/ wet; NAmE / adjective , verb , noun
■ adjective ( wet·ter , wet·test )
1.
covered with or containing liquid, especially water :
wet clothes
wet grass
You'll get wet (= in the rain) if you go out now.
Try not to get your shoes wet.
His face was wet with tears.
We were all soaking wet (= extremely wet) .
Her hair was still dripping wet .
My shirt was wet through (= completely wet) .
2.
( of weather, etc. ) with rain :
a wet day
a wet climate
It's wet outside.
It's going to be wet tomorrow.
It was the wettest October for many years.
3.
( of paint, ink, etc. ) not yet dry :
Keep off! Wet paint.
4.
if a child or its nappy / diaper is wet , its nappy / diaper is full of urine
5.
( BrE ) ( of a person ) ( informal , disapproving ) lacking a strong character
SYN feeble , wimpish :
'Don't be so wet,' she laughed.
► wetly adverb
► wet·ness noun [ U ]
•
IDIOMS
- all wet
- (still) wet behind the ears
—more at foot noun
■ verb
( wet·ting , wet , wet ) or ( wet·ting , wet·ted , wet·ted ) [ vn ] to make sth wet :
Wet the brush slightly before putting it in the paint.
•
IDIOMS
- wet the / your bed
- wet yourself | wet your pants / knickers
■ noun
1.
the wet [ sing. ] wet weather; rain :
Come in out of the wet.
2.
[ U ] liquid, especially water :
The dog shook the wet from its coat.
3.
[ C ] ( BrE , disapproving ) a conservative politician who supports moderate policies rather than extreme ones :
Tory wets
4.
[ C ] ( BrE , informal , disapproving ) a person who lacks a strong character
SYN wimp
••
SYNONYMS
wet
moist ♦ damp ♦ soaked ♦ drenched ♦ dripping ♦ saturated
These words all describe things covered with or full of liquid, especially water.
wet
covered with or full of liquid, especially water:
The car had skidded on the wet road.
•
You'll get wet (= in the rain) if you go out now.
moist
slightly wet, often in a way that is pleasant or useful:
a lovely rich moist cake
damp
slightly wet, often in a way that is unpleasant:
The cottage was cold and damp.
soaked
( rather informal ) very wet:
You're soaked through! (= completely wet)
drenched
very wet:
We were caught in the storm and came home drenched to the skin.
soaked or drenched?
Both of these words can be used with with or in :
soaked / drenched with / in sweat / blood
. Soaked but not usually drenched can also be used before a noun:
their soaked clothes
• their drenched clothes
dripping
[not usually before noun] very wet:
Her face was dripping with sweat.
•
His clothes were still dripping wet .
NOTE
Dripping is almost always used in one of these two patterns.
saturated
very wet:
The ground is completely saturated: it would be pointless to plant anything.
PATTERNS AND COLLOCATIONS :
wet / moist / damp / soaked / drenched / dripping / saturated with sth
soaked / drenched / saturated in sth
to be / get wet / moist / damp / soaked / drenched / saturated
sb's coat / shirt / shoes / clothes / hair is / are wet / damp / soaked / drenched / dripping / saturated
wet / moist / damp / saturated ground / soil / earth
a wet / moist / damp cloth
really wet / moist / damp / soaked / drenched / saturated
very / a bit / a little / quite / rather wet / moist / damp
absolutely / completely soaked / drenched / saturated
wet / soaked through
soaked / drenched to the skin
For more information see the Cultural Guide
••
WORD ORIGIN
Old English wǣt (adjective and noun), wǣtan (verb); related to water .