird, the dotterel. countable, uncountable
  21. 26
    The region of the solar plexus, where a blow may paralyze the diaphragm and cause temporary loss of breath or other injury. countable, slang, uncountable
Verb
  1. 1
    To blow air through a wind instrument or horn to make a sound. transitive

    "Earl Walter winds his bugle horn; / To horſe, to horſe, halloo, halloo! / His fiery courſer ſnuffs the morn, / And thronging ſerfs their Lord purſue."

  2. 2
    To turn coils (of a cord or something similar) around something. transitive

    "to wind thread on a spool or into a ball"

  3. 3
    raise or haul up with or as if with mechanical help wordnet
  4. 4
    To cause (someone) to become breathless, as by a blow to the abdomen, or by physical exertion, running, etc. transitive

    "The boxer was winded during round two."

  5. 5
    To tighten the spring of a clockwork mechanism. transitive

    "Please wind that old-fashioned alarm clock."

Show 19 more definitions
  1. 6
    form into a wreath wordnet
  2. 7
    To cause a baby to bring up wind by patting its back after being fed. British, transitive
  3. 8
    To entwist; to enfold; to encircle. transitive

    "Sleep, and I will wind thee in arms."

  4. 9
    coil the spring of (some mechanical device) by turning a stem wordnet
  5. 10
    To turn a boat or ship around, so that the wind strikes it on the opposite side. British, transitive
  6. 11
    To travel or follow a path with numerous curves. intransitive

    "Vines wind round a pole.  The river winds through the plain."

  7. 12
    arrange or coil around wordnet
  8. 13
    To expose to the wind; to winnow; to ventilate. transitive
  9. 14
    To have complete control over; to turn and bend at one's pleasure; to vary or alter at will; to regulate; to govern. transitive

    "to turn and wind a fiery Pegasus"

  10. 15
    to move or cause to move in a sinuous, spiral, or circular course wordnet
  11. 16
    To perceive or follow by scent. transitive

    "The hounds winded the game."

  12. 17
    To introduce by insinuation; to insinuate. transitive

    "You have contrived[…]to wind / Yourself into a power tyrannical."

  13. 18
    catch the scent of; get wind of wordnet
  14. 19
    To rest (a horse, etc.) in order to allow the breath to be recovered; to breathe. transitive
  15. 20
    To cover or surround with something coiled about. transitive

    "to wind a rope with twine"

  16. 21
    extend in curves and turns wordnet
  17. 22
    To turn a windmill so that its sails face into the wind. transitive
  18. 23
    To cause to move by exerting a winding force; to haul or hoist as by a winch. transitive

    "Quickly she slammed the door shut and panicking wound the window up as fast as her slippery fingers would allow."

  19. 24
    To turn (a ship) around, end for end. transitive
Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A surname

Synonyms

All synonyms
air currentflatushinttwistabout shipaerate

Antonyms

no windbecalmingcalmcontinuity

Example

"Someday I'll run like the wind."

Common questions

What does "wind" mean?

Real or perceived movement of atmospheric air usually caused by convection or differences in air pressure.

What is a synonym for "wind"?

Common synonyms include: air current, flatus, hint, twist, about ship, aerate.

How do you use "wind" in a sentence?

Someday I'll run like the wind.

How do you pronounce "wind"?

Pronounced /wɪnd/.

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English wynd, wind, from Old English wind (“wind”), from Proto-West Germanic *wind, from Proto-Germanic *windaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂wéh₁n̥tos (“wind”), from earlier *h₂wéh₁n̥ts (“wind”), derived from the present participle of *h₂weh₁- (“to blow”). Cognates Cognate with Yola weend, wyeene (“wind”), North Frisian win, winj (“wind”), Saterland Frisian Wíend (“wind”), West Frisian wyn (“wind”), Alemannic German wend, wind, winn, wénn (“wind”), Bavarian bint, Wind (“wind”), Cimbrian, Mòcheno bint (“wind”), Dutch wind (“wind”), German, German Low German Wind (“wind”), Luxembourgish Wand (“wind”), Yiddish ווינט (vint, “wind”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk and Swedish vind (“wind”), Faroese, Icelandic vindur (“wind”), Gothic 𐍅𐌹𐌽𐌳𐍃 (winds, “wind”), Latin ventus (“wind”), Welsh gwynt (“wind”), Sanskrit वात (vā́ta, “wind”), Russian ве́тер (véter, “wind”), perhaps Albanian bundë (“strong damp wind”). Doublet of athlete, vent, weather and nirvana.

Etymology 2

From Middle English wynden, from Old English windan, from Proto-Germanic *windaną. Compare West Frisian wine, Low German winden, Dutch winden, German winden, Danish vinde, Walloon windea. See also the related term wend.

Etymology 3

* As an English surname, from wind (both senses). This surname also appears in Dutch, Danish, Swedish, and German with the same senses, such as Wint. Compare De Wind. * Also as a German surname, variant of Wendt.

More for "wind"

Synonyms

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