fetching

[ fech-ing ]

/ ˈfɛtʃ ɪŋ /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR fetching ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

charming; captivating.

Words nearby fetching

fetch, fetch and carry, fetch up, fetched, fetcher, fetching, fete, fete day, feterita, feti-, fetial

Origin of fetching

First recorded in 1875–80; fetch¹ + -ing²

OTHER WORDS FROM fetching

fetch·ing·ly, adverbun·fetch·ing, adjective

Definition for fetching (2 of 2)

fetch¹

[ fech ]

/ fɛtʃ /

verb (used with object)

to go and bring back; return with; get: to go up a hill to fetch a pail of water.

to cause to come; bring: to fetch a doctor.

to sell for or bring (a price, financial return, etc.): The horse fetched $50 more than it cost.

Informal. to charm; captivate: Her beauty fetched the coldest hearts.

to take (a breath).

to utter (a sigh, groan, etc.).

to deal or deliver (a stroke, blow, etc.).

to perform or execute (a movement, step, leap, etc.).

Chiefly Nautical and British Dialect. to reach; arrive at: to fetch port.

Hunting. (of a dog) to retrieve (game).

verb (used without object)

to go and bring things.

Chiefly Nautical. to move or maneuver.

Hunting. to retrieve game (often used as a command to a dog).

to go by an indirect route; circle (often followed by around or about): We fetched around through the outer suburbs.

noun

the act of fetching.

the distance of fetching: a long fetch.

Oceanography.

an area where ocean waves are being generated by the wind.
the length of such an area.

the reach or stretch of a thing.

a trick; dodge.

Verb Phrases

fetch about, Nautical. (of a sailing vessel) to come onto a new tack.

fetch up,

Informal. to arrive or stop.
Older Use. to raise (children); bring up: She had to fetch up her younger sisters.
Nautical. (of a vessel) to come to a halt, as by lowering an anchor or running aground; bring up.

Origin of fetch

before 1000; Middle English fecchen, Old English fecc(e)an, variant of fetian to fetch (compare Middle English feten, fetten, British dialect fet; akin to Old English -fat in sīthfat journey, German fassen to grasp)

OTHER WORDS FROM fetch

fetch·er, noun

synonym study for fetch

1. See bring.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for fetching

In this world, once-proud physicians are over-prescribing and over-ordering, grinning and pretending, stepping and fetching.
You Can't Yelp Your Doctor|Daniela Drake|May 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He changed his name to Ronnie Rocket, becomes a bona fide rock star, and attracts a fetching tap-dancer, Electra-Cute.
Doomed Passion Projects of Hollywood: The Lost Classics of Stanley Kubrick, Alfred Hitchcock, and More|Marlow Stern|March 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He was surrounded by friends and family, and women—one was fetching him a piece of cake.
The Stacks: The True Greatness of Muhammad Ali|Peter Richmond|February 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Fetching, gracious, ladylike, she has devoted her adult life to taking care of Mitt and the boys.
When Good Wives Attack: Ann Romney’s Tricky Defense of Mitt|Michelle Cottle|September 22, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Fetching French actress Audrey Tautou is back in the romantic drama “Delicacy.”
Audrey Tautou on ‘Amélie,’ Her New Film ‘Delicacy,’ & More|Marlow Stern|March 18, 2012|DAILY BEAST
I thought he was going to faint; and under a vague impression of fetching assistance, I rushed down the avenue.
Charles Auchester, Volume 1 of 2|Elizabeth Sheppard
I could only atone for the alleged offence by fetching her some refreshment, of which she readily partook.
Red Gauntlet|Sir Walter Scott
Lina saw this and said, 'Listen, old Sanna, why are you fetching so much water?'
Grimms' Fairy Tales|The Brothers Grimm
The other succeeded in taking Michael in flank, fetching blood and hurt with his teeth.
Michael, Brother of Jerry|Jack London
Oh, that explains it, said Zeph with a frank relief that was most fetching.
Ralph, the Train Dispatcher|Allen Chapman

British Dictionary definitions for fetching (1 of 3)

fetching

/ (ˈfɛtʃɪŋ) /

adjective informal

attractively befittinga fetching hat

charminga fetching personality

Derived forms of fetching

fetchingly, adverb

British Dictionary definitions for fetching (2 of 3)

fetch¹

/ (fɛtʃ) /

verb (mainly tr)

to go after and bring back; getto fetch help

to cause to come; bring or draw forththe noise fetched him from the cellar

(also intr) to cost or sell for (a certain price)the table fetched six hundred pounds

to utter (a sigh, groan, etc)

informal to deal (a blow, slap, etc)

(also intr) nautical to arrive at or proceed by sailing

informal to attractto be fetched by an idea

(used esp as a command to dogs) to retrieve (shot game, an object thrown, etc)

rare to draw in (a breath, gasp, etc), esp with difficulty

fetch and carry to perform menial tasks or run errands

noun

the reach, stretch, etc, of a mechanism

a trick or stratagem

the distance in the direction of the prevailing wind that air or water can travel continuously without obstruction

Word Origin for fetch

Old English feccan; related to Old Norse feta to step, Old High German sih fazzōn to climb

British Dictionary definitions for fetching (3 of 3)

fetch²

/ (fɛtʃ) /

noun

the ghost or apparition of a living person

Word Origin for fetch

C18: of unknown origin

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

fetching

adjective

Words related to fetching

Words nearby fetching

Origin of fetching

OTHER WORDS FROM fetching

Definition for fetching (2 of 2)

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

noun

Verb Phrases

Origin of fetch

OTHER WORDS FROM fetch

synonym study for fetch

Examples from the Web for fetching

British Dictionary definitions for fetching (1 of 3)

adjective informal

Derived forms of fetching

British Dictionary definitions for fetching (2 of 3)

verb (mainly tr)

noun

Word Origin for fetch

British Dictionary definitions for fetching (3 of 3)

noun

Word Origin for fetch