[fahyst] 
| 1. | Chiefly South Midland and Southern U.S. a small mongrel dog, esp. one that is ill-tempered; cur; mutt. |
| 2. | South Midland U.S. to prance or strut about: Look at him feist around in his new clothes. |
| feist (fīst) n. Chiefly Southern U.S. A small mongrel dog. [Variant of obsolete fist, short for fisting dog, from Middle English fisting, a blowing, breaking wind, from Old English fīsting; see pezd- in Indo-European roots.] Feist, also fice, is one of several regional terms for a small mixed-breed dog. Used throughout the Midland and Southern states, feist connotes a snappy, nervous, belligerent little dog—hence the derived adjective feisty, meaning "touchy, quarrelsome, or spirited," applicable to animals and to people. Although feist remains a regional word, feisty has now entered standard usage throughout the United States. |
