fist

English Online Dictionary. What means fist‎? What does fist mean?

English

Alternative forms

• foost (Scots)

Pronunciation

• enPR: fĭst, IPA^(key): /fɪst/
• Rhymes: -ɪst

Etymology 1

From Middle English fist, from Old English fȳst (“fist”), from Proto-West Germanic *fūsti, of uncertain origin. Cognate with Saterland Frisian Fääste (“fist”), West Frisian fûst (“fist”), Dutch vuist (“fist”), German Low German Fuust (“fist”), German Faust (“fist”). More at five.

Noun

fist (plural fists)

1. A hand with the fingers clenched or curled inward.

2. (printing) The pointing hand symbol ☞.
3. (amateur radio) The characteristic signaling rhythm of an individual telegraph or CW operator when sending Morse code.
4. (slang) A person's characteristic handwriting.
5. A group of men. (Can we add an example for this sense?)
6. The talons of a bird of prey.
7. (informal) An attempt at something.

Synonyms

• nief

• bunch of fives
• fist-size
• ductus

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

fist (third-person singular simple present fists, present participle fisting, simple past and past participle fisted)

1. To strike with the fist.
   • 18 Aug 2003, Damian Cullen. "Running the rule" The Irish Times page 52

     ...may not score a point with his open hand(s), but may score a point by fisting the ball.

2. To close (the hand) into a fist.
3. To grip with a fist.
4. (slang) To fist-fuck.

Derived terms

• double-fist
• fister
• fisting

Translations

See also

• knuckle
• punch

Etymology 2

From Middle English fisten, fiesten, from Old English *fistan ("to break wind gently"; supported by Old English fisting (“breaking wind”)), from Proto-Germanic *fistaz (“breaking wind, fart”), from Proto-Germanic *fīsaną (“to break or discharge wind, fart”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)peys- (“to blow, breathe”). Cognate with Dutch veest (“a fart”), Low German fīsten (“to break wind”), German Fist (“a quiet wind”), Fisten (“breaking wind”), Swedish fisa (“to fart”), Latin spīrō (“breathe, blow”).

Verb

fist (third-person singular simple present fists, present participle fisting, simple past and past participle fisted)

2. (intransitive) To break wind.

Noun

fist (plural fists)

1. The act of breaking wind; fise.
2. A puffball.

Anagrams

• FITs, FiTs, ITFs, TIFs, fits, sift

Middle English

Alternative forms

• fust, fest, feest, vest

Etymology

From Old English fȳst, from Proto-West Germanic *fūsti.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fiːst/, /fist/, /fɛːst/, /fɛst/

Noun

fist (plural fistes)

1. fist

Descendants

• English: fist
• Scots: fist, fyst
• Yola: hist, fest

References

• “fī̆st, n.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Middle French

Verb

fist

1. third-person singular past historic of faire

Norwegian Bokmål

Alternative forms

• feset

Verb

fist

1. past participle of fise

Old High German

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

fist m

1. fart

Declension

References

1. Köbler, Gerhard, Althochdeutsches Wörterbuch, (6. Auflage) 2014

Old Polish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (10^th–15^th CE) /fist/
• IPA^(key): (15^th CE) /fist/

Noun

fist m pers

1. Alternative form of chwist