wow
/waʊ/interjection, verb, noun
wow is spelled W-O-W: 3 letters and one syllable. It appears 91 times per million words in written English, the 1,167th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an interjection, wow means “An indication of excitement, surprise, astonishment, or pleasure” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in wow?
| Letters | 3: W-O-W |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 91 times per million words; the 1,167th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is wow?
Wow appears 91 times per million words in written English, the 1,167th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce wow?
- /waʊ/
- /ʋɑʋ/
As a verb (“To amaze or awe”): /waʊ/, /ʋəʋ/.
Wow has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-wow.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of wow
- wows present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- wowing participle, present
- wowed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does wow mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
interjection
- 1
An indication of excitement, surprise, astonishment, or pleasure.
Wow, I sure was surprised!
- 2
An expression of amazement, awe, or admiration.
Wow! How do they do that?
- 3
Used sarcastically to express disapproval of something.
Wow… good job using all of our supplies on the first day.
verb
- 1
informalTo amaze or awe.
He really wowed the audience.
- 2
Of a cat, to mew.
- 3
Of a dog, to howl.
noun
- 1
informalAnything exceptionally surprising, unbelievable, outstanding, etc.
- 2
informalAn utterance of "wow".
- 3
A relatively slow form of flutter (pitch variation) which can affect both gramophone records and tape recorders.
noun
- 1
Abbreviation of weight on wheels
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Wow in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | waouh, ouah, oh là là , oh |
| German | toll!, boah!, Junge!, Mensch! , wow, boah |
| Portuguese | uau, uia, nossa |
| Spanish | ¡guau!, ¡guao!, hala, arrea, atiza, órale |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does wow come from?
Attested since the 16th century; borrowed from Scots wow; ultimately a natural exclamation.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).