fey
Americanadjective
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British Dialect. doomed; fated to die.
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Chiefly Scot. appearing to be under a spell; marked by an apprehension of death, calamity, or evil.
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supernatural; unreal; enchanted.
elves, fairies, and other fey creatures.
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being in unnaturally high spirits, as were formerly thought to precede death.
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whimsical; strange; otherworldly.
a strange child with a mysterious smile and a fey manner.
adjective
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interested in or believing in the supernatural
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attuned to the supernatural; clairvoyant; visionary
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fated to die; doomed
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in a state of high spirits or unusual excitement, formerly believed to presage death
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of fey
before 900; Middle English; Old English fǣge doomed to die; cognate with Old Norse feigr doomed, German feig cowardly
Explanation
Have you met someone who speaks like they’re casting spells and has a distant look in their eyes? That’s a fey person, someone who seems like they come from another world, kind of like an elf. There’s a fey girl, let’s call her Faye. Fey Faye is not an elf nor a witch, but she seems supernatural in a vague way, and her voice sounds like a magic flute. Fey comes from the Old English word fǣge, or literally “fated to die soon,” which refers to that odd good mood a person is in right before they die. Don’t worry, that definition isn’t used anymore, and fey Faye isn’t dying. But she is kind of spooky.
Vocabulary lists containing fey
Essential Three-Letter Words, Part 4
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Cormac McCarthy's "The Road"
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City of Bones
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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.
Sometimes the feeling is fey; other times the literalization of song ideas flirts with corniness.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 26, 2024
But she complemented the Welsh actor who "brings a furious fey playfulness and vulnerability" to his character.
From BBC • Mar. 7, 2024
All three victims are Lymp’s affluent half-siblings, from whom he is estranged: Dr. Marian Harmon, West Mills’ officious Black pediatrician; her sporty younger sister Marva; and Lazarus, their fey brother.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 2, 2023
The star goofs off in a brief turn as a nefarious tycoon, hidden behind half-opaque glasses, a fey warble and a riot of facial hair.
From New York Times • Feb. 24, 2022
“So inappropriate,” the black-leather lout sighed, turning suddenly fey.
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
