fist

1 [fist]
noun
1.
the hand closed tightly, with the fingers doubled into the palm.
2.
Informal. the hand.
3.
Informal. a person's handwriting.
4.
Printing. index ( def 8 ).
verb (used with object)
5.
to make (one's hand) into a fist.
6.
to grasp in the fist.
00:10
Fist is one of our favorite verbs.
So is peculate. Does it mean:
to expurgate (a written work) by removing or modifying passages considered vulgar or objectionable.
to steal or take dishonestly (money, esp. public funds, or property entrusted to one's care); embezzle.

Origin:
before 900; Middle English; Old English fȳst; cognate with German Faust fist; perhaps akin to five

Dictionary.com Unabridged

fist

2 [fahyst]
noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
fist (fɪst) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n
1.  a hand with the fingers clenched into the palm, as for hitting
2.  Also called: fistful the quantity that can be held in a fist or hand
3.  hand an informal word for index
 
vb
4.  (tr) to hit with the fist
 
[Old English fӯst; related to Old Frisian fest, Old Saxon, Old High German fūst; see five]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

fist
O.E. fyst, from W.Gmc. *fustiz (cf. O.H.G. fust, O.Fris. fest, M.Du. vuust, Ger. Faust), from P.Gmc. *fukhstiz, probably ultimately from PIE *pengke "five" (cf. O.C.S. pesti, Rus. piasti "fist").
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases

fist

see hand over fist.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Example sentences
He imagined placing a city in the palm of his hand, making his hand into a
  fist, making the city into a happier place.
Most of all, never let the public know there is an iron fist inside your velvet
  glove.
The next thing he knew, he was lying on the floor beside his bed and had nearly
  put his fist through the bedroom wall.
When dismissing someone or some idea or both, he made a fist and then exploded
  it, fingers splaying wide.
Idioms & Phrases
Images for fist
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