fag

1 of 6

verb (1)

fagged; fagging

intransitive verb

: to work hard : toil

transitive verb

: to tire by strenuous activity : exhaust
fagged by the strenuous climb

fag

2 of 6

noun (1)

1
chiefly British : toil, drudgery
it is such a fag; I came back tired to deathJane Austen
2

fag

3 of 6

noun (2)

: an English public-school boy who acts as servant to an older schoolmate

fag

4 of 6

verb (2)

fagged; fagging; fags

intransitive verb

: to serve as a fag (see fag entry 3) especially in an English public school
fagging for older boys during his first year

fag

5 of 6

noun (3)

fag

6 of 6

noun (4)

plural fags
offensive
: a gay person
used as a term of abuse and disparagement
faggy adjective offensive

Examples of fag in a Sentence

Verb (1) the road crew fagged mightily to move the boulder out of the way the long hike up the mountain had fagged us out

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1) and Noun (1)

perhaps from obsolete fag to droop, from fag fag end

Noun (2) and Verb (2)

probably short for faggot

Noun (3)

fag end

Noun (4)

see faggot

First Known Use

Verb (1)

1772, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Noun (1)

1770, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Noun (2)

1785, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

1806, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

circa 1888, in the meaning defined above

Noun (4)

1921, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of fag was in 1770

Dictionary Entries Near fag

Cite this Entry

“Fag.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fag. Accessed 8 Nov. 2024.

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