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waist

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waist

  • /weɪst/

Sounds like waste (pane–pain merger) · Rhymes with -eɪst

Where it comes from

Inherited from Middle English wast (“waist”), probably from Old English *wæst, *wǣst, *weaxt, *wæhst, from Proto-West Germanic *wahstu, from Proto-Germanic *wahstuz (“growth, development, stature, build”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂weks- (“to multiply, increase”). Cognate with Middle English wacste (“growth, increase, might, power”), Middle High German wahst (“growth”), Danish vækst (“growth”), Swedish växt (“growth, development, size”), Icelandic vöxtur (“growth”), Gothic 𐍅𐌰𐌷𐍃𐍄𐌿𐍃 (wahstus, “growth”). Related to Old English weaxan (“to grow, increase”). More at wax.

noun waists · waste · wast

  1. The part of the body between the pelvis and the stomach.
  2. A part of a piece of clothing that covers the waist.
  3. The narrow connection between the thorax and abdomen in certain insects (e.g., bees, ants and wasps).
  4. The middle portion of the hull of a ship or the fuselage of an aircraft.
  5. That part of the upper deck of a ship between the quarterdeck and the forecastle. There he stood, very quietly overlooking some sailmakers who were mending a top-sail in the waist.
  6. The middle part of anything. The waist of a bell widens into the lip.

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: waistline, shank, blouse, sash, belt, strap, girdle, seatbelt, scale, bridge, bust, height, pruning, stature, tour, confection

Translations

Every language

noun part of the body

Españolcintura, cinto, talle
한국어허리 heori
日本語胴のくびれ dō no kubire, 腰部 yōbu, 胴回り dōmawari
中文腰 yāo, 腰部 yāobù
हिन्दीकमर kamar, कटि kaṭi
Kiswahilikiuno
Portuguêscintura
Françaistaille
DeutschTaille
Italianovita, cintura, cintola
Ελληνικάμέση mési
Românătalie, mijloc
Русскийта́лия tálija
Tiếng Việteo, eo lưng
العربيةخَصْر ḵaṣr, وَسَط wasaṭ
עבריתמֹתֶן moten

noun part of a piece of clothing that covers the waist

Españolcintura
Françaistaille, ceinture
DeutschHüfttuch
Русскийпо́яс pójas, лиф lif

noun narrow connection between the thorax and abdomen in certain insects

Françaistaille

noun middle portion of the hull of a ship or the fuselage of an aircraft

DeutschRumpf, Schiffsrumpf
Русскийшкафу́т škafút

noun nautical: upper deck of a ship between the quarterdeck and the forecastle

עבריתמָתְנֵי הָאֳנִיָּה motney haoniya

noun middle part of anything

DeutschMittelteil, Mitte

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Cite this
MLA

"waist." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/waist. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

waist. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/waist

Chicago

"waist." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/waist.

BibTeX
@misc{waist_2026,
  title = {waist},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/waist},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}