WIRE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does wire mean? 

• WIRE (noun)
  The noun WIRE has 4 senses:

1. ligament made of metal and used to fasten things or make cages or fences etc

2. a metal conductor that carries electricity over a distance

3. the finishing line on a racetrack

4. a message transmitted by telegraph

  Familiarity information: WIRE used as a noun is uncommon.

• WIRE (verb)
  The verb WIRE has 5 senses:

1. provide with electrical circuits

2. send cables, wires, or telegrams

3. fasten with wire

4. string on a wire

5. equip for use with electricity

  Familiarity information: WIRE used as a verb is common.

 Dictionary entry details 

• WIRE (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Ligament made of metal and used to fasten things or make cages or fences etc

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("wire" is a kind of...):

ligament (any connection or unifying bond)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "wire"):

baling wire (wire used to make bales)

barbed wire; barbwire (strong wire with barbs at regular intervals used to prevent passage)

haywire (wire for tying up bales of hay)

piano wire (thin steel wire of high tensile strength)

trip wire (a wire stretched close to the ground that activates something (a trap or camera or weapon) when tripped over)

Derivation:

wire (string on a wire)

wiry (of or relating to wire)

wire (fasten with wire)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A metal conductor that carries electricity over a distance

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

conducting wire; wire

Hypernyms ("wire" is a kind of...):

conductor (a device designed to transmit electricity, heat, etc.)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "wire"):

filament (a thin wire (usually tungsten) that is heated white hot by the passage of an electric current)

booster cable; jumper cable; jumper lead; lead (a jumper that consists of a short piece of wire)

lead-in (wire connecting an antenna to a receiver or a transmitter to a transmission line)

patchcord (a length of wire that has a plug at each end; used to make connections at a patchboard)

telegraph line; telegraph wire; telephone line; telephone wire (the wire that carries telegraph and telephone signals)

Derivation:

wire (equip for use with electricity)

wire (provide with electrical circuits)

Sense 3

Meaning:

The finishing line on a racetrack

Classified under:

Nouns denoting spatial position

Hypernyms ("wire" is a kind of...):

finish line; finishing line (a line indicating the location of the finish of a race)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A message transmitted by telegraph

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Synonyms:

telegram; wire

Hypernyms ("wire" is a kind of...):

message (a communication (usually brief) that is written or spoken or signaled)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "wire"):

cable; cablegram; overseas telegram (a telegram sent abroad)

letter telegram (a cheaper form of telegram that is sent abroad for delivery the next day)

night letter (a cheaper form of telegram sent for delivery the next day)

Derivation:

wire (send cables, wires, or telegrams)

• WIRE (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they wire    ... he / she / it wires   
Past simple: wired   
Past participle: wired   
-ing form: wiring   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Provide with electrical circuits

Classified under:

Verbs of buying, selling, owning

Context example:

wire the addition to the house

Hypernyms (to "wire" is one way to...):

equip; fit; fit out; outfit (provide with (something) usually for a specific purpose)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "wire"):

rewire (provide with new wiring)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

wire (a metal conductor that carries electricity over a distance)

wirer (a worker who installs and repairs electric wiring)

wiring (a circuit of wires for the distribution of electricity)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Send cables, wires, or telegrams

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Synonyms:

cable; telegraph; wire

Hypernyms (to "wire" is one way to...):

telecommunicate (communicate over long distances, as via the telephone or e-mail)

Domain category:

telegraphy (communicating at a distance by electric transmission over wire)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s somebody
Somebody ----s somebody something
Somebody ----s something to somebody
Somebody ----s that CLAUSE

Sentence examples:

They wire them the information
They wire the information to them

Derivation:

wire (a message transmitted by telegraph)

wirer (someone who sends a telegram)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Fasten with wire

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Context example:

The columns were wired to the beams for support

Hypernyms (to "wire" is one way to...):

fasten; fix; secure (cause to be firmly attached)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s something PP

Antonym:

unwire (undo the wiring of)

Derivation:

wire (ligament made of metal and used to fasten things or make cages or fences etc)

Sense 4

Meaning:

String on a wire

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Context example:

wire beads

Hypernyms (to "wire" is one way to...):

draw; string; thread (thread on or as if on a string)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

wire (ligament made of metal and used to fasten things or make cages or fences etc)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Equip for use with electricity

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Synonyms:

electrify; wire

Context example:

electrify an appliance

Hypernyms (to "wire" is one way to...):

accommodate; adapt (make fit for, or change to suit a new purpose)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

wiring (the work of installing the wires for an electrical system or device)

wirer (a worker who installs and repairs electric wiring)

wire (a metal conductor that carries electricity over a distance)

 Context examples 

Ah, Hopkins, I got your wire last night, and I have been expecting you.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

A wire designed for electrical transmission of signal or power.

(Electrical Wire Device Component, NCI Thesaurus)

I would send you a wire.

(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Wires are passed through a vein to connect the device to the heart.

(ICD, NCI Dictionary)

A flexible wire designed to help position medical devices within the body.

(Guidewire Device Component, NCI Thesaurus)

The researchers found that, compared with a typical blood draw, the magnetic wire was more effective at finding these cancer cells.

(Magnetic Wires May Soon Be Used in Your Veins to Detect Cancer Earlier, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

Overall, the findings suggest that mothers’ responses to infant cries are hard-wired and generalizable across cultures.

(Study identifies brain patterns underlying mothers’ responses to infant cries, National Institutes of Health)

The first thing that I did was to wire to Mr. Forbes, who had the case in hand.

(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

"This I hung from the ceiling by a wire," said Oz.

(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)

Individual differences in how you behave or feel can be caused by a variety of factors, including how your brain is wired or the hormones in your body.

(Anxiety molecules affect male and female mice differently, NIH)