wade

¹

[weyd]

verb (used without object)

waded, wading 

1. to walk in water, when partially immersed.

   He wasn't swimming, he was wading.

2. to play in water.

   The children were wading in the pool most of the afternoon.

3. to walk through water, snow, sand, or any other substance that impedes free motion or offers resistance to movement.

   to wade through the mud.

4. to make one's way slowly or laboriously (often followed bythrough ).

   to wade through a dull book.

   Synonyms: work, plow, plod, toil, labor

5. Obsolete.,  to go or proceed.

verb (used with object)

waded, wading 

1. to pass through or cross by wading; ford.

   to wade a stream.

noun

1. an act or instance of wading.

   We went for a wade in the shallows.

verb phrase

1. wade in / into

   1. to begin energetically.

   2. to attack strongly.

      to wade into a thoughtless child; to wade into a mob of rioters.

Wade

²

[weyd]

noun

1. Benjamin Franklin, 1800–78, U.S. lawyer and antislavery politician.

2. a male given name.

wade

¹

/ weɪd /

verb

1. to walk with the feet immersed in (water, a stream, etc)

   the girls waded the river at the ford

2. to proceed with difficulty

   to wade through a book

3. (intr; foll by in or into) to attack energetically

noun

1. the act or an instance of wading

Wade

²

/ weɪd /

noun

1. ( Sarah ) Virginia. born 1945, English tennis player; won three Grand Slam singles titles: US Open (1968), Australian Open (1972), and Wimbledon (1977)

Other Word Forms

• unwaded adjective
• unwading adjective
• wadable adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of wade¹

before 900; Middle English waden to go, wade, Old English wadan to go; cognate with German waten, Old Norse vatha; akin to Old English wæd ford, sea, Latin vadum shoal, ford, vādere to go, rush

Word History and Origins

Origin of wade¹

Old English wadan; related to Old Frisian wada, Old High German watan, Old Norse vatha, Latin vadum _ford

Example Sentences

Wade overturned in 2022, which would have made him happy, and the right still hates the same people he hated, so there was probably some satisfaction in that.

From Salon

“I mean, we were fighting so hard ... for Roe vs. Wade, and we got it through,” she said of the landmark Supreme Court decision on women’s reproductive rights in 1973.

From Los Angeles Times

Luke Littler has become the fifth player to complete darts' Triple Crown by beating James Wade 18-13 in the World Matchplay final in Blackpool.

From BBC

Wade has made the final six times previously, with his sole win coming 18 years ago.

From BBC

Wade Crowfoot, the state’s natural resources secretary, said the approach outlined under the plan will “improve the health of our rivers by both restoring river flows and revitalizing habitat.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bathe 
• paddle 
• splash 
• stumble 
• trek