vixen

[ vik-suhn ]
See synonyms for: vixenvixenish on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. a female fox.

  2. an ill-tempered or quarrelsome woman.

  1. a woman considered to be sexually attractive.

Origin of vixen

1
First recorded in 1375–1425; southern late Middle English, replacing earlier northern Middle English fixen, from Old English fyxe, feminine of fox fox (compare fyxen “pertaining to a fox,” Old High German fuhsin “vixen”)

Other words for vixen

Other words from vixen

  • vix·en·ish, vix·en·ly, adjective

Words Nearby vixen

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use vixen in a sentence

  • Moreover, we have v for f in E. vixen (for fixen), and in Southern English generally.

  • A bad-tempered woman is described as a "vixen," or female fox; a lazy person as a "drone," or the bee which does no work.

    Stories That Words Tell Us | Elizabeth O'Neill
  • The lady, in her living hours,Was the most charming vixen That ever this poor sex of oursDelighted to play tricks on.

  • Here he told how vixen had from the first behaved to him, and what things had happened in consequence, the last more particularly.

    There and Back | George MacDonald
  • Coming to herself in a few minutes, vixen told a confused story of how the bear had frightened her.

    There and Back | George MacDonald

British Dictionary definitions for vixen

vixen

/ (ˈvɪksən) /


noun
  1. a female fox

  2. a quarrelsome or spiteful woman

Origin of vixen

1
C15: fixen; related to Old English fyxe, feminine of fox; compare Old High German fuhsīn

Derived forms of vixen

  • vixenish, adjective
  • vixenishly, adverb
  • vixenishness, noun
  • vixenly, adverb, adjective

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