wo

alternative whoa

1. A falconer's call to a hawk.
2. A call to cause a horse to slow down or stop; whoa.

plural wos · alternative whoa

1. countableobsoleteuncountableObsolete spelling of woe.

   Such feeble arms, to work internal wo!

   1815, Philip Freneau, A collection of poems, on American affairs and a variety of other subjects, page 82

   1 more example

   They dance around them by night, and wo to the belated peasant who, passing by, is forced to join in their roundel; he usually dies of exhaustion.

   1850, Thomas Keightley, The Fairy Mythology, London: H.G. Bohn, page 432

plural wos · alternative waw · alternative waugh · alternative whoa

1. DerbyshireNorthern EnglanddialectalStaffordshireA wall.

   Plantit up agen t'wo

   1884, Jack Robison, Aald Tales ower Agen, section 4

   4 more examples

   He stands ahint our wo.

   1859, Thomas Moore, The Song of Solomon in the Durham Dialect, ii. 9

   Yo may turn up yor noses at me an' th' owd dame, An thrutch us like dogs agen th' wo : Bo as lung 's aw con nayger, aw'll ne'er be a beggar, So aw care no a cuss for yo o-o'.

   1871, Benjamin Brierly, “Weaver of Wellbrook”, in William-Edward-Armitage Axon, editor, Folk-song and Folk-speech of Lancashire, page 53

   […] thinkan it ran at him, thrast him up again t' wo, ramm't at him, […]

   1880, Thomas Clarke, Specimens of the Dialect of Westmorland, page 41

   Hoo's pluck of a lion an' faces her foe Wi' calm in her e'en an' her beck agen t' wo; Hoo's firm i' decision, stonds up for her reets

   1936, G. Halstead Whittaker, A Lancashire Garland of Dialect Prose and Verse, page 221

alternative waw · alternative waugh · alternative whoa

1. Northern EnglanddialectalobsoletepossiblyTo wall (to build a wall, or build a wall around).

   It's a varra lang while—a caant tell ya hoo lang—sen it wes bilt, lang afooar Borradal fooak woet kucku in, er t' first cooach ran throo Dent, […]

   1880, Thomas Clarke, Specimens of the Dialect of Westmorland, page 2

   1 more example

   […] “Theer was anudder time, teu, 'at I saw t Park Boggle, in anudder form; bit I wassent seah nart that time, as I was when I'd been fetchen t hogs. I'd been wo-en a gap 'at hed fawn ower o' tudder side o' to Park; […]

   1871, John Richardson, "Cummerland Talk": Being Short Tales and Rhymes, page 101

1. astronomythe prefix of catalog entries in the Gliese star catalog, the Richard van der Riet Woolley expansion

   Synonyms: Gliese, Gl, GJ

plural WOs · alternative W.O. · alternative W. O.

1. abbreviationinitialismgovernmentInitialism of warrant officer.