fist

¹ American  

[fist] / fɪst /

noun

1. the hand closed tightly, with the fingers doubled into the palm.

2. Informal. the hand.

3. Informal. a person's handwriting.

4. Printing. index.

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verb (used with object)

1. to make (one's hand) into a fist.

2. to grasp in the fist.

fist ² American  

[fahyst] / faɪst /

noun

1. feist.

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fist British  

/ fɪst /

noun

1. a hand with the fingers clenched into the palm, as for hitting

2. Also called: fistful.  the quantity that can be held in a fist or hand

3. an informal word for hand index

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verb

1. (tr) to hit with the fist

fist Idioms  

1. see hand over fist.

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Etymology

Origin of fist

before 900; Middle English; Old English fȳst; cognate with German Faust fist; perhaps akin to five

Example Sentences

One staffer took his paperwork and drove away in a golf cart, fist in the air.

From The Wall Street Journal

The only visual I saw was Grandpa Simpson shaking his fist at clouds.

From Salon

With the exception of Nacua repeatedly banging his fist to his chest — can you blame him? — the Rams are steady and steadfast and just so scary.

From Los Angeles Times

In October 2024, for the abolition quarter, the panel picked a Douglass image on the obverse, or front, and a reverse design showing a shackled hand and a fist breaking free.

From The Wall Street Journal

“Are you…?” The look of fury that rolls across his face is like watching a hand ball into a fist.

From Literature

Related Words

• clenched fist
• hand
• paw