Word of the Day Archive
Tuesday August 20, 2002
fettle \FET-l\ , noun:
A state or condition of fitness or order; state of mind; spirits -- often used in the phrase "in fine fettle."
Aside from the problems with her voice . . . Miss Garland was in fine fettle last night.
-- Vincent Canby, "Judy Garland Sets the Palace Alight", New York Times, August 1, 1967
Back in 1987, the Conservatives won a thumping majority in a June general election, primarily because the economy was seen by grateful voters to be in fine fettle.
-- Larry Elliott, "Danger of a recurring nightmare", The Guardian, June 18, 2001
Many of the nuns were in fine fettle, even into their 80s and 90s.
-- John McCrone, "Sisters of mercy", The Guardian, August 18, 2001
He seems in fine fettle when we meet, and happy to discuss the film that gave him his break.
-- Charlotte O'Sullivan, "Naked ambition", The Guardian, February 7, 1999
Fettle is from Middle English fetlen, "to set in order," originally "to gird up," from Old English fetel, "a girdle."
Dictionary.com Entry and Pronunciation for fettle
