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faff

British

/ fæf /

verb

informal to dither or fuss

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of faff

C19: of obscure origin

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

She conceded that was a "big faff" as she then had to take them all home with her.

From BBC • Feb. 21, 2026

"I fret, she doesn't faff, she's really patient with my fretting and I love her non-faffing. We really do get on incredibly well," he says.

From BBC • Aug. 29, 2025

There’s not a lot of faff on it.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 20, 2021

Chelsea won’t be in the mood to faff about either.

From The Guardian • May 8, 2021

My dad says real fires are more faff than they're worth, but Dean's dad says in a Tavish McTavish voice, “Neeever buy ye a hoose wi'oot a chimberly pot.”

From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023