Wave
Wake
The wave thrown off the stern of a moving boat, which the wakesurfer rides; on a properly set-up wake boat it forms a continuous, surfable face.
The wake is the displacement wave a boat generates as its hull pushes through the water. For wakesurfing, the goal is a steep, clean, well-shaped wake with a defined pocket and enough push to hold the rider without the rope. Wake size and shape are tuned with ballast (weight), surf systems, wake shapers, and boat speed.
Unlike an ocean wave, the wake is continuous as long as the boat keeps moving at a steady plane, giving the rider an effectively endless wave to surf, carve, and trick on.