waist / wāst/ • n. the part of the human body below the ribs and above the hips. ∎  the circumference of this: her waist is 28 inches. ∎  a narrowing of the trunk of the body at this point: the last time you had a waist was around 1978. ∎  the part of a garment encircling or covering the waist. ∎  the point at which a garment is shaped so as to narrow between the rib cage and the hips: a jacket with a high waist. ∎  a blouse or bodice. ∎  a narrow part in the middle of anything, such as a violin, an hourglass, the body of wasp, etc. ∎  the middle part of a ship, between the forecastle and the quarterdeck.DERIVATIVES: waist·ed adj. [in comb.] high-waisted.waist·less adj.

waist middle section of the body XIV; middle part of a ship XV; narrowest or slenderest part XVII. ME. wa(a)st, later waste, waist; perh. repr. OE. *wæst, for *weahst, corr. to ON. *wahstur (Icel. vöxtr), Goth. wahstus growth, size, f. Gmc. *waχs- grow, WAX2. Comp. waist-coat XVI.