faze

verb

fazed; fazing

transitive verb

: to disturb the composure of : disconcert, daunt
Nothing fazed her.
Criticism did not seem to faze the writer.

Did you know?

If you're hazy on faze, let us filter out the fuzz. Faze (not to be confused with phase) first appeared in English in the early 1800s with the same meaning we give it today: to disturb the composure of. Its appearance came centuries after the works of Shakespeare and Chaucer were penned, but both of those authors were familiar with the word's ancient parent, the now-rare verb feeze, which has been in use since the days of Old English (in the form fēsian), when it meant "to drive away" or "to put to flight." By the 1400s, it was also being used with the meaning "to frighten or put into a state of alarm," a sense close to that of the modern faze. While it is possible to use faze in constructions like "I felt fazed by the prospect of starting at a new school," it more often appears with negation, as in "it didn’t faze her a bit” or “nothing fazes him."

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Phase and Faze

Phase and faze are homophones (words pronounced alike but different in meaning, derivation, or spelling) that may easily be confused. Despite the similarity in pronunciation, these words bear little semantic resemblance to one another.

Although phase can function as a verb – it is found especially in combinations such as phase out, phase in, and phase into, meaning “to end, begin, etc. in phases” – the word is most commonly encountered as a noun, in which it typically carries a meaning related to steps in a process, cycles, or stages of development (as in “phases of the moon”).

Faze is generally used only as a verb, and means “to daunt or disconcert.” It often appears in negative expressions such as “it didn’t faze her a bit” or “nothing fazes him.”

Examples of faze in a Sentence

You'll never succeed as a writer if you let a little bit of criticism faze you. the collapse of part of the scenery didn't faze the actors one bit, and they just carried on
Recent Examples on the Web That a large majority of the population opposes these things doesn’t faze them in the least. Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Feb. 2024 Obviously, Sam is a little embarrassed, as would anyone be in her shoes, but Aaron isn't fazed by it at all. Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, 13 Oct. 2023 Still, he wasn’t fazed by the idea of being asked for insurance information in the future. Emily Alpert Reyes, Los Angeles Times, 13 Sep. 2023 That didn’t faze Murphy, who only saw kindness in them. David Chiu, Peoplemag, 30 Nov. 2023 But my favorite gravel path didn't faze the bike at all. Eric Bangeman, Ars Technica, 22 Sep. 2023 As replacements, Criss and Wood will do so with less time to rehearse and no preview audiences on which to test their performances, but that doesn’t seem to faze either of them. Abbey White, The Hollywood Reporter, 29 Jan. 2024 Such threats don’t seem to be fazing investors, who have pushed the stock market to record highs. Ben Casselman, New York Times, 25 Jan. 2024 Still, Staples isn’t even a little fazed by any of it. Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 17 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'faze.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

alteration of feeze to drive away, frighten, from Middle English fesen, from Old English fēsian to drive away

First Known Use

1830, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of faze was in 1830

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Dictionary Entries Near faze

Cite this Entry

“Faze.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/faze. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

faze

verb
fazed; fazing
: to disturb the self-control or courage of : daunt
didn't faze her

More from Merriam-Webster on faze

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