n. | 1. | |
| 1. | One of the two anterior limbs of a bird, pterodactyl, or bat. They correspond to the arms of man, and are usually modified for flight, but in the case of a few species of birds, as the ostrich, auk, etc., the wings are used only as an assistance in running or swimming. |
| 2. | (Zool.) Any similar member or instrument used for the purpose of flying. |
| 3. | Passage by flying; flight; as, to take wing. |
| 4. | Motive or instrument of flight; means of flight or of rapid motion. |
| 5. | Anything which agitates the air as a wing does, or which is put in winglike motion by the action of the air, as a fan or vane for winnowing grain, the vane or sail of a windmill, etc. |
| 6. | An ornament worn on the shoulder; a small epaulet or shoulder knot. |
| 7. | (Zool.) Any appendage resembling the wing of a bird or insect in shape or appearance. |
| 8. | (Arch.) One of two corresponding appendages attached; a sidepiece. |
| 9. | (Aeronautics) Any surface used primarily for supporting a flying machine in flight, especially the flat or slightly curved planes on a heavier-than-air aircraft which provide most of the lift. In fixed-wing aircraft there are usually two main wings fixed on opposite sides of the fuselage. Smaller wings are typically placed near the tail primarily for stabilization, but may be absent in certain kinds of aircraft. Helicopters usually have no fixed wings, the lift being supplied by the rotating blade. |
| 10. | One of two factions within an organization, as a political party, which are opposed to each other; as, right wing or left wing. |
| 11. | An administrative division of the air force or of a naval air group, consisting of a certain number of airplanes and the personnel associated with them. |
v. t. | 1. | To furnish with wings; to enable to fly, or to move with celerity. |
| 2. | To supply with wings or sidepieces. |
| 3. | To transport by flight; to cause to fly. |
| 4. | To move through in flight; to fly through. |
| 5. | To cut off the wings of or to wound in the wing; to disable a wing of; as, to wing a bird; also, [fig.] to wound the arm of a person. |