fetish

[ fet-ish, occasionally, fee-tish ]
See synonyms for fetish on Thesaurus.com
noun
    • any object, part of the body, or activity that is ordinarily regarded as nonsexual and causes a habitual erotic response or fixation.

    • a habitual erotic response to or fixation on an object, part of the body, or activity ordinarily regarded as nonsexual.

    • unconventional sexual practices involving an object, part of the body, or activity ordinarily regarded as nonsexual, considered collectively.

  1. Anthropology. an object regarded with awe as being the embodiment or habitation of a potent spirit or as having magical potency.

  1. any object, idea, etc., eliciting unquestioning reverence, respect, or devotion: We shouldn't make a fetish of high grades, as there are other ways of measuring success.It's no secret that the previous administration had a fetish for secrecy.

Origin of fetish

1
First recorded in 1605–15; earlier fateish, from Portuguese feitiço “charm, sorcery” (noun), “artificial” (adjective), from Latin factīcius factitious; replacing fatisso, fetisso, from Portuguese, as above
  • Sometimes fet·ich .

Other words for fetish

Other words from fetish

  • fet·ish·like, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use fetish in a sentence

  • It was he who expounded to me the great mystery of Fetishes, since which I have lived without care for the morrow.

    The Surprises of Life | Georges Clemenceau
  • The fakir told me that the universe is but one huge agglomeration of Fetishes.

    The Surprises of Life | Georges Clemenceau
  • Fetishes have much to do, and an extra pair of hands is to them always acceptable.

    West African studies | Mary Henrietta Kingsley

British Dictionary definitions for fetish

fetish

fetich

/ (ˈfɛtɪʃ, ˈfiːtɪʃ) /


noun
  1. something, esp an inanimate object, that is believed in certain cultures to be the embodiment or habitation of a spirit or magical powers

    • a form of behaviour involving fetishism

    • any object that is involved in fetishism

  1. any object, activity, etc, to which one is excessively or irrationally devoted: to make a fetish of cleanliness

Origin of fetish

1
C17: from French fétiche, from Portuguese feitiço (n) sorcery, from adj: artificial, from Latin factīcius made by art, factitious

Derived forms of fetish

  • fetish-like or fetich-like, adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Cultural definitions for fetish

fetish

An object believed to carry a magical or spiritual force. Some so-called primitive tribes practice cult worship of fetishes. (See animism (see also animism) and totemism.)

Notes for fetish

Figuratively, a “fetish” is any object that arouses excessive devotion: “Lucille made a fetish of her Porsche.”

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.