fad

Of English dialectal origin. Further origin obscure. Possibly from Old English ġefæd (“order, decorum”) (compare Old English ġefæd (“orderly, tidy”), fadian, ġefadian (“to set in order, arrange”), whence Middle English faden (“to arrange”)); or from French fadaise ("a trifling thought"; see fadaise).

• IPA^(key): /fæd/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -æd

fad (plural fads)

1. A phenomenon that becomes popular for a very short time.
   • 2004, Andre R. Young, “Encore”, in Encore:

     You're a fad, that means you're something that we've already had, but once you're gone, you don't come back.

   • 2010, Eric J. Cesal, Down Detour Road: An Architect in Search of Practice, page 134:

     The pet rock fad was started by an advertising executive named Gary Dahl. The premise was simple: take ordinary rocks, glue eyes on them, and market them as pets.

• fad diet
• faddish
• faddy

• craze
• trend

• F.D.A., DFA, ADF, FDA, AfD, DAF, D.F.A., daf

From French fade (“tasteless”), from Vulgar Latin *fatidus, blend of Latin fatuus and vapidus.

• IPA^(key): /fɑːd̥/

fad (comparative fader, superlative åm fadestn)

1. vapid, flavourless, bland
2. boring, bored

From French fade, from Late Latin *fatidus, a blend of Latin fatuus (“foolish”) and vapidus (“vapid”).

fad (neuter fad or fadt, plural and definite singular attributive fade)

1. insipid, bland, slightly nauseating
2. (figuratively) flat, insipid, vapid

From Old Norse fat (“vat, vessel, luggage, clothing”).

fad n (singular definite fadet, plural indefinite fade)

1. basin, bowl, dish
2. barrel, cask, vat

• fade (predominant in the northern half of Germany)

From French fade (“tasteless”).

• IPA^(key): /faːt/
• Homophones: Fahrt, Pfad (nonstandard)

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aːt

fad (strong nominative masculine singular fader, comparative fader, superlative am fadesten or am fadsten)

1. (predominant in southern Germany and Austria) vapid, flavourless, bland

   Synonyms: schal, langweilig, geschmacklos

   Das Essen schmeckt fad. ― The food tastes bland.

2. (by extension) boring, bored

   Synonym: langweilig

   Das war ein fader Film. ― That was a boring film.

   Mir ist so fad. ― I am so bored.

From Old Irish fot.^[1] Compare Scottish Gaelic fad.

• (Munster, Aran) IPA^(key): /fˠɑd̪ˠ/^[2]
• (Connemara, Mayo, Ulster) IPA^(key): /fˠad̪ˠ/^[3]

fad m (genitive singular faid, nominative plural faid)

1. length

• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “fot, fat”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
• Ó Dónaill, Niall (1977) “fad”, in Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla, Dublin: An Gúm, →ISBN

From French fade.

• IPA^(key): /faːt/
  • Rhymes: -aːt

fad (masculine faden, neuter fad, comparative méi fad, superlative am faadsten)

1. bland, insipid, tasteless
2. dull, boring, bland

Borrowed from French fade.

• IPA^(key): /fad/
• Rhymes: -ad

fad m or n (feminine singular fadă, masculine plural fazi, feminine and neuter plural fade)

1. tasteless, flavorless, insipid

   Synonyms: searbăd, insipid, fără gust

From Old Irish fot, from Proto-Celtic *wazdos, which could be from the same root as *wāstos (“empty”).

• IPA^(key): /fat̪/

fad m (genitive singular faid or faide)

1. length
2. distance
3. duration

• fada

fad

1. all, whole

   A bheil sibh fad an latha ann?

   Have you been there all the day?

• MacBain, Alexander, Mackay, Eneas (1911) “fad”, in An Etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic Language‎, Stirling, →ISBN

• IPA^(key): /fad/

fad (nominative plural fads)

1. thread

• fadäd
• lefad

From Middle English what (“why”), from Old English hwæt (“why”). Spelling was influenced by Irish fád.

• IPA^(key): /fɔːd/

fad

1. why

   Synonym: farthoo

   • 1867, “DR. RUSSELL ON THE INHABITANTS AND DIALECT OF THE BARONY OF FORTH”, in APPENDIX:

     Fad didn'st thou cum t' ouz on zum other dey?

• faade (“what”)

• Jacob Poole (d. 1827) (before 1828) William Barnes, editor, A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, published 1867, page 131