diff --git a/crates/uv-cli/src/lib.rs b/crates/uv-cli/src/lib.rs
index ca02ce0685f5e..6387fa295ba4e 100644
--- a/crates/uv-cli/src/lib.rs
+++ b/crates/uv-cli/src/lib.rs
@@ -337,14 +337,20 @@ pub enum Commands {
     Venv(VenvArgs),
     /// Build Python packages into source distributions and wheels.
     ///
-    /// By default, `uv build` will build a source distribution ("sdist")
-    /// from the source directory, and a binary distribution ("wheel") from
-    /// the source distribution.
+    /// `uv build` accepts a path to a directory or source distribution,
+    /// which defaults to the current working directory.
+    ///
+    /// By default, if passed a directory, `uv build` will build a source
+    /// distribution ("sdist") from the source directory, and a binary
+    /// distribution ("wheel") from  the source distribution.
     ///
     /// `uv build --sdist` can be used to build only the source distribution,
     /// `uv build --wheel` can be used to build only the binary distribution,
     /// and `uv build --sdist --wheel` can be used to build both distributions
     /// from source.
+    ///
+    /// If passed a source distribution, `uv build --wheel` will build a wheel
+    /// from  the source distribution.
     #[command(
         after_help = "Use `uv help build` for more details.",
         after_long_help = ""
@@ -1941,7 +1947,8 @@ pub struct PipTreeArgs {
 #[derive(Args)]
 #[allow(clippy::struct_excessive_bools)]
 pub struct BuildArgs {
-    /// The directory from which source distributions and/or wheels should be built.
+    /// The directory from which source distributions and/or wheels should be built, or a source
+    /// distribution archive to build into a wheel.
     ///
     /// Defaults to the current working directory.
     #[arg(value_parser = parse_file_path)]
@@ -1951,7 +1958,7 @@ pub struct BuildArgs {
     #[arg(long)]
     pub sdist: bool,
 
-    /// Build a built distribution ("wheel") from the given directory.
+    /// Build a binary distribution ("wheel") from the given directory.
     #[arg(long)]
     pub wheel: bool,
 
diff --git a/crates/uv/src/commands/build.rs b/crates/uv/src/commands/build.rs
index e905e17994cc5..d4effd19d2088 100644
--- a/crates/uv/src/commands/build.rs
+++ b/crates/uv/src/commands/build.rs
@@ -227,14 +227,49 @@ async fn build_impl(
 
     // Determine the build plan from the command-line arguments.
     let path = path.unwrap_or_else(|| &*CWD);
-    let output_dir = path.join("dist");
+    let metadata = match fs_err::tokio::metadata(path).await {
+        Ok(metadata) => metadata,
+        Err(err) if err.kind() == std::io::ErrorKind::NotFound => {
+            return Err(anyhow::anyhow!(
+                "Source `{}` does not exist",
+                path.simplified_display()
+            ));
+        }
+        Err(err) => return Err(err.into()),
+    };
+
+    // Create the output directory.
+    let output_dir = if metadata.is_dir() {
+        path.join("dist")
+    } else {
+        path.parent().unwrap().to_path_buf()
+    };
     fs_err::tokio::create_dir_all(&output_dir).await?;
 
-    let plan = match (sdist, wheel) {
-        (false, false) => BuildPlan::SdistToWheel,
-        (true, false) => BuildPlan::Sdist,
-        (false, true) => BuildPlan::Wheel,
-        (true, true) => BuildPlan::SdistAndWheel,
+    // Determine the build plan.
+    let plan = if metadata.is_dir() {
+        // We're building from a directory.
+        match (sdist, wheel) {
+            (false, false) => BuildPlan::SdistToWheel,
+            (false, true) => BuildPlan::Wheel,
+            (true, false) => BuildPlan::Sdist,
+            (true, true) => BuildPlan::SdistAndWheel,
+        }
+    } else {
+        // We're building from a file, which must be a source distribution.
+        match (sdist, wheel) {
+            (false, true) => BuildPlan::WheelFromSdist,
+            (false, false) => {
+                return Err(anyhow::anyhow!(
+                    "Pass `--wheel` explicitly to build a wheel from a source distribution"
+                ));
+            }
+            (true, _) => {
+                return Err(anyhow::anyhow!(
+                    "Building an `--sdist` from a source distribution is not supported"
+                ));
+            }
+        }
     };
 
     // Prepare some common arguments for the build.
@@ -253,7 +288,9 @@ async fn build_impl(
             // Extract the source distribution into a temporary directory.
             let path = output_dir.join(&sdist);
             let reader = fs_err::tokio::File::open(&path).await?;
-            let ext = SourceDistExtension::from_path(&path)?;
+            let ext = SourceDistExtension::from_path(path.as_path()).map_err(|err| {
+                anyhow::anyhow!("`{}` is not a valid source distribution, as it ends with an unsupported extension. Expected one of: {err}.", path.simplified_display())
+            })?;
             let temp_dir = tempfile::tempdir_in(&output_dir)?;
             uv_extract::stream::archive(reader, ext, temp_dir.path()).await?;
 
@@ -307,6 +344,36 @@ async fn build_impl(
 
             BuiltDistributions::Both(sdist, wheel)
         }
+        BuildPlan::WheelFromSdist => {
+            // Extract the source distribution into a temporary directory.
+            let reader = fs_err::tokio::File::open(path).await?;
+            let ext = SourceDistExtension::from_path(path).map_err(|err| {
+                anyhow::anyhow!("`{}` is not a valid build source. Expected to receive a source directory, or a source distribution ending in one of: {err}.", path.simplified_display())
+            })?;
+            let temp_dir = tempfile::tempdir_in(&output_dir)?;
+            uv_extract::stream::archive(reader, ext, temp_dir.path()).await?;
+
+            // Extract the top-level directory from the archive.
+            let extracted = match uv_extract::strip_component(temp_dir.path()) {
+                Ok(top_level) => top_level,
+                Err(uv_extract::Error::NonSingularArchive(_)) => temp_dir.path().to_path_buf(),
+                Err(err) => return Err(err.into()),
+            };
+
+            // Build a wheel from the source distribution.
+            let builder = build_dispatch
+                .setup_build(
+                    &extracted,
+                    subdirectory,
+                    &version_id,
+                    dist,
+                    BuildKind::Wheel,
+                )
+                .await?;
+            let wheel = builder.build(&output_dir).await?;
+
+            BuiltDistributions::Wheel(wheel)
+        }
     };
 
     Ok(assets)
@@ -335,4 +402,7 @@ enum BuildPlan {
 
     /// Build a source distribution and a wheel from source.
     SdistAndWheel,
+
+    /// Build a wheel from a source distribution.
+    WheelFromSdist,
 }
diff --git a/crates/uv/tests/build.rs b/crates/uv/tests/build.rs
index 9c5da94c48f07..0b25b70cace5e 100644
--- a/crates/uv/tests/build.rs
+++ b/crates/uv/tests/build.rs
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@
 use anyhow::Result;
 use assert_fs::prelude::*;
 use common::{uv_snapshot, TestContext};
+use predicates::prelude::predicate;
 
 mod common;
 
@@ -39,6 +40,17 @@ fn build() -> Result<()> {
     Successfully built project-0.1.0.tar.gz and project-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl
     "###);
 
+    project
+        .child("dist")
+        .child("project-0.1.0.tar.gz")
+        .assert(predicate::path::is_file());
+    project
+        .child("dist")
+        .child("project-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl")
+        .assert(predicate::path::is_file());
+
+    fs_err::remove_dir_all(project.child("dist"))?;
+
     // Build the current working directory.
     uv_snapshot!(context.filters(), context.build().current_dir(project.path()), @r###"
     success: true
@@ -49,6 +61,17 @@ fn build() -> Result<()> {
     Successfully built project-0.1.0.tar.gz and project-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl
     "###);
 
+    project
+        .child("dist")
+        .child("project-0.1.0.tar.gz")
+        .assert(predicate::path::is_file());
+    project
+        .child("dist")
+        .child("project-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl")
+        .assert(predicate::path::is_file());
+
+    fs_err::remove_dir_all(project.child("dist"))?;
+
     // Error if there's nothing to build.
     uv_snapshot!(context.filters(), context.build(), @r###"
     success: false
@@ -95,6 +118,15 @@ fn sdist() -> Result<()> {
     Successfully built project-0.1.0.tar.gz
     "###);
 
+    project
+        .child("dist")
+        .child("project-0.1.0.tar.gz")
+        .assert(predicate::path::is_file());
+    project
+        .child("dist")
+        .child("project-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl")
+        .assert(predicate::path::missing());
+
     Ok(())
 }
 
@@ -131,6 +163,15 @@ fn wheel() -> Result<()> {
     Successfully built project-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl
     "###);
 
+    project
+        .child("dist")
+        .child("project-0.1.0.tar.gz")
+        .assert(predicate::path::missing());
+    project
+        .child("dist")
+        .child("project-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl")
+        .assert(predicate::path::is_file());
+
     Ok(())
 }
 
@@ -167,5 +208,108 @@ fn sdist_wheel() -> Result<()> {
     Successfully built project-0.1.0.tar.gz and project-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl
     "###);
 
+    project
+        .child("dist")
+        .child("project-0.1.0.tar.gz")
+        .assert(predicate::path::is_file());
+    project
+        .child("dist")
+        .child("project-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl")
+        .assert(predicate::path::is_file());
+
+    Ok(())
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn wheel_from_sdist() -> Result<()> {
+    let context = TestContext::new("3.12");
+
+    let project = context.temp_dir.child("project");
+
+    let pyproject_toml = project.child("pyproject.toml");
+    pyproject_toml.write_str(
+        r#"
+        [project]
+        name = "project"
+        version = "0.1.0"
+        requires-python = ">=3.12"
+        dependencies = ["anyio==3.7.0"]
+
+        [build-system]
+        requires = ["setuptools>=42"]
+        build-backend = "setuptools.build_meta"
+        "#,
+    )?;
+
+    project.child("src").child("__init__.py").touch()?;
+
+    // Build the sdist.
+    uv_snapshot!(context.filters(), context.build().arg("--sdist").current_dir(&project), @r###"
+    success: true
+    exit_code: 0
+    ----- stdout -----
+
+    ----- stderr -----
+    Successfully built project-0.1.0.tar.gz
+    "###);
+
+    project
+        .child("dist")
+        .child("project-0.1.0.tar.gz")
+        .assert(predicate::path::is_file());
+    project
+        .child("dist")
+        .child("project-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl")
+        .assert(predicate::path::missing());
+
+    // Error if `--wheel` is not specified.
+    uv_snapshot!(context.filters(), context.build().arg("./dist/project-0.1.0.tar.gz").current_dir(&project), @r###"
+    success: false
+    exit_code: 2
+    ----- stdout -----
+
+    ----- stderr -----
+    error: Pass `--wheel` explicitly to build a wheel from a source distribution
+    "###);
+
+    // Error if `--sdist` is not specified.
+    uv_snapshot!(context.filters(), context.build().arg("./dist/project-0.1.0.tar.gz").arg("--sdist").current_dir(&project), @r###"
+    success: false
+    exit_code: 2
+    ----- stdout -----
+
+    ----- stderr -----
+    error: Building an `--sdist` from a source distribution is not supported
+    "###);
+
+    // Build the wheel from the sdist.
+    uv_snapshot!(context.filters(), context.build().arg("./dist/project-0.1.0.tar.gz").arg("--wheel").current_dir(&project), @r###"
+    success: true
+    exit_code: 0
+    ----- stdout -----
+
+    ----- stderr -----
+    Successfully built project-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl
+    "###);
+
+    project
+        .child("dist")
+        .child("project-0.1.0.tar.gz")
+        .assert(predicate::path::is_file());
+    project
+        .child("dist")
+        .child("project-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl")
+        .assert(predicate::path::is_file());
+
+    // Passing a wheel is an error.
+    uv_snapshot!(context.filters(), context.build().arg("./dist/project-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl").arg("--wheel").current_dir(&project), @r###"
+    success: false
+    exit_code: 2
+    ----- stdout -----
+
+    ----- stderr -----
+    error: `./dist/project-0.1.0-py3-none-any.whl` is not a valid build source. Expected to receive a source directory, or a source distribution ending in one of: `.zip`, `.tar.gz`, `.tar.bz2`, `.tar.xz`, or `.tar.zst`.
+    "###);
+
     Ok(())
 }
diff --git a/docs/reference/cli.md b/docs/reference/cli.md
index dc651b995c963..3de80f9bcfd6d 100644
--- a/docs/reference/cli.md
+++ b/docs/reference/cli.md
@@ -5796,10 +5796,14 @@ uv venv [OPTIONS] [NAME]
 
 Build Python packages into source distributions and wheels.
 
-By default, `uv build` will build a source distribution ("sdist") from the source directory, and a binary distribution ("wheel") from the source distribution.
+`uv build` accepts a path to a directory or source distribution, which defaults to the current working directory.
+
+By default, if passed a directory, `uv build` will build a source distribution ("sdist") from the source directory, and a binary distribution ("wheel") from  the source distribution.
 
 `uv build --sdist` can be used to build only the source distribution, `uv build --wheel` can be used to build only the binary distribution, and `uv build --sdist --wheel` can be used to build both distributions from source.
 
+If passed a source distribution, `uv build --wheel` will build a wheel from  the source distribution.
+
 <h3 class="cli-reference">Usage</h3>
 
 ```
@@ -5808,7 +5812,7 @@ uv build [OPTIONS] [SRC_DIR]
 
 <h3 class="cli-reference">Arguments</h3>
 
-<dl class="cli-reference"><dt><code>SRC_DIR</code></dt><dd><p>The directory from which source distributions and/or wheels should be built.</p>
+<dl class="cli-reference"><dt><code>SRC_DIR</code></dt><dd><p>The directory from which source distributions and/or wheels should be built, or a source distribution archive to build into a wheel.</p>
 
 <p>Defaults to the current working directory.</p>
 
@@ -6028,7 +6032,7 @@ uv build [OPTIONS] [SRC_DIR]
 
 </dd><dt><code>--version</code>, <code>-V</code></dt><dd><p>Display the uv version</p>
 
-</dd><dt><code>--wheel</code></dt><dd><p>Build a built distribution (&quot;wheel&quot;) from the given directory</p>
+</dd><dt><code>--wheel</code></dt><dd><p>Build a binary distribution (&quot;wheel&quot;) from the given directory</p>
 
 </dd></dl>