Meanings
plural waiver wires
- CanadaUScountableuncountablehobbiesa league-wide list to which an inexperienced player is added for a short period when cut from a team's roster; any team in the league may make a claim for the player during the period, at the end of which the lowest ranking claimant has right of first refusal, or the player may become a free agent if unclaimed
Typically, the waiver wire process is 24 hours, but on cutdown day, it’s slightly shorter.
2025 August 26, Saad Yousuf, “NFL waiver wire explained: What happens when players are released on cutdown day”, in The Athletic, The New York TimesSynonyms: waivers
- CanadaUScountableuncountablefantasya similar period during which managers can claim a player, with successful claimants decided in various ways depending on the league.
Synonyms & antonyms
nouna league-wide list to which an inexperienced player is added for a short period when cut from a team's roster; any team in the league may make a claim for the player during the period, at the end of which the lowest ranking claimant has right of first refusal, or the player may become a free agent if unclaimed
Origin
"Wire" in the sense of telecommunications. The original waiver wire was "a network of telex communications where the status of all players is made known to all of the clubs".
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
waiver wire. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/waiver%20wire
“waiver wire.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/waiver%20wire. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “waiver wire,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/waiver%20wire.
Source: waiver wire on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.