froth
[frawth, froth]
- an aggregation of bubbles, as on an agitated liquid or at the mouth of a hard-driven horse; foam; spume.
- a foam of saliva or fluid resulting from disease.
- something unsubstantial, trivial, or evanescent: The play was a charming bit of froth.
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- to cover with froth: giant waves frothing the sand.
- to cause to foam: to froth egg whites with a whisk.
- to emit like froth: a demagogue frothing his hate.
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- to give out froth; foam: frothing at the mouth.
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Origin of froth
1350–1400; Middle English frothe < Old Norse frotha froth, scum
Synonyms
See more synonyms for froth on Thesaurus.com3. triviality, frivolity, fluff, nonsense.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for froth
Contemporary Examples
Their surfaces are a froth of magnetic storms, proportionally more violent than the worst weather on the Sun.
He took a tremendous drink from his cup, the froth sticking to his moustache.
As a boy, I watched my grandfather create a froth of lather in that cup, and shave himself with a straight razor.
They need to read tea-leaves, divine the intentions of all and sundry, and work their publics into a froth based on those efforts.
And judging from reviews, their froth is one element that is saving the show.
‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’ Hits Broadway With Costumes by Colleen AtwoodMisty White Sidell
March 27, 2013
Historical Examples
Heap the froth over every apple so as to conceal them entirely.
Directions for Cookery, in its Various BranchesEliza Leslie
In damp weather it is sometimes difficult to get the froth stiff.
Directions for Cookery, in its Various BranchesEliza Leslie
Why, thy wits are like beer, and do froth up most when they grow sour!
The Merry Adventures of Robin HoodHoward Pyle
At first I only felt bad between the shoulders and spat up some froth.
The Three Cities Trilogy, CompleteEmile Zola
Then whisk your cream up very well, take off the froth with a spoon, and fill the glasses carefully, as full as they will hold.
froth
- a mass of small bubbles of air or a gas in a liquid, produced by fermentation, detergent, etc
- a mixture of saliva and air bubbles formed at the lips in certain diseases, such as rabies
- trivial ideas, talk, or entertainment
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- to produce or cause to produce froth
- (tr) to give out in the form of froth
- (tr) to cover with froth
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Word Origin
C14: from Old Norse frotha or frauth; related to Old English āfrēothan to foam, Sanskrit prothati he snorts
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
Word Origin and History for froth
n.
c.1300, from an unrecorded Old English word, or else from Old Norse froða "froth," from Proto-Germanic *freuth-. Old English had afreoðan "to froth," from the same root. The modern derived verb is from late 14c. Related: Frothed; frothing.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper