We'll Contraction for we will or we shall . " We'll follow them." Shak.

Wel-begone adjective [ Middle English wel-begon . See Well , and Begone .] Surrounded with happiness or prosperity. [ Obsolete]

Fair and rich and young and wel-begone .

Chaucer.

Welch adjective See Welsh . [ R.]

Welcher noun See Welsher .

Welchman noun See Welshman . [ R.]

Welcome adjective [ Middle English welcome , welcume , wilcume , Anglo-Saxon wilcuma a welcome guest, from wil- , as a prefix, akin to willa will + cuma a comer, from cuman to come; hence, properly, one who comes so as to please another's will; confer Icelandic velkominn welcome, German willkommen . See Will , noun , and Come.]

1. Received with gladness; admitted willingly to the house, entertainment, or company; as, a welcome visitor.

When the glad soul is made Heaven's welcome guest.

Cowper.

2. Producing gladness; grateful; as, a welcome present; welcome news. "O, welcome hour!" Milton.

3. Free to have or enjoy gratuitously; as, you are welcome to the use of my library.

» Welcome is used elliptically for you are welcome . " Welcome , great monarch, to your own." Dryden.

Welcome-to-our-house (Botany) , a kind of spurge ( Euphorbia Cyparissias ). Dr. Prior.

Welcome noun

1. Salutation to a newcomer. " Welcome ever smiles." Shak.

2. Kind reception of a guest or newcomer; as, we entered the house and found a ready welcome .

His warmest welcome at an inn.

Shenstone.

Truth finds an entrance and a welcome too.

South.

To bid welcome , to receive with professions of kindness.

To thee and thy company I bid
A hearty welcome .

Shak.

Welcome transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Welcomed ; present participle & verbal noun Welcoming .] [ Anglo-Saxon wilcumian .] To salute with kindness, as a newcomer; to receive and entertain hospitably and cheerfully; as, to welcome a visitor; to welcome a new idea. "I welcome you to land." Addison.

Thus we salute thee with our early song,
And welcome thee, and wish thee long.

Milton.

Welcomely adverb In a welcome manner.

Welcomeness noun The quality or state of being welcome; gratefulness; agreeableness; kind reception.

Welcomer noun One who welcomes; one who salutes, or receives kindly, a newcomer. Shak.

Weld transitive verb To wield. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Weld noun [ Middle English welde ; akin to Scot. wald , Prov. German waude , German wau , Dan. & Swedish vau , Dutch wouw .]

1. (Botany) An herb ( Reseda luteola ) related to mignonette, growing in Europe, and to some extent in America; dyer's broom; dyer's rocket; dyer's weed; wild woad. It is used by dyers to give a yellow color. [ Written also woald , wold , and would .]

2. Coloring matter or dye extracted from this plant.

Weld transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Welded ; present participle & verbal noun Welding .] [ Probably originally the same word as well to spring up, to gush; perhaps from the Scand.; confer Swedish välla to weld, uppvälla to boil up, to spring up, Danish vælde to gush, German wellen to weld. See Well to spring.]

1. To press or beat into intimate and permanent union, as two pieces of iron when heated almost to fusion.

» Very few of the metals, besides iron and platinum. are capable of being welded. Horn and tortoise shell possess this useful property.

2. Fig.: To unite closely or intimately.

Two women faster welded in one love.

Tennyson.

Weld noun The state of being welded; the joint made by welding.

Butt weld . See under Butt . -- Scarf weld , a joint made by overlapping, and welding together, the scarfed ends of two pieces.

Weld steel A compound of iron, such as puddled steel, made without complete fusion.

Weldable adjective Capable of being welded.

Welder noun One who welds, or unites pieces of iron, etc., by welding.

Welder noun

1. One who welds, or wields. [ Obsolete]

2. A manager; an actual occupant. [ Ireland. Obsolete] "The welder . . . who . . . lives miserably." Swift.

Weldon's process (Chemistry) A process for the recovery or regeneration of manganese dioxide in the manufacture of chlorine, by means of milk of lime and the oxygen of the air; -- so called after the inventor.

Wele noun [ See Weal prosperity.] Prosperity; happiness; well-being; weal. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Weleful adjective Producing prosperity or happiness; blessed. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Welew transitive verb To welk, or wither. [ Obsolete]

Welfare noun [ Well + fare to go, to proceed, to happen.] Well-doing or well-being in any respect; the enjoyment of health and the common blessings of life; exemption from any evil or calamity; prosperity; happiness.

How to study for the people's welfare .

Shak.

In whose deep eyes
Men read the welfare of the times to come.

Emerson.

Welfaring adjective Faring well; prosperous; thriving. [ Obsolete] "A welfaring person." Chaucer.

Welk intransitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Welked ; present participle & verbal noun Welking .] [ Middle English welken ; confer D. & German welken to wither, German welk withered, Old High German welc moist. See Welkin , and confer Wilt .] To wither; to fade; also, to decay; to decline; to wane. [ Obsolete]

When ruddy Ph...bus 'gins to welk in west.

Spenser.

The church, that before by insensible degrees welked and impaired, now with large steps went down hill decaying.

Milton.

Welk transitive verb

1. To cause to wither; to wilt. [ Obsolete]

Mot thy welked neck be to-broke [ broken].

Chaucer.

2. To contract; to shorten. [ Obsolete]

Now sad winter welked hath the day.

Spenser.

3. To soak; also, to beat severely. [ Prov. Eng.]

Welk noun A pustule. See 2d Whelk .

Welk noun (Zoology) A whelk. [ R.]

Welked transitive verb See Whelked .

Welkin noun [ Middle English welken , welkene , welkne , wolcne , weolcne , Anglo-Saxon wolcen , plural wolcnu , a cloud; akin to Dutch wolk , OFries. wolken , Old Saxon wolkan , German wolke , Old High German wolchan , and probably to German welk withered, Old High German welc moist, Russian & OSlav. vlaga moisture , Lithuanian vilgyti to moisten.] The visible regions of the air; the vault of heaven; the sky.

On the welkne shoon the sterres lyght.

Chaucer.

The fair welkin foully overcast.

Spenser.

When storms the welkin rend.

Wordsworth.

» Used adjectively by Shakespeare in the phase, "Your welkin eye," with uncertain meaning.

Well noun [ Middle English welle , Anglo-Saxon wella , wylla , from weallan to well up, surge, boil; akin to Dutch wel a spring or fountain. ............. See Well , intransitive verb ]

1. An issue of water from the earth; a spring; a fountain.

Begin, then, sisters of the sacred well .

Milton.

2. A pit or hole sunk into the earth to such a depth as to reach a supply of water, generally of a cylindrical form, and often walled with stone or bricks to prevent the earth from caving in.

The woman said unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep.

John iv. 11.

3. A shaft made in the earth to obtain oil or brine.

4. Fig.: A source of supply; fountain; wellspring. "This well of mercy." Chaucer.

Dan Chaucer, well of English undefiled.

Spenser.

A well of serious thought and pure.

Keble.

5. (Nautical) (a) An inclosure in the middle of a vessel's hold, around the pumps, from the bottom to the lower deck, to preserve the pumps from damage and facilitate their inspection. (b) A compartment in the middle of the hold of a fishing vessel, made tight at the sides, but having holes perforated in the bottom to let in water for the preservation of fish alive while they are transported to market. (c) A vertical passage in the stern into which an auxiliary screw propeller may be drawn up out of water. (d) A depressed space in the after part of the deck; -- often called the cockpit .

6. (Mil.) A hole or excavation in the earth, in mining, from which run branches or galleries.

7. (Architecture) An opening through the floors of a building, as for a staircase or an elevator; a wellhole.

8. (Metal.) The lower part of a furnace, into which the metal falls.

Artesian well , Driven well . See under Artesian , and Driven . -- Pump well . (Nautical) See Well , 5 (a) , above. -- Well boring , the art or process of boring an artesian well. -- Well drain . (a) A drain or vent for water, somewhat like a well or pit, serving to discharge the water of wet land. (b) A drain conducting to a well or pit. -- Well room . (a) A room where a well or spring is situated; especially, one built over a mineral spring. (b) (Nautical) A depression in the bottom of a boat, into which water may run, and whence it is thrown out with a scoop. -- Well sinker , one who sinks or digs wells. -- Well sinking , the art or process of sinking or digging wells. -- Well staircase (Architecture) , a staircase having a wellhole (see Wellhole (b) ), as distinguished from one which occupies the whole of the space left for it in the floor. -- Well sweep . Same as Sweep , noun , 12. -- Well water , the water that flows into a well from subterraneous springs; the water drawn from a well.

Well intransitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Welled ; present participle & verbal noun Welling .] [ Middle English wellen , Anglo-Saxon wyllan , wellan , from weallan ; akin to OFries. walla , Old Saxon & Old High German wallan , German wallen , Icelandic vella , German welle , wave, Old High German wella , walm , Anglo-Saxon wylm ; confer Latin volvere to roll, Greek ... to inwrap, ... to roll. Confer Voluble , Wallop to boil, Wallow , Weld of metal.] To issue forth, as water from the earth; to flow; to spring. "[ Blood] welled from out the wound." Dryden. "[ Yon spring] wells softly forth." Bryant.

From his two springs in Gojam's sunny realm,
Pure welling out, he through the lucid lake
Of fair Dambea rolls his infant streams.

Thomson.

Well transitive verb To pour forth, as from a well. Spenser.

Well adverb [ Compar. and superl. wanting, the deficiency being supplied by better and best , from another root.] [ Middle English wel , Anglo-Saxon wel ; akin to Old Saxon , OFries., & Dutch wel , German wohl , Old High German wola , wela , Icelandic & Danish vel , Swedish väl , Goth. waíla ; originally meaning, according to one's will or wish. See Will , transitive verb , and confer Wealth .]

1. In a good or proper manner; justly; rightly; not ill or wickedly.

If thou doest not well , sin lieth at the door.

Gen. iv. 7.

2. Suitably to one's condition, to the occasion, or to a proposed end or use; suitably; abundantly; fully; adequately; thoroughly.

Lot . . . beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere.

Gen. xiii. 10.

WE are well able to overcome it.

Num. xiii. 30.

She looketh well to the ways of her household.

Prov. xxxi. 27.

Servant of God, well done! well hast thou fought
The better fight.

Milton.

3. Fully or about; -- used with numbers. [ Obsolete] " Well a ten or twelve." Chaucer.

Well nine and twenty in a company.

Chaucer.

4. In such manner as is desirable; so as one could wish; satisfactorily; favorably; advantageously; conveniently. "It boded well to you." Dryden.

Know
In measure what the mind may well contain.

Milton.

All the world speaks well of you.

Pope.

5. Considerably; not a little; far.

Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken in age.

Gen. xviii. 11.

» Well is sometimes used elliptically for it is well , as an expression of satisfaction with what has been said or done, and sometimes it expresses concession, or is merely expletive; as, well , the work is done; well , let us go; well , well , be it so.

» Well , like above , ill , and so , is used before many participial adjectives in its usual adverbial senses, and subject to the same custom with regard to the use of the hyphen (see the Note under Ill , adverb ); as, a well -affected supporter; he was well affected toward the project; a well - trained speaker; he was well trained in speaking; well - educated, or well educated; well -dressed, or well dressed; well -appearing; well -behaved; well - controlled; well -designed; well -directed; well -formed; well -meant; well -minded; well -ordered; well - performed; well -pleased; well -pleasing; well -seasoned; well -steered; well -tasted; well -told, etc. Such compound epithets usually have an obvious meaning, and since they may be formed at will, only a few of this class are given in the Vocabulary.

As well . See under As . -- As well as , and also; together with; not less than; one as much as the other; as, a sickness long, as well as severe; London is the largest city in England, as well as the capital. -- Well enough , well or good in a moderate degree; so as to give satisfaction, or so as to require no alteration. -- Well off , in good condition; especially, in good condition as to property or any advantages; thriving; prosperous. -- Well to do , well off; prosperous; -- used also adjectively. "The class well to do in the world." J. H. Newman. -- Well to live , in easy circumstances; well off; well to do. Shak.

Well adjective

1. Good in condition or circumstances; desirable, either in a natural or moral sense; fortunate; convenient; advantageous; happy; as, it is well for the country that the crops did not fail; it is well that the mistake was discovered.

It was well with us in Egypt.

Num. xi. 18.

2. Being in health; sound in body; not ailing, diseased, or sick; healthy; as, a well man; the patient is perfectly well . "Your friends are well ." Shak.

Is your father well , the old man of whom ye spake?

Gen. xliii. 27.

3. Being in favor; favored; fortunate.

He followed the fortunes of that family, and was well with Henry the Fourth.

Dryden.

4. (Marine Insurance) Safe; as, a chip warranted well at a certain day and place. Burrill.

Well-being noun The state or condition of being well; welfare; happiness; prosperity; as, virtue is essential to the well-being of men or of society.

Well-born adjective Born of a noble or respect able family; not of mean birth.

Well-bred adjective Having good breeding; refined in manners; polite; cultivated.

I am as well-bred as the earl's granddaughter.

Thackera....

Well-favored adjective Handsome; wellformed; beautiful; pleasing to the eye.

Rachel was beautiful and well-favored .

Gen. xxix. 17.

Well-informed adjective Correctly informed; provided with information; well furnished with authentic knowledge; intelligent.

Welladay interj. [ Corrupted from wela way .] Alas! Welaway! Shak.

Wellat noun (Zoology) The king parrakeet See under King .

Welldoer noun One who does well; one who does good to another; a benefactor.

Welldoing noun A doing well; right performance of duties. Also used adjectively.

Welldrain transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Welldrained ; present participle & verbal noun Well-draining .] To drain, as land; by means of wells, or pits, which receive the water, and from which it is discharged by machinery.

Wellfare noun See Welfare . [ Obsolete]

Wellhead noun A source, spring, or fountain.

At the wellhead the purest streams arise.

Spenser.

Our public-school and university life is a great wellhead of new and irresponsible words.

Earle.

Wellhole noun

1. (Architecture) (a) The open space in a floor, to accommodate a staircase. (b) The open space left beyond the ends of the steps of a staircase.

2. A cavity which receives a counterbalancing weight in certain mechanical contrivances, and is adapted also for other purposes. W. M. Buchanan.

Wellington boot [ After the Duke of Wellington .] A riding boot for men, the front of which came above the knee; also, a similar shorter boot worn under the trousers.