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The efficient, large-scale generation and control of photonic modes guided by van der Waals materials remains as a challenge despite their potential for on-chip photonic circuitry. We report three-atom-thick waveguides—δ waveguides—based on wafer-scale molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) monolayers that can guide visible and near-infrared light over millimeter-scale distances with low loss and an efficient in-coupling. The extreme thinness provides a light-trapping mechanism analogous to a δ-potential well in quantum mechanics and enables the guided waves that are essentially a plane wave freely propagating along the in-plane, but confined along the out-of-plane, direction of the waveguide. We further demonstrate key functionalities essential for two-dimensional photonics, including refraction, focusing, grating, interconnection, and intensity modulation, by integrating thin-film optical components with δ waveguides using microfabricated dielectric, metal, or patterned MoS₂.