Definition of fawn
- courtiers fawning on the king
- The dog was fawning on its master.
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a sports star surrounded by fawning fans
a student who could not wait to fawn over the new teacher
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'fawn.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Some people will be glad to learn the origins of "fawn"-and there's a hint about the word's etymology in that declaration. Middle English speakers adapted an Old English word meaning "to rejoice" to create the verb "faunen," which shifted in spelling over time to become "fawn." That Old English word, in turn, derives from fagan, meaning "glad." "Fagan" is also an ancestor of the English adjective "fain," whose earliest (now obsolete) meaning is "happy" or "pleased." If we follow the etymological path of "fawn" even further back, we arrive at an ancient word that also provided Old German and Old Norse with words for "happy."
First Known Use: 13th century
in the meaning defined at sense 2
See Words from the same yearThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'fawn.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
First Known Use: 14th century
in the meaning defined at sense 1
See Words from the same year: to try to get the approval of an important or powerful person by giving that person praise, special attention, etc.
: a young deer; especially : a deer that is less than a year old
: a light brown color
Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for fawn Spanish Central: Translation of fawn Nglish: Translation of fawn for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of fawn for Arabic speakers
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