fetishism 504
before he comes; he has a fetish about/makes a fetish of tidiness. 3 tech (in PSYCHOLOGY) an object whose presence is necessary for sexual satisfaction
fet·ish·ism /'fetIjIzəm, 'fɪt-/ n [U] 1 the practice of worshipping fetishes 2 unreasonable attention to or admiration for something 3 tech (in PSYCHOLOGY) the practice of having a fetish —ist n —istic /ˌfetɪ'ɪstɪk, ˌfɪt-/ adj
fet·lock /'fetlɒk -lɑːk/ n the back part of a horse's leg near the foot, that has longer hairs on it than the upper part ➜see picture at HORSE
fet·ter¹ /'fetər/ n 1 a chain for the foot of a prisoner 2 also fetters pl — something that prevents freedom of movement or action: He longed to escape from the fetters of an unhappy marriage.
fetter² v [T(to)] to tie or prevent from moving (as if) with fetters: fettered by responsibility ➜see also UNFETTERED
fet·tle /'fetl/ n [U] BrE infml (the stated) condition of health, strength, confidence etc: I've been a bit ill recently, but I'm in fine fettle now. | Your lawn looks in good fettle.
fet·tuc·ci·ne, fettucini /ˌfetu'tʃiːni/ n [U] flat thin PASTA in the shape of long bands
fe·tus /'fiːtəs/ n a FOETUS
feud¹ /fjuːd/ n a state of strong dislike and/or violence which continues over some time as a result of a quarrel, usually between two people, families etc: a bitter feud over territory ➜compare VENDETTA
feud² v [(with)] (especially of two families) to keep up the memory of a quarrel by violent acts; carry on a feud: They spend their time feuding with their neighbours.
feu·dal /'fjuːdl/ adj 1 [A no comp.] of, according to, or being the system by which people held land and received protection in return for giving work or military help, as practised in Western Europe from about the 9th to the 15th century: the feudal system | their feudal lord 2 infml (of behaviour or a relationship) like that which existed between lords and their servants in feudal times: It seems a bit feudal to call him 'sir'.
feu·dal·ism /'fjuːdl-ɪzəm/ n [U] the feudal system
fe·ver /'fiːvər/ n [S,U] 1 (a medical condition caused by) an illness in which the sufferer suddenly develops a very high temperature: Flu is an infectious disease characterized by fever, aches and pains, and exhaustion. | She has a very high fever. | The fever will soon go down/abate. ➜see also HAY FEVER, SCARLET FEVER, YELLOW FEVER 2 [(of)] an extremely excited state: He was in a fever of impatience waiting for her to come. | Football fever gripped the town when the local team reached the Cup Final. | Our excitement rose to fever pitch (=to the highest degree) as the great day approached. | The school is in a fever heat of excitement as the playoff approaches.
'fever blister n AmE COLD SORE
fe·vered /'fiːvədl--ərd/ adj [A] 1 hot, (as if) when suffering from fever: She wiped his fevered brow. 2 too excited: These lurid stories are merely a product of his fevered imagination.
fe·ver·ish /'fɪvrɪʃ/ adj 1 having or showing a slight fever: You're a bit feverish; you should go to bed. 2 caused by fever: a feverish dream 3 extremely active or excited: They worked with feverish haste to finish the job. —ly adv
few /fju:/ determiner, pron, n [P] 1 (used without a to show the smallness of a number) not many; not enough: She has few friends. | I have very few (chocolates) left. | So few (people) came that we had to cancel the meeting. | Few of the children noticed the time passing. | Few understand his complicated theories. | There are so few that I can't give you one. (compare There is so little that I can't give you any.) | I have too few chances to enjoy myself. (compare I have too little time...) | It was an enormous ship; there were no fewer than (=at least) a thousand cars on it. | Which of you has the fewest mistakes? ➜compare LITTLE³, PLENTY¹ 2 [no comp.] (used with a or the) a small number (of), but at least some: She bought a few eggs and a little milk. | There are only a very few (=not many) left. | Let's invite a few friends to come with us. | Here are a few more stamps for your collection. | Can you stay a few days longer? | I'm keeping the few that remain for tomorrow. | John was among the few who really understood it. | She's been abroad for the last few years. | I may be a few minutes late. | Everyone was there — Tim, Paul, Jenny, Mandy to name but a few. |
She didn't invite me to her wedding, but my boss was one of the chosen few. (=the few people to be invited) ➜compare LITTLE³ 3 few and far between rare; not happening often: Sympathic bosses like him are few and far between. 4 precious few infml an extremely small number (of) 5 quite a few also a good few, (infml) not a few — a fairly large number (of): Quite a few of us are getting worried. | You'll have to wait a good few weeks.
USAGE 1 Compare (a) few and (a) little. (A) few is used for plural nouns: I have (a) few friends. (A) little is used for uncountable nouns: We drank (a) little coffee. 2 Compare few and a few: I have few friends (=not many). | I have a few friends. (=some) Also little and a little: There was little food left. (=not much) | We ate a little food (=some). However it is more common to use very few/very little (=almost none) than few/ little alone: very few friends/ very little food. 3 Fewer and fewest are the comparative and superlative of few; less and least are the comparative and superlative of little: We have fewer students this year than last year. | I earn less money than my sister. In informal English less and least are often used with plural nouns, but many people do not like this use. ➜see also LESS (USAGE), MORE (USAGE)
fey /feɪ/ adj 1 (of a person or their behaviour) strange, silly, and not thinking clearly 2 ScotE able to see into the future —ness n [U]
Feyn·man, Richard Phillips /'faɪnmən/ (1918–88) a US scientist who won a Nobel prize for his work on RADIOACTIVITY, and was one of the people given the job of trying to discover why the CHALLENGER SPACE SHUTTLE exploded. He also wrote a very popular book about his life.
fez /fez/ n pl fezzes or fezes a round usually red hat with a flat top and no BRIM worn by some Muslim men
ff written abbrev. for and the following (pages, VERSES etc): See pages 17ff.
F4J /ˌef fɔː 'dʒeɪl-fɔːr-/ abbrev. for Fathers 4 Justice
FHM /ˌef eɪtʃ 'em/ trademark a British magazine for young men, which contains articles mainly about sex, cars, sport, and health. The letters stand for 'For Him Magazine'.
fi·an·cé /ˌfiːˌɒnsɜːlˌfiːˌɑːnˈseɪ/, fiancée fem. (same pronunciation) n the person one is going to marry; person to whom one is ENGAGED: George is my fiancé. | Martha is my fiancée.
Fi·an·na Fáil /'fiːˌænə 'fɔːl/ one of the two main political parties in the Republic of Ireland, established in 1926, which has been the party of government in Ireland for most of the time since then. ➜see also FINE GAEL
fi·as·co /fiːˈæskəʊ/ n pl. -cos BrE || -coes AmE [C;U] a complete failure of something planned: The party was a total fiasco/ ended in fiasco.
fi·at /'faɪət, 'fiːætl-ət/ n infml, often derog a command by someone in a position of power: The matter was settled by presidential fiat.
Fi·at /'fiːɒt/ trademark an Italian company which makes cars: He works for Fiat.
fib /fɪb/ v -bb- [I] infml to tell a small unimportant lie —fib n: to tell a fib
ber n: What a fibber he is!
Fib·ber McGee and Molly /ˌfɪbə məˌdʒiː ənd 'mɒli' -bə-, -'mɑː-li:/ a humorous radio programme that was popular in the US during the 1940s
fi·ber·fill /'faɪbəfɪl||-bər-/ n [U] man-made filling used in PILLOWS, DUVETS etc
fi·bre BrE || fiber AmE /'faɪbər/ n 1 [C] any of the thin thread-like parts that together form many animal and plant growths such as wool, wood, or muscle; some plant fibres are spun (SPIN) and woven into cloth: nerve fibres 2 also dietary fibre — parts of plants that you eat. Although you cannot DIGEST fibre, it helps food move through your body and it is thought to be good for you: You need more fibre in your diet — eat more bran and apples. 3 [U] a mass of threads used for making cloth, rope etc: Cotton fibre is natural; nylon is a man-made fibre. ➜see also FIBREGLASS 4 [U] a person's inner character: He was shocked to the very fibre of his being. (=extremely shocked) | He lacks moral fibre. (=has a weak character) ➜see also FIBROUS