WC
Abbreviation with 6 meanings
| Stands for | Workers' compensation |
|---|---|
| Meanings | 6 |
| Categories | Business & Finance, Sports, Writing & Everyday, Arts & Entertainment |
WC has six meanings. The most common are Workers' compensation (insurance) and World Cup (soccer (Association football)); it can also stand for Working capital, Word choice, Wild card and Word count.
Meanings of WC at a glance
| # | WC stands for | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Workers' compensation | Business & Finance › Insurance |
| 2 | World Cup | Sports › Soccer (Association Football) |
| 3 | Working capital | Business & Finance › Finance |
| 4 | Word choice | Writing & Everyday › Proofreading and Correction Mark |
| 5 | Wild card | Sports › Other Sports |
| 6 | Word count | Arts & Entertainment › Publishing and Book |
1. Workers' compensation
Business & Finance · Insurance Abbreviations · also used in medicine
Insurance employers buy, required in nearly every US state, that pays medical care, lost wages, rehabilitation and death benefits to employees injured or made ill by their work, regardless of fault. In exchange, employees generally cannot sue the employer over the injury.
Example: The warehouse filed a WC claim for the employee who hurt his back lifting pallets.
This trade-off, known as the "exclusive remedy," dates to the first lasting state laws around 1911. Texas is the only state where private employers may opt out entirely. Premiums are based on payroll and job classification codes, adjusted by an experience modification rate reflecting past claims. Policies also include employers' liability coverage.
2. World Cup
Sports · Soccer (Association Football) Abbreviations
FIFA's international championship for national teams, held every four years since 1930 for men and since 1991 for women. The 2026 men's tournament in the US, Canada and Mexico expanded to 48 teams.
Example: The WC final in Qatar drew one of the largest audiences in television history.
Brazil won five men's titles between 1958 and 2002; Argentina won in 2022 after a penalty shootout against France. The US women have won four Women's World Cups. Outside soccer, WC is a common European abbreviation for water closet, a toilet.
3. Working capital
Business & Finance · Finance Abbreviations
Difference between a company's current assets and current liabilities, indicating whether it has enough short-term resources to meet obligations due within a year. Positive working capital suggests liquidity; negative working capital can signal strain, or simply an efficient business model.
Example: Rapid growth tied up so much cash in receivables that the company needed a WC facility from its bank.
Retailers and fast-food chains often run with negative working capital because customers pay immediately while suppliers are paid later. The current ratio, current assets divided by current liabilities, is the most common working capital ratio. In British English, WC also means water closet, a toilet.
4. Word choice
Writing & Everyday · Proofreading and Correction Mark Abbreviations
Suggests that a word is imprecise, too informal, repetitive or otherwise not the best option, even if not technically wrong, such as "stuff" in an academic essay.
Example: The comment WC next to "a lot of things" asks for a more specific phrase like "several policies."
Word-choice comments address register and precision rather than correctness, so a thesaurus alone rarely fixes them; the writer must decide exactly what is meant. Teachers often mark clichés, slang and vague words such as "thing," "good" and "very." In Britain and Europe, WC on a sign means water closet, a toilet.
5. Wild card
Sports · Other Sports Abbreviations
Entry into a tennis or golf tournament granted by the organizers to a player who did not qualify on ranking, often a local player, a rising junior or a returning star. Draw sheets mark these players WC.
Example: The 17-year-old received a WC into the main draw at Indian Wells.
Goran Ivanisevic won Wimbledon in 2001 as a wild card, the only man to win the title with one. Wild cards also exist in baseball and football playoffs. In soccer WC usually means the World Cup.
6. Word count
Arts & Entertainment · Publishing and Book Abbreviations
Number of words in a manuscript, used to judge whether a book fits its genre's expected length. Agents and publishers list target word counts for submissions.
Example: WC: 92,000. Comparable titles: two recent fantasy debuts.
Adult novels commonly run about 70,000 to 100,000 words, middle-grade books much shorter. National Novel Writing Month challenged writers to draft 50,000 words in November; its nonprofit organizer closed in 2025. In soccer WC means World Cup.
Related abbreviations
More insurance abbreviations
- ACORD – Association for Cooperative Operations Research and Development
- ACV – Actual cash value
- AD&D – Accidental death and dismemberment insurance
- AI – Additional insured
- ALE – Additional living expenses
- AOP – All other perils
- BI – Bodily injury liability
- BOP – Business owner's policy
See all 86 insurance abbreviations →