# woo

/ˈwu/ (US) · /wˈuː/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/woo
Updated: 2026-08-15

## Senses

### 1. to seek support

verb · CEFR C1 · Formal

to try to get someone's support or business, often by being very nice to them.

For teachers: to seek the support, business, or approval of a person or group through persistent effort or persuasion.

- The company is trying to woo new customers with big discounts.
- The political candidate spent months trying to woo undecided voters in the rural districts through a series of town hall meetings.

### 2. to seek love

verb · CEFR C1 · Literary

to try to make someone fall in love with you.

For teachers: to seek the affection or romantic interest of another person, typically with the intent of marriage or a serious relationship.

- In the old story, the knight tried to woo the princess with poetry.
- He attempted to woo her with grand gestures and expensive gifts, though she remained largely unimpressed by his displays of wealth.

### 4. pseudoscientific

adjective · CEFR C2 · Slang · Informal

describing ideas about magic or health that are not based on science.

For teachers: relating to or involving irrational or pseudoscientific beliefs, especially those concerning alternative medicine or the supernatural.

- I don't really like that shop; they sell a lot of woo crystals and magic rocks.
- The documentary was criticized for promoting woo-woo theories about energy healing that have no basis in clinical research.

Usage: Often doubled as 'woo-woo'.

Teaching tip: This is often used dismissively or mockingly to describe New Age beliefs.

## Examples

- The company is trying to woo new investors.
- The tech giant spent months trying to woo the smaller startup with promises of creative freedom and high salaries.
- In classic literature, the protagonist often spends several chapters attempting to woo a distant love interest through elaborate letters and public displays of devotion.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.