w Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a heavy grey-white metallic element; the pure form is used mainly in electrical applications; it is found in several ores including wolframite and scheelite
    tungsten; atomic number 74; wolfram.
  2. noun the cardinal compass point that is a 270 degrees
    due west; west; westward.
  3. noun a unit of power equal to 1 joule per second; the power dissipated by a current of 1 ampere flowing across a resistance of 1 ohm
    watt.
  4. noun the 23rd letter of the Roman alphabet
    double-u.

WordNet

W
Definitions
  1. , the twenty-third letter of the English alphabet, is usually a consonant, but sometimes it is a vowel, forming the second element of certain diphthongs, as in few, how. It takes its written form and its name from the repetition of a V, this being the original form of the Roman capital letter which we call U. Etymologically it is most related to v and u. See V, and U. Some of the uneducated classes in England, especially in London, confuse w and v, substituting the one for the other, as weal for veal, and veal for weal; wine for vine, and vine for wine, etc. See Guide to Pronunciation, §§ 266-268.

Webster 1913