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ofay

 - 3 dictionary results

o⋅fay

[oh-fey]
–noun Slang: Disparaging and Offensive.
a white person.
Also, fay.


Origin:
1920–25, Americanism; of obscure orig.; the popular notion that the word is a Pig Latin deformation of foe is very dubious
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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o·fay   (ō'fā')   
n.   Offensive Slang
Used as a disparaging term for a white person.

[Origin unknown.]
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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Word Origin & History

ofay 
Amer.Eng. black slang, "white person," 1925, of unknown origin. If, as is sometimes claimed, it derives from an African word, none corresponding to it has been found. Perhaps the most plausible speculation is Yoruba ófé "to disappear" (as from a powerful enemy), with the sense transf. from the word of self-protection to the source of the threat. OED regards the main alternate theory, that it is pig Latin for foe, to be an "implausible guess."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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