Standard Lemma guide

wee

adj · intj · name · noun · pron · verb · 14 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /wiː/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -iː
  • homophone: oui
  • homophone: we
  • homophone: Wii
  • homophone: whee (wine–whine merger)
  • CMU ARPABET: W IY1 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Small, little.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: Ireland, New-Zealand, Northern-England, Scotland

Qualifier: Ottawa Valley

Examples

  • You looked a little cold, so I lit a wee fire.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

intj

Meaning 2

Alternative form of whee.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: alt-of, alternative

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

intj

Meaning 3

The squeal of a pig.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

name

Meaning 4

A surname.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

noun

Meaning 5

A short time or short distance.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

noun

Meaning 6

Urine.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: colloquial, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

7

noun

Meaning 7

An act of urination.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: colloquial, countable

Examples

  • I need to have a wee.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

8

noun

Meaning 8

Abbreviation of Western equine encephalomyelitis.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: abbreviation, alt-of, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

9

pron

Meaning 9

obsolete emphatic of we

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: alt-of, emphatic, obsolete, personal, pronoun

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

10

verb

Meaning 10

To urinate.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: UK, colloquial

Examples

  • I need to wee! I can't hold it any longer!

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

11

adjective satellite

Meaning 11

very early

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • the wee hours of the morning

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

12

adjective satellite

Meaning 12

(used informally) very small

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • a wee tot

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: bitty, bittie, teensy, teentsy, teeny, weeny, weensy, teensy-weensy, teeny-weeny, itty-bitty, itsy-bitsy

Antonyms: none provided

13

noun

Meaning 13

a short time

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • bide a wee

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: time

14

verb

Meaning 14

eliminate urine

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • Again, the cat had made on the expensive rug

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: make, urinate, piddle, puddle, micturate, piss, pee, pee-pee, make water, relieve oneself, take a leak, spend a penny, wee-wee, pass water

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: excrete, egest, eliminate, pass

Narrower terms: wet, stale

History

Etymology

From Middle English wey, weygh, wegh, weȝe, wæȝe (“little bit”), from Old English wǣġ, wǣġe (“weight”), from Proto-West Germanic *wāgu, from Proto-Germanic *wēgō (“scales, weight”) and *wēgǭ (“weight”), related to Middle English weġan (“to move, weigh”) (15c).

Borrowed from Hokkien 黃/黄 (Ûin), etc.

Onomatopoeic for the sound of urination. The noun derives from the verb.

See we.

Across languages

Translations

115 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bashkir: бәләкәй (bələkəy) — small, little
  • Bashkir: бәләкәс (bələkəs) — small, little
  • Bashkir: кесе (kese) — small, little
  • Bashkir: кескәй (keskəy) — small, little
  • Chinese Mandarin: 細小 /细小 (xìxiǎo) — small, little
  • Chinese Mandarin: 微小 (wēixiǎo) — small, little
  • Czech: malý — small, little
  • Danish: lille — small, little
  • Dutch: klein — small, little
  • Dutch: petieterig — small, little
  • Dutch: pietepeuterig — small, little
  • Finnish: pikkuruinen — small, little
  • French: petit — small, little
  • Georgian: პაწაწა (ṗac̣ac̣a) — small, little
  • Georgian: პაწაწინა (ṗac̣ac̣ina) — small, little
  • Georgian: პაწაწკინტელა (ṗac̣ac̣ḳinṭela) — small, little
  • Georgian: ციცქნა (cickna) — small, little
  • Georgian: პატარა (ṗaṭara) — small, little
  • Georgian: მცირე (mcire) — small, little
  • German: winzig — small, little
  • German: klein — small, little
  • Greek: μικρούτσικος (mikroútsikos) — small, little
  • Greek: τοσοσδά (tososdá) — small, little
  • Hebrew: קטן (katán) — small, little
  • Hungarian: apró — small, little
  • Hungarian: csöpp — small, little
  • Hungarian: hangyányi — small, little
  • Irish: beag — small, little
  • Irish: mion — small, little
  • Italian: piccolo — small, little
  • Japanese: 小っちゃい (chitchai) — small, little
  • Persian: کوچولو (kučulu) — small, little
  • Polish: drobny — small, little
  • Polish: mały — small, little
  • Portuguese: pequeno — small, little
  • Portuguese: miúdo — small, little
  • Russian: кро́шечный (króšečnyj) — small, little
  • Russian: кро́хотный (króxotnyj) — small, little
  • Russian: малю́сенький (maljúsenʹkij) — small, little
  • Russian: ма́ленький (málenʹkij) — small, little
  • Russian: ничто́жный (ničtóžnyj) — small, little
  • Scottish Gaelic: beag — small, little
  • Scottish Gaelic: meanbh — small, little
  • Scottish Gaelic: mean — small, little
  • Scottish Gaelic: mion — small, little
  • Scottish Gaelic: frith — small, little
  • Serbo-Croatian: mali — small, little
  • Serbo-Croatian: sićušan — small, little
  • Spanish: pequeño — small, little
  • Swedish: liten — small, little
  • Turkish: küçük — small, little
  • Urdu: چھوٹی (čhōṭī) — small, little
  • Czech: moč — urine
  • Czech: čuránky — urine
  • Czech: chcanky — urine
  • Dutch: pis — urine
  • Dutch: urine — urine
  • Finnish: pissa — urine
  • French: pipi — urine
  • German: Pipi — urine
  • Greek: τσίσα (tsísa) — urine
  • Greek: πιπί (pipí) — urine
  • Hungarian: pisi — urine
  • Italian: pipì — urine
  • Japanese: おしっこ (oshikko) — urine
  • Central Kurdish: میز (mîz) — urine
  • Norwegian: tiss — urine
  • Portuguese: chichi — urine
  • Portuguese: xixi — urine
  • Spanish: orina — urine
  • Spanish: pis — urine
  • Spanish: pipí — urine
  • Swedish: kiss — urine
  • Swedish: pink — urine
  • Swedish: piss — urine
  • Swedish: urin — urine
  • Turkish: çiş — urine
  • Turkish: sidik — urine
  • Ottoman Turkish: سیدك (sidik) — urine
  • Czech: čůrání — act of urination
  • Dutch: plas — act of urination
  • Finnish: pissaaminen — act of urination
  • Greek: τσίσα (tsísa) — act of urination
  • Greek: πιπί (pipí) — act of urination
  • Hungarian: pisilés — act of urination
  • Central Kurdish: میز کردن (mîz kirdin) — act of urination
  • Norwegian: tisse — act of urination
  • Czech: čůrat — to urinate
  • Czech: chcát — to urinate
  • Dutch: plassen — to urinate
  • Dutch: pipi doen — to urinate
  • Dutch: wateren — to urinate
  • Dutch: pissen — to urinate
  • Dutch: urineren — to urinate
  • Finnish: pissata — to urinate
  • Finnish: pissiä — to urinate
  • French: faire pipi — to urinate
  • German: pinkeln — to urinate
  • German: pissen — to urinate
  • German: Pipi machen — to urinate
  • Greek: κάνω τσίσα (káno tsísa) — to urinate
  • Greek: κατουράω (katouráo) — to urinate
  • Italian: fare la pipì — to urinate
  • Central Kurdish: میز کردن (mîz kirdin) — to urinate
  • Portuguese: fazer xixi — to urinate
  • Russian: пи́сать (písatʹ) — to urinate
  • Russian: попи́сать (popísatʹ) — to urinate
  • Spanish: hacer pis — to urinate
  • Spanish: hacer pipi — to urinate
  • Swedish: pinka — to urinate
  • Swedish: pissa — to urinate
  • Swedish: kissa — to urinate
  • Turkish: çiş yapma — to urinate
  • Turkish: işeme — to urinate
  • Ottoman Turkish: سیمك (siymek) — to urinate