fist

1
[ fist ]
/ fɪst /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR fist ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the hand closed tightly, with the fingers doubled into the palm.
Informal. the hand.
Informal. a person's handwriting.
Printing. index(def 8).

verb (used with object)

to make (one's hand) into a fist.
to grasp in the fist.

QUIZZES

TAKE ROUND 2 OF OUR PSAT VOCABULARY QUIZ!

Here is our second set of teacher-selected PSAT vocabulary words. Do you know the meanings of these terms?
Question 1 of 10
advocate
to give up possession or occupancy of.
to speak or write in favor of; support or urge by argument; recommend publicly.
to pronounce or decree by judicial sentence.
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of fist

1
before 900; Middle English; Old English fȳst; cognate with German Faust fist; perhaps akin to five

Words nearby fist

fissure of rolando, fissure of round ligament, fissure of sylvius, fissure of venous ligament, fissured fracture, fist, fist bump, fist pump, fistfight, fistful, fistiana

Definition for fist (2 of 3)

fist2
[ fahyst ]
/ faɪst /

noun

feist.

Definition for fist (3 of 3)

feist

or fice fist

[ fahyst ]
/ faɪst /

noun

Chiefly South Midland and Southern U.S. a small mongrel dog, especially one that is ill-tempered; cur; mutt.

verb (used without object)

South Midland U.S. to prance or strut about: Look at him feist around in his new clothes.

Origin of feist

1760–70; compare (from 16th cent.) fisting hound, fisting cur, as contemptuous epithets for any kind of dog (present participle of fist to break wind, late Middle English; compare Old English fisting breaking wind, Middle Low German vīst, German Fist fart); (def 2) perhaps back formation from feisty
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to fist

paw, hand, grip, clutch, vise, grasp, hold, clasp, mitt

Example sentences from the Web for fist

British Dictionary definitions for fist

fist
/ (fɪst) /

noun

a hand with the fingers clenched into the palm, as for hitting
Also called: fistful the quantity that can be held in a fist or hand
an informal word for hand, index (def. 9)

verb

(tr) to hit with the fist

Word Origin for fist

Old English fӯst; related to Old Frisian fest, Old Saxon, Old High German fūst; see five
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

Idioms and Phrases with fist

fist

see hand over fist.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.