I. ˈwej noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English wegge, from Old English wecg; akin to Old High German weggi, wecki wedge, Old Norse veggr, Lithuanian vagis wedge, peg, and probably to Latin vomis, vomer plowshare, Greek ophnis
1. : a piece of material (as wood or metal) tapering to a thin edge used for splitting wood or rocks, for raising heavy bodies, and by being driven into a space between objects for tightening
drove the wedge into the log with a maul
2.
a. : a lump or mass of something solid
ate wedges of brown bread dipped in coffee — Kay Boyle
fine, well-aged Herkimer county cheddar … is sold in wedges — New Yorker
a thick wedge of estuarine clay was laid down over the earlier valley peats — J.N.Jennings & Joyce Lambert
b. obsolete : a gold or silver ingot
3.
a. : something (as a device, policy, or action) causing a breach or separation
time … to unite this country instead of attempting to drive a wedge between any segments of our population — Earl Bunting
slavery … had driven a wedge between the North and the South — Oscar Handlin
driving a wedge of sardonic laughter and comment into the wall of prejudice — V.P.Hass
b. : something used to initiate an extended action or development
looked upon the union … as a growing wedge in the fight to end discrimination — Current Biography
bill is merely another wedge to pry billions out of the American exchequer — J.S.Lawrence
the officers' fraternity … was taken as the entering wedge of military despotism — Dixon Wecter
the thin end of the improving wedge has come in — John Russell b.1872
4. : something shaped like or suggestive of a wedge: as
a. : an array of troops or tanks drawn up or moving in the form of a wedge
the armored wedge drove forward to make openings in the enemy line
b. : a formation of flying wild fowl
the high wedge and honk of birds flying south — Meridel LeSueur
c. : a section of land narrowing to a point
a small wedge of an island — Iain Hamilton
a wedge of green forest juts out into the field
d. : voussoir
e.
(1) : the wedge-shaped stroke in cuneiform characters
cuneiform … is at first sight only a meaningless jumble of wedges — S.L.Caiger
(2) : hacek
f. : a wedge-shaped region of high barometric pressure
g.
(1) : wedge heel
(2) : a shoe that has a wedge heel
h. : an iron golf club that has a broad low-angled face for giving maximum loft from sand traps and from deep rough : a heavy niblick
i. : a piece of optical glass or crystal (as in a compensator or a photometer) having a progressive variation in thickness or absorption density from one side to the other
5. : the type of cutting and piercing machinery formerly classed as a mechanical power
6. : a piece of bone removed (as from a foot) to correct deformity or malposition
a wedge resection
II. verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle English weggen, from wegge wedge
transitive verb
1. : to fasten or tighten by driving or forcing in a wedge
wedges the pegs in tightly
the carpenter wedges up the post under the beam
the builder wedges the wooden partition to the overhead construction
2. : to force or drive (an object) into something where it is tightly held : squeeze
the flood wedges debris into the crotches of the trees
was wedged in between his two bedfellows, both of whom were aggressively large — T.B.Costain
the houses … appear to be wedged in the rocky hillside — American Guide Series: Maryland
seeking to wedge an advancing force between the enemy's strongpoints
3. : to separate or force apart with or as if with a wedge
the axman wedges open the log for finer splitting
seeks to wedge apart his enemies, to divide and conquer
4. : to cram or pack into a small or restricted space : crowd
thousands of homes had been wedged into the tiny valley
Sunday driving wedges the cars together on miles of congested highways
5. : to overthrow or direct the fall of (a tree) by driving wedges into the kerf made by the sawyer
6. : to cut (clay) into wedge-shaped masses and work by dashing together to expel air bubbles
intransitive verb
: to become tight or fixed by or as if by being wedged
hold the wood properly so that the saw will not wedge
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- wedge one's way