fella

noun

fel·​la ˈfe-lə 

variants or less commonly feller

ˈfe-lər 

plural fellas also fellers

informal : fellow sense 4c, man sense 1a(1)

a nice fella

"The fella who does the windows here sometimes puts a striped shirt with a striped tie and a striped suit …"

—Teri Agins

A fella who accepts himself and is relaxed into who he is—that appeals to people.

—Rebecca Winters Keegan

Moments when a feller needs a friend and so forth.

—P. G. Wodehouse

Gunnysack Johnson observed that "nobody can talk as interestingly as the feller that's not hampered by facts or information."

—Jim Reed

Synonyms

• bastard
• bloke [chiefly British]
• buck
• cat
• chap [chiefly British]
• chappie [British]
• dude
• fellow
• galoot [slang]
• gent
• gentleman
• guy
• hombre
• jack
• joe
• joker
• lad
• male
• man

Examples of fella in a Sentence

He's not a bad fella.

She has a new fella.

Recent Examples on the Web

Neal finished his four seasons as the Jayhawks’ all-time leading rusher ahead of, among others, some fella named John Riggins. —Ben Standig, New York Times, 26 Apr. 2025

There has been some discussion of a separate men’s chapter to let the fellas in on the fun, so stay tuned! —Tamia Boyd, Charlotte Observer, 4 Apr. 2025

Last week, the fellas all headed back home, each with one special lady along for the ride, and a private first date. —Rebecca Angel Baer, Southern Living, 3 Apr. 2025

Other teams were halfway through the leg while the poor fellas were still aimlessly driving around the country. —Nick Caruso, TVLine, 16 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

alteration of fellow

First Known Use

1816, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for fella

• bella
• cella
• chela
• ella
• fellah
• sela
• selah
• sella
• stela
• vela
• arabella
• bartonella