kef

[keyf, kef]

See more synonyms for kef on Thesaurus.com

noun (in the Middle East)

a state of drowsy contentment, especially from the use of a narcotic.
Also keef. a substance, especially a smoking preparation of hemp leaves, used to produce this state.

Also kief, kif.

Origin of kef

First recorded in 1800–10, kef is from the Arabic word kaif well-being, pleasure

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for kef

fiber, marijuana, cannabis, hashish, flax, bhang, jute, bang, fennel, abaca, manila, ambary, kef, kif

Examples from the Web for kef

Historical Examples of kef

To “do kef,” or to “make kef,” is to pass the time in such a state.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 15, Slice 7
Various
A––– and his party had started for Kef, malgré my dissuasions.
Notes in North Africa
W. G. Windham
These folks take their kef, as they do every thing else, quietly.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCLXXVI. February, 1847. Vol. LXI.
Various
Situated at the intersection of main routes from the west and south, Kef occupies a position of strategic importance.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 15, Slice 6
Various
The Oriental mysticism, the Kef, as ecstasy is called in the East, are admirably expressed.
Ivory Apes and Peacocks
James Huneker

British Dictionary definitions for kef

kef

noun

a variant of kif

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 kef

1808, from Arabic kaif "well-being, good-humor." Specifically, state of dreaming intoxication produced by smoking cannabis; dolce far niente. In Morocco and Algeria, it was the name for Indian hemp.