wedge /wej/

1. A piece of wood or metal, thick at one end and sloping to a thin edge at the other, used in splitting, or fixing tightly, etc
2. Anything shaped more or less like a wedge, eg a formation of troops, the flying formation of geese and other wildfowl, a piece cut from a circular cake, a stroke in cuneiform characters or (obsolete) an ingot of gold or silver
3. Any V-shaped sign used in notation or as a diacritic
4. An iron-headed golf club with a broad low-angled face, creating much loft
5. A stroke with such a club
6. A shoe in which the heel and sole together form a wedge with no gap under the instep (also wedge-heeled shoe)

1. To force (open) or drive (apart) with, or as if with, a wedge
2. To thrust in tightly
3. To crowd closely
4. To fasten or fix with a wedge or wedges
5. To cleave with a wedge
6. To make into a wedge

1. To force one's way like a wedge
2. To become fixed or jammed by, or as if by, a wedge

wedged adjective

wedgeˈ-like adjective

wedgeˈwise adverb

In the manner of a wedge

wedgˈie noun

1. A wedge-heeled shoe (informal)
2. A prank in which the victim's underpants are pulled up, causing uncomfortable constriction (informal)

wedgˈing noun

A method of joining timbers

wedgˈy adjective

wedge issue noun (esp US politics)

A divisive issue, esp an emotive or controversial one

wedgeˈ-shaped adjective

Shaped like a wedge

wedgeˈ-tailed adjective

Having a tail in which the rectrices form the shape of a wedge, the central pair being longest, the outer pair shortest

drive a wedge between

To cause ill-feeling or division between

the thin or small end of the wedge

A small beginning that is bound to be followed by a large or significant (and usu unwelcome) development

the wedge or wooden wedge

Formerly, the student lowest on the classical tripos list at Cambridge University (on the analogy of wooden spoon, from Wedgwood, a student at Christ's College, whose name was last on the first list, of 1824)

• punicaceous
• Punic apple
• Punic faith
• punier
• puniest
• punily
• puniness
• puninesses
• punish
• punishabilities
• punishability
• punishable
• punished
• punisher
• punishers
• punishes
• punishing
• punishingly
• punishment
• punishments
• punition
• punitions
• punitive
• punitive damages
• punitory