Adjectives That Start With W

Updated June 28, 2022
Adjectives That Start with W
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    Adjectives That Start with W
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Looking for adjectives that start with W? You might not consider it to be a very common letter. In truth, there are too many W adjectives to list them all, but we can share some of our favorites. Take a look at this winding and wide variety of adjective examples. If you are wise, perhaps you can think of more W adjectives to add to the list!

Wonderful Adjectives That Begin With W

The letter W is a wonderful letter for adjectives. It can be warmhearted, wholesome and wise! Take a look at these positive adjectives that begin with W.

  • warm - having moderate heat
  • warmhearted - kind and sympathetic
  • wealthy - having lots of money or possessions
  • welcoming - eager to invite others in
  • well - healthy, not sick
  • well-balanced - successful and stable in several areas of life
  • well-known - popular for good reason
  • whimsical - playful, creative
  • wholehearted - with sincerity
  • wholesome - innocent, healthy
  • willful - stubborn; not easily controlled
  • winning - pleasing, charming
  • winsome - attractive in appearance
  • wise - knowledgeable and experienced
  • witty - clever; funny
  • wonderful - delightful, inspiring wonder
  • wondrous - marvelous
  • world-class - high quality, the best
  • worldly - sophisticated
  • worthwhile - important, valuable

Woeful Adjectives That Start With W

Sometimes you need a woeful or wicked adjective. Check out these negative adjectives that start with W if you need to describe someone who is worrisome or wretched.

  • wanton - blatant, without care for others
  • warlike - violent and aggressive
  • wasteful - not careful with resources
  • wayward - all over the place, unpredictable
  • weak - lacking in strength
  • wearisome - making someone feel tired
  • weary - tired from overexertion
  • weepy - cries easily, overemotional
  • wheezy - not breathing well
  • whiny - constantly complaining
  • wicked - evil or terrible
  • wimpy - weak, not brave
  • withdrawn - quiet and unsociable
  • woebegone - woeful; sad
  • worthless - having no value
  • worrisome - causing worry or concern
  • wonky - not working correctly; off-center
  • wounded - hurt emotionally or physically
  • wretched - deeply distressed or unhappy
  • wrong - incorrect
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Descriptive Adjectives That Start With W

There are many W adjectives that can describe the five senses. Use these descriptive adjectives that start with W when you need to discuss how something looks or feels.

  • warped - not straight, distorted
  • waxy - having the texture or appearance of wax; fake-looking
  • weathered - worn from exposure to sun, rain or wind
  • wee - very small
  • wet - filled with moisture
  • white - having the color of milk or snow
  • wide - extending over a large area
  • willowy - tall and slender
  • windy - characterized by wind or breezes
  • windswept - disheveled or blown by the wind
  • winding - twisting
  • wintry - having the look or feel of winter
  • wiry - lean and tough (person); having the appearance of wire (object)
  • wispy - fine or feathery
  • withering - shriveling; shrinking
  • wobbly - unstable
  • worn - damaged due to overuse or exposure
  • wrinkly - having lots of wrinkles or folds
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Wide-Ranging Adjectives That Start With W

There are lots of W adjectives that are wild and wacky! The word weird may be one of the most commonly used, all-purpose adjectives in the English language to describe a wide variety of oddities, but there are many less common W adjectives out there. Take a look at these additional adjectives that start with W.

  • wacky - crazy, unusual
  • wary - overly cautious
  • wistful - sad and sentimental
  • whopping - very big
  • wild - in a natural state; uncontrolled
  • widespread - occurring in several areas
  • wide-ranging - covering many spaces or regions
  • wily - sneaky, clever
  • workaday - ordinary, not distinctive
  • woozy - dizzy or sick
  • wry - dryly funny, sarcastic

Wacky Example Sentences With W Adjectives

Want to see these wide-ranging, whimsical adjectives at work? Read these example sentences that use W adjectives in several different ways.

  • It was nice to sit by the warm fireplace after being in the cold weather.
  • The weak man was unable to lift even the light weights.
  • The wealthy couple was able to buy their own plane.
  • Wet dogs do not smell very good.
  • My white bedroom is stark and lacking in color or decoration.
  • Can you measure how wide the new dresser is?
  • Wild animals are not appropriate to keep as pets.
  • The willful girl did not take direction or orders very well.
  • It was too windy to have a picnic since everything kept blowing away.
  • The withering plants desperately needed to be watered.
  • Harrison is so witty that he makes his classmates laugh at his jokes.
  • She had a woebegone expression after being told she could not go to the dance.
  • The baby took her first wobbly steps.
  • Her first birthday was a wondrous occasion for the family.
  • The worldly girl had traveled all over Europe and the United States.
  • Dr. Baker gave us some worrisome news about Dad's test results.
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Sound Off for W

Given W's confusing history, it’s no surprise it continues to cause kerfuffles today. It creates a lot of different sounds, depending on the context.

  • Sometimes, it makes a "wuh" sound, like in “wonder,” “walk” or “why.”
  • Sometimes, it makes a softer, "voiceless" sound, as in the word “whisper” or “white.”
  • Other times, like in the word "two" or "whole," it makes no sound at all.
  • It can also be silent, such as in "write" or "wrong."

The Wandering World of Letter W

The letter W has a long history as a confused letter. When the Greeks borrowed the letter from the ancient Egyptians — who used the letter as a hieroglyph that represented a snake — they gave W to two letters in their alphabet.

The Greeks used W as the basis for both an F-type letter, and a U-type letter. When the Romans then borrowed the letter from the Greeks, they made things even more confusing by using W interchangeably with U and V.

Sometime after the middle ages, U and V evolved into their own letters in the English language. Today, W firmly represents just the "w" sound in English but, in many foreign languages, W is still pronounced as "v" and vice versa. German is a good example of this.

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An Alphabet of Adjectives

Which W adjective will you choose for your next written work? As you can see, there are plenty to choose from! If you thought W adjectives weren’t all that common, wait until we get to our next adjective list: adjectives that start with X! You can also stick with W with these positive words that begin with W.