WAIF Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.com

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waif

[ weyf ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

a person, especially a child, who has no home or friends.
something found, especially a stray animal, whose owner is not known.
a very thin, often small person, usually a young woman.
a stray item or article:
to gather waifs of gossip.
Nautical. waft ( def 8 ).

waif

/ �ɱ�ɪ�� /

noun

a person, esp a child, who is homeless, friendless, or neglected
anything found and not claimed, the owner being unknown
nautical another name for waft
obsolete.
law a stolen article thrown away by a thief in his flight and forfeited to the Crown or to the lord of the manor

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Derived Forms

ˈ�ɲ��ˌ��, adjective

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of waif¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Anglo-French, originally “lost, stray (animal), unclaimed (property)” (compare Old French guaif “stray beast”), from Scandinavian; compare Old Norse veif “movement to and fro, something waving, flag”; waive

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of waif¹

C14: from Anglo-Norman, variant of Old Northern French gaif, of Scandinavian origin; related to Old Norse veif a flapping thing

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

The trial heard him described as a "ruffian" and a "street waif" who never stood still.

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“She was not just a little waif blowing in the wind,” Judge Jackson said.

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She and other characters, like the inimitable Bertie — who makes a “special brew” in high demand — are not waifs of the frontier.

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“She’s not some little waif blowing in the wind,” Jackson said.

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But by age 12, she found herself worrying that she wasn’t quite the physical ideal espoused by the school’s late founder, George Balanchine: a half-starved waif.

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