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oafish

 - 3 dictionary results

oaf

  [ohf]
Use oafish in a Sentence
–noun
1. a clumsy, stupid person; lout.
2. a simpleton; dunce; blockhead.
3. Archaic.
a. a deformed or mentally deficient child.
b. a changeling.
Origin:
1615–25; var. of auf, ME alfe, OE ælf elf; c. G Alp nightmare

Related forms:
oafish, adjective
oaf⋅ish⋅ly, adverb
oaf⋅ish⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
1. churl, boor. 2. dolt, ninny.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To oafish
oaf   (ōf)   
n.  A person regarded as stupid or clumsy.

[Old Norse alfr, elf, silly person; see albho- in Indo-European roots.]
oaf'ish adj., oaf'ish·ly adv., oaf'ish·ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

oaf 
1610 (implied in oafish), also auf (1621), "a changeling; a foolish child left by the fairies" [Johnson], from a Scand. source, cf. Norw. alfr "silly person," in O.N., "elf" (see elf). Hence, "a misbegotten, deformed idiot." Until recently, some dictionaries still gave the plural as oaves.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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