26984 words

wire

23 definitions • 27 examples
1
a piece of thin metal thread that can be bent, used for fastening things and for making particular types of objects that are strong but can bend:

Examples:

a wire fence
2
(a piece of) thin metal thread with a layer of plastic around it, used for carrying electric current:

Examples:

Someone had cut the phone wires.
Don't touch those wires whatever you do.
3
a secret recording device hidden worn by a person, especially one that is hidden in their clothes:

Examples:

The undercover police officer was wearing a wire during the meeting.
4
the wire fence around a prison or prison camp:

Examples:

behind the wire During the war he spent three years behind the wire (= in prison).
5
a thin piece of string that the winner runs through and breaks at the end of a race:

Examples:

The horses raced around the track in a frenzy to reach the wire first.
He lost at the wire to Lloyd.
6
a
7
to fasten two things together using wire:

Examples:

wire something together She had her jaws wired together so that she wouldn't be able to eat.
8
to connect a piece of electrical equipment with wires so that it will work:

Examples:

The stereo wasn't working because it hadn't been wired up correctly.
Nearly one home in ten across the country is wired up to receive TV via cable.
9

Examples:

wire something to something The insurance company wired millions of dollars to its accounts to cover the payments.
[ + two objects ] Luckily my father wired me two hundred bucks.
10
in the past, to send someone a telegram:

Examples:

Janet wired me to say she'd be here a day later than planned.
11
thin metal that can be bent, used in a stiff form in fences and in a form more easily shaped for fastening things or for carrying electric currents:

Examples:

[ U ] There was a six-foot high wire fence around the playground.
12
13
to send a message or money by telegraph:

Examples:

My father wired me $300.
14
to connect or fasten by wire:

Examples:

Our building is wired for cable TV.
15
A person or place that is wired is secretly equipped with an electric device that records sounds such as conversations:

Examples:

16
a piece of long thin metal that can be bent or used to hold things together:

Examples:

Thin strands of copper wire are wrapped around the connection and soldered.
17
a piece of long thin metal that can carry signals or electricity:

Examples:

The wires had been cut, leaving the building in darkness.
18
an electronic system for sending money from one bank account to another:

Examples:

by wire Amounts over $1,000 can be transferred to your bank account by wire or by check.
19
a piece of electronic equipment that someone wears so that other people can secretly listen to their conversation, especially when trying to trick someone:

Examples:

He agreed to wear a wire to the meeting as part of the FBI investigation.
20
if something is down to the wire, it is not clear or decided until the last possible moment:

Examples:

go/come down to the wire It was likely the leadership contest would go down to the wire.
Contract negotiations with two unions that represent more than 100,000 employees are expected to go right down to the wire.
21
if people get their wires crossed, they have a different understanding of the same situation:

Examples:

We must have got our wires crossed, because I thought the meeting was next week.
22
to send money from one bank account to another using an electronic system:

Examples:

23
in the past, to send someone a telegram (= message sent over electrical wires and printed out)

Navigation