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fairy - 7 dictionary results
fair⋅y
[fair-ee] 
i
noun, plural fair⋅ies, adjective –noun
| 1. | (in folklore) one of a class of supernatural beings, generally conceived as having a diminutive human form and possessing magical powers with which they intervene in human affairs. |
| 2. | Slang: Disparaging and Offensive. a male homosexual. |
–adjective
| 3. | of or pertaining to fairies: fairy magic. |
| 4. | of the nature of a fairy; fairylike. |
| 5. | fairy green. |
Synonyms:
1. pixy, leprechaun. Fairy, brownie, elf, sprite are terms for imaginary beings usually less than human size, thought to be helpful or harmful to people. Fairy is the most general name for such beings: a good fairy as a godmother; misadventures caused by an evil fairy. A brownie is a good-natured tiny being who appears usually at night to do household tasks: Perhaps the brownies will come and mow the lawn tonight. Elf suggests a young, mischievous or roguish fairy: That child is a perfect little elf. Sprite suggests a fairy of pleasing appearance, older than an elf, to be admired for ease and lightness of movement; it may, however, be impish or even hostile: a dainty sprite.
1. pixy, leprechaun. Fairy, brownie, elf, sprite are terms for imaginary beings usually less than human size, thought to be helpful or harmful to people. Fairy is the most general name for such beings: a good fairy as a godmother; misadventures caused by an evil fairy. A brownie is a good-natured tiny being who appears usually at night to do household tasks: Perhaps the brownies will come and mow the lawn tonight. Elf suggests a young, mischievous or roguish fairy: That child is a perfect little elf. Sprite suggests a fairy of pleasing appearance, older than an elf, to be admired for ease and lightness of movement; it may, however, be impish or even hostile: a dainty sprite.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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|
Link To fairy
| fair·y (fâr'ē) n. pl. fair·ies
[Middle English fairie, fairyland, enchanted being, from Old French faerie, from fae, fairy, from Vulgar Latin Fāta, goddess of fate, from Latin fātum, fate; see fate.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Fairy
Fair"y\, n.; pl. Fairies. [OE. fairie, faierie, enchantment, fairy folk, fairy, OF. faerie enchantment, F. f['e]er, fr. LL. Fata one of the goddesses of fate. See Fate, and cf. Fay a fairy.] [Written also fa["e]ry.]1. Enchantment; illusion. [Obs.] --Chaucer. The God of her has made an end, And fro this worlde's fairy Hath taken her into company. --Gower. 2. The country of the fays; land of illusions. [Obs.] He [Arthur] is a king y-crowned in Fairy. --Lydgate. 3. An imaginary supernatural being or spirit, supposed to assume a human form (usually diminutive), either male or female, and to meddle for good or evil in the affairs of mankind; a fay. See Elf, and Demon. The fourth kind of spirit [is] called the Fairy. --K. James. And now about the caldron sing, Like elves and fairies in a ring. --Shak. 5. An enchantress. [Obs.] --Shak. Fairy of the mine, an imaginary being supposed to inhabit mines, etc. German folklore tells of two species; one fierce and malevolent, the other gentle, See Kobold. No goblin or swart fairy of the mine Hath hurtful power over true virginity. --Milton.Fairy
Fair"y\, a. 1. Of or pertaining to fairies. 2. Given by fairies; as, fairy money. --Dryden. Fairy bird (Zo["o]l.), the Euoropean little tern (Sterna minuta); -- called also sea swallow, and hooded tern. Fairy bluebird. (Zo["o]l.) See under Bluebird. Fairy martin (Zo["o]l.), a European swallow (Hirrundo ariel) that builds flask-shaped nests of mud on overhanging cliffs. Fairy rings or circles, the circles formed in grassy lawns by certain fungi (as Marasmius Oreades), formerly supposed to be caused by fairies in their midnight dances. Fairy shrimp (Zo["o]l.), a European fresh-water phyllopod crustacean (Chirocephalus diaphanus); -- so called from its delicate colors, transparency, and graceful motions. The name is sometimes applied to similar American species. Fairy stone (Paleon.), an echinite.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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fairy
c.1300, "enchantment, magic," from O.Fr. faerie "land of fairies, meeting of fairies, enchantment, magic," from fae "fay," from L. fata (pl.) "the Fates." In ref. to a class of supernatural beings, the word is used from 1393. The slang meaning "effeminate male homosexual" is first recorded 1895. Fairy tale "oral narrative centered on magical tests, quests, and transformations" (1749) translates Fr. Conte de feés of Madame d'Aulnois (1698, translated into Eng. 1699). Fairy ring is from 1599. Fossil sea urchins found on the Eng. downlands were called fairy loaves.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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fairy
In addition to the idiom beginning with fairy, also see tooth fairy.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Copyright © 2009, Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
