Fn.
/ɛf/, U.S. /ɛf/ I. The letter F (f)
1.
a. The letter, and the sound it represents.
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society > communication > writing > written character > name of written character > [noun] > others
Bc1000
Dc1000
ellc1000
Fc1000
Sc1000
yogha1300
Pa1398
ess1540
tee1610
alif1727
cue1755
em1793
en1793
dee1795
double U1841
edh1846
wye1857
vee1883
gee1926
nut1940
kay1959
at sign1977
c1000 Ælfric Gram. (Z.) iii. 6 Semivocales syndon seofan: f, l, m, n, r, s, x.
1574 J. Baret Aluearie Introd. F sig. Aa.vv If ye drawe in length, and therewithall put your vnder lippe to your ouer teeth, ye shall heare the very sound of EF.
b. attributive (see quots.).
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1836 G. Dubourg Violin ix. 236 The parallel holes on each side..were..straighter than what are called the f holes.
1880 G. Grove Dict. Music I. 500 The holes in the belly of the violin are called the f holes from their shape.
II. Used as a symbol, with reference to its place (6th) in the alphabet.
2. F, f, f is used to denote anything occupying the sixth place in a series. (Cf. A, B, C, etc.)
3. In Music F is the name of the 4th note of the diatonic scale of C major; called F in Germany, fa in France and Italy. Also the scale or key which has that note for its tonic. f. clef: the bass clef (see clef n.1), placed on the line in the stave appropriated to the note F; its form is said to be a corruption of that of the letter.
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1848 E. F. Rimbault First Bk. Pianoforte 53 Place the first finger on every black key except F-sharp.
1856 E. B. Browning Aurora Leigh v. 214 Baldinacci, when her F in alt Had touched the silver tops of heaven itself.
1880 G. Grove Dict. Music I. 184 The Sonata in C..contained when completed a long Andante in F.
4. F-layer, F-region: the highest and most strongly ionized layer in the ionosphere; the Appleton layer.
ΘΠ
the world > the earth > weather and the atmosphere > [noun] > specific regions of > specific regions of ionosphere
Heaviside layer1911
F-region1928
D-region1930
E-region1930
sporadic E-layer1937
ledge1949
protonosphere1960
topside1962
1928 E. V. Appleton in Papers Internat. Union Sci. Radio Telegr. 1927 i. 2/1 ‘Reflection’..takes place at an upper layer (F layer) which is richer in ionization.
1930 E. V. Appleton in Proc. Royal Soc. A. 126 550 The normally polarised components of primary, secondary and tertiary downcoming rays from F region would be F1, F2 and F3, etc.
1930 Appleton & Green in Proc. Royal Soc. A. 127 170 During the (a) series [of day-time tests]..out of eight runs there were three on which E layer only was recorded, three on which F layer only was recorded, and two days on which both were recorded simultaneously.
1942 Electronic Engin. 14 632 The F layer..is composed of two parts..the lower part, at about 130 miles' height..and the upper, at 200 miles.
1968 G. M. B. Dobson Exploring Atmosphere (ed. 2) viii. 153 During the night..the ionization of the E region is much reduced, and that of the F1 region is reduced enough to make it indistinguishable from the F2 region and the two become a single F region.
Initialisms
I1.
a. F. = various proper names, as Frederick, Fanny; = Fellow in F.G.S., etc.; = father n. as a title of Roman Catholic priests.
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b. Physics. F. = Fahrenheit (temperature).
Categories »
c. Commerce. F stands for free as in F.A.A. or f.a.a. = free of all average, F.O.B. n. at Initialisms 3a, etc.
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d. In a ship's log F stands for fog; FF for thick fog.
e. In Music f stands for forte (loud), ff for fortissimo (very loud), but sometimes ff stands for piu forte (louder), and fortissimo is indicated by fff.
f. F formerly used in criminal procedure (see quots.).
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1551 Act 5 & 6 Edw. VI c. 4 To be..burned in the cheeke with an hot yron, hauing the letter F. whereby..they may be knowne..for fraymakers and fighters.
1809 T. E. Tomlins Jacob's Law-dict. F. is a letter wherewith felons &c. are branded and marked with a hot iron, on their being admitted to the benefit of clergy.
g. F (originally standing for ‘fine’) is the distinctive mark of a particular description of black-lead pencil; also attributive.
h. As a chemical symbol, F = Fluorine.
i. Biology. F1, F2, etc. = first, second, etc., filial generation (see quot. 1949).
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1902 W. Bateson & E. R. Saunders Rep. to Evol. Comm. Royal Soc. No. 1. 160 The offspring of the first cross are the first filial generation F. Subsequent filial generations may be denoted by F2, F3, &c.
1949 C. D. Darlington & K. Mather Elements of Genetics 391 F1, the first generation of the cross between two individuals homozygous for the particular genes which distinguished them. F2, the second filial generation obtained by self-fertilizing or crossing inter se individuals of an F1. F3, progeny obtained by self-fertilization of an F2 individual.
1968 M. W. Strickberger Genetics vi. 99 The smooth F1 seeds..produced upon self-fertilization an F2 of 5474 smooth seeds and 1850 wrinkled.
j. f or F (Physics and Chemistry): originally used to designate one of the four main series of lines in atomic spectra, but now more frequently applied to electronic orbitals, states, etc., possessing three units of angular momentum.
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1910 W. M. Hicks in Philos. Trans. (Royal Soc.) (1911) A. 210 97 We recognise four typical sequences, the P, S, D and the new F type.., the fundamental or primitive type.
1965 C. S. G. Phillips & R. J. P. Williams Inorg. Chem. I. ii. 46 There occurs a group of 14 elements, the lanthanides or rare-earths, in which the 4f sub-shell is filled.
k. In Physics F is the symbol of the hyperfine quantum number, expressing the resultant of the nuclear spin I and the electronic angular momentum J.
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1925 Ruark & Chenault in London, Edinb. & Dublin Philos. Mag. 6th Ser. 50 947 We call these integers fine quantum numbers, and shall designate them by the letter f.
1937 J. W. T. Spinks tr. G. Herzberg Atomic Spectra v. 187 The total angular momentum F of the whole atom, including nuclear spin.
1967 E. U. Condon & H. Odishaw Handbk. Physics (ed. 2) vii. iv. 68/1 At low magnetic fields I and J are tightly coupled to form a resultant angular momentum F = I + J, whose quantum number F at low fields is a good quantum number.
l. Bacteriology. [abbreviation of fertility n.] F, F agent, F factor, etc., a particulate factor which determines the mating type of certain bacteria (esp. Escherichia coli); hence F+, designating cells possessing the factor but not having it integrated into the chromosome; F−, designating cells lacking the factor; F′ (or F prime), designating cells in which a chromosomal fragment is attached to the factor. Also F duction, the conveyance of genes from F′ cells into F− cells.
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1952 J. Lederberg et al. in Genetics 37 721 At the time, W-1607 was not analyzed further, but in view of later work will be labelled F−, in contrast to the type F+.
1953 Jrnl. Gen. Microbiol. 8 92 The majority..of F agents must remain bound to the cells.
1959 Adelberg & R. Burns in Rec. Genetic Soc. Amer. XXVIII. 57 The wild type sex factor (F′) of strain K-12 is characterized by its low affinity for the chromosome.
1960 F. Jacob et al. in Symp. Soc. Gen. Microbiol. X. 77 The similarities observed between this process, which might be called F-duction or sex-duction, and transduction with phage are extremely striking.
1967 F. E. Swatek Textbk. Microbiol. x. 291 In F+ × F− matings the F factor is transferred to F− bacteria.
I2. the three F's (see quot.).
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1881 Daily News 19 Jan. 5/4 Fair rents, fixity of tenure, and free sale, popularly known as the three F's.
1891 Daily News 8 Sept. 3/3 Why not go in at once for the three F's—fair rent, fixity of tenure, and free sale.
I3.
a. (Abbreviations given here with the full stop are frequently found without it.)
F.A. n. = Fanny Adams n. 2.
Π
1919 W. H. Downing Digger Dial. 22 F.A. ‘Fanny Adams’, or ‘Sweet Fanny Adams’—nothing; vacuity.
1930 J. Brophy & E. Partridge Songs & Slang Brit. Soldier: 1914–1918 123 F.A. Sometimes lengthened into Sweet F.A. or bowdlerized into Sweet Fanny Adams. Used to mean ‘nothing’ where something was expected.
1944 H. T. Hopkinson in Penguin New Writing 20 128 Bread—that's about what we got as kids. Bread, and sweet F.A.
1967 J. Gardner Madrigal ix. 251 The small industrial organisation whose own security officers know sweet FA.
F.A. n. Football Association.
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society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > football > association football > [noun] > football associations
S.F.A.1882
F.A.1892
FIFA1946
UEFA1963
1892 in Gibson & Pickford Assoc. Football (1905) I. 112 The meetings of the F.A. are carried out under rules of procedure.
1930 Morning Post 18 Nov. 15/4 The first round proper of the F.A. Cup.
F.A.F. n. Fresh Air Fund.
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1907 Westm. Gaz. 22 July 3/2 Without distinction of creed or race, the F.A.F. takes away the children of the slums from the festering alleys..of London.
F.A.N.Y. n. (a member of the) First Aid Nursing Yeomanry; also Fany.
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1918 E. S. Farrow Dict. Mil. Terms 218 Fanny, in the parlance of the British soldier, the name given to the women of the F.A.N.Y., or First Aid Nursing Yeomanry.
1940 War Illustr. 12 Jan. 599 Two volunteers of the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry, known as ‘Fanys’, are cleaning their ambulance.
1958 P. Kemp No Colours or Crest xi. 243 The Major-General had a suite of offices managed by four or five very tall, very beautiful F.A.N.Y.s known as the Potsdam Grenadiers.
1966 M. R. D. Foot SOE in France viii. 200 Mary Herbert a FANY courier reached the Riviera by felucca.
F.A.O. n. Food and Agriculture Organization (of the United Nations).
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1946 New Statesman 14 Sept. 183 (heading) F.A.O. at work.
1963 Listener 21 Mar. 508/3 The F.A.O. has estimated that about half the population of the world suffers from hunger or malnutrition.
f.a.q. n. fair average quality.
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1957 N.Z. Timber Jrnl. Feb. 45 f.a.q., abbreviation for fair average quality.
1959 Times 3 Jan. 10/2 No doubt Sir Allen Brown would be inclined (in the fashion of his countrymen) to dub himself an ‘f.a.q. Australian’, but in fact ‘fair, average quality’ hardly does justice to the man.
F.A.Q. n. (also f.a.q.) free alongside quay.
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1928 Daily Mail 25 July 19/3 Oats: Plate f.a.q. afloat 27s. 3d.
F.A.S. n. (also f.a.s.) free alongside ship.
Π
1888 Lockwood's Dict. Mech. Engin. F.A.S., free alongside ship. Engages to deliver goods on the wharf without extra charge.
F.B.A. n. Fellow of the British Academy.
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the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > scholarly knowledge, erudition > learned person, scholar > [noun] > learned association > Fellow of the British Academy
F.B.A.1911
1911 Jrnl. Rom. Stud. 1 p. vi J. E. Sandys, Litt.D. F.B.A.
1980 Who's Who 201/2 Berlin, Sir Isaiah..FBA 1957.
F.B.I. n. Federal Bureau of Investigation (U.S.).
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society > law > law enforcement > investigation of crime > [noun] > police employed for > specific
Sûreté1869
federales1899
C.I.D.1910
F.B.I.1936
bureau1965
1936 Literary Digest 21 Nov. 36 The outlaws shot their way out killing one FBI man.
1952 Manch. Guardian Weekly 30 Oct. 3 The FBI and the Central Intelligence Agency.
F.B.I. n. Federation of British Industries.
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1921 Times 22 Nov. 14/3 (heading) Meeting of the F.B.I. to-morrow.
1958 Spectator 4 July 33/2 The FBI has just published the results of its second industrial survey.
F.C. n. football club.
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1908 A. Bennett Old Wives' Tale ii. vii. 254 The Bursley F.C. had ‘tied’ with the Knype F.C. on the Knype ground.
F.C.C. n. Federal Communications Commission (U.S.).
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1937 L. Lewis Radio Dict. in Printers' Ink Monthly Apr. 53/1 FCC, Federal Communications Commission.
1955 Times 27 July 9/7 The F.C.C. rules require that if it is extended to one political candidate his opponents must be accorded equal accommodation.
F.D.C. n. fleur de coin.
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1892 Spink & Son's Numismatic Circ. Dec. 14/2 F.D.C. = Fleur de coin.
1966 P. A. Rayner Coin Collecting for Amateurs i. 5 The following are the main degrees of condition used in this country: F.D.C. (Fleur-de-Coin): literally—flower of the coin, a French term used to denote perfect mint state with absolutely no wear or damage, [etc.].
F.F. n. the first family or families (of Virginia); a member or descendant of one of these (U.S.).
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1813 M. L. Weems Drunkard's Looking Glass (ed. 2) 11 With hearts full charged with F.F. Slings, they came upon the ground.
1850 ‘M. Tensas’ Odd Leaves from Louisiana Swamp Doctor 178 Major Smith..[was] the first one of the race [of Virginians] to acknowledge that he was not an F.F.
1861 J. R. Lowell Biglow Papers 2nd ser. i. 217 She's an F.F...an' prouder'n the Gran' Turk.
1917 Birds of Amer. III. 64/2 Better yet, he [sc. the cardinal] is an FF of America.
F.F.V. n. = F.F. n.
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1847 Knickerbocker 29 495 We could make out..a set of letters that looked like a disorderly F.F.V... A Virginia scion insisted that they were an abbreviation he had seen used in the navy to represent ‘First Family in Virginia’.
1853 F. W. Thomas John Randolph & Other Sketches 286 I came from one of the first families in Virginia, one of the F.F.V.'s.
1861 R. H. Newell Orpheus C. Kerr Papers (1863) I. 253 That piece of American intelleck..worthy of an F.F.V.
1862 O. W. Norton Army Lett. 115 The home..gave much evidence that the owner is..in name and pretention an F.F.V.
1873 J. H. Beadle Undeveloped West xxxiii. 710 The F.F.V's wonder how the farmer can get through the winters in New York.
1905 Springfield Weekly Republ. 5 May 2 He was by every line of descent an F.F.V.
1931 W. Faulkner Sanctuary iii. 26 An F.F.V., or just an unfortunate sojourner there?
F.G. n. fine grain.
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1871 English Mechanic 17 Mar. 615/3 Medium rifle powder..is still used..under the name of ‘powder shell F.G.’ (fine grain).
1880 Encycl. Brit. XI. 326/2 Formerly at Waltham Abbey both musket (F.G.) and cannon powder (L.G.) were granulated in the same machine at the same time.
F.H.B. n. family hold back (a colloquial intimation to the members of a family that their guests have first claim on the course or helping about to be served).
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1911 ‘I. Hay’ Safety Match v. 82 She murmured to such of the family as were within earshot the mystic formula, ‘F.H.B.!’
F.I.D.O. n. (see FIDO n.).
F.I.T. n. (also f.i.t.) free in truck.
Π
1888 Lockwood's Dict. Mech. Engin. F.I.T., free in truck. Engages to load goods in railway trucks without extra charge.
F.L.N. n. (French) Front de la Libération Nationale, an Algerian nationalist organization.
Π
1956 Times 7 Apr. 6/4 An office belonging to the other Algerian Nationalist Movement, the National Liberation Front (F.L.N.), was also raided today.
1958 Times Lit. Suppl. 14 Feb. 82/5 The French will inevitably have to negotiate with the F.L.N.
F.M. n. field-magnet.
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1893 W. P. Maycock Electr. Lighting ii. viii. §134 The F.M.s of an alternator must be separately excited.
F.M. n. (also f.m.) frequency modulation.
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1942 Electronic Engin. 14 640 A special f.m. amplifier.
1962 A. Nisbett Technique Sound Studio 240 Amplitude modulation (AM), a method whereby the information in an audio signal is carried on the much higher frequency of a radio wave. The envelope of the amplitude of the radio wave in successive cycles is equivalent to the wave form of the initial sound. Historically, AM is the method which was used first and such transmissions now crowd the short, medium and long wave bands... For high quality transmission AM has largely given way to FM (frequency modulation).
F.O. n. Foreign Office.
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1859 Queen Victoria Let. 14 June in Dearest Child (1964) 194 Lord Palmerston..could not insist on Lord John's not having the F.O. if he insisted on having it!
1880 C. Marvyn Our Public Offices (ed. 2) 203 Everything at the F.O. revolves round the Library.
1959 E. Pound Thrones civ. 90 Resigned from the F.O. and ‘went into the City’.
F.O.B. n. (also f.o.b.) free on board.
Π
1890 Economist 22 Feb. (Suppl.) 12/1 Bleach opened firm in January at £7 16s per ton for hard wood, f.o.b., and £7 5s per ton for soft wood f.o.r.
1959 Ann. Reg. 1958 490 A total value of about $20 million f.o.b. for the year.
F.O.B.S. n. fractional orbital bombardment system.
Π
1967 Economist 11 Nov. 622/2 FOBS puts a vehicle into orbit round the earth, in either direction, about a hundred miles up; it then launches a missile, when told to do so, probably before completing a full circuit.
1969 U.S. News & World Rep. 10 Mar. 31/3 FOBS, fractional-orbit bombardment system. A missile that orbits the earth and can deliver its warheads from space. A Soviet development that has no U.S. counterpart.
F.O.C. n. Father of the Chapel (see chapel n. 10).
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society > occupation and work > worker > those involved in labour relations > [noun] > member of trade union > president of printers' union
father of the chapel1879
F.O.C.1929
1929 Printing Federation Bull. Nov. 6/1 Many F.O.C.'s will agree there are circumstances in many printing firms which militate against the formation of works committees.
1955 R. J. Schwartz Compl. Dict. Abbrev. 73/2 FOC, Father of the Chapel.
1986 Times 11 Mar. 2/8 I appreciate the FOCs' concern for those who went on strike and were sacked.
F.O.R. n. (also f.o.r.) free on rail.
Π
1888 Lockwood's Dict. Mech. Engin. F.O.R., free on rail. Signifies the placing of goods on the railway without extra charge.
1890 [see F.O.B. n.]. 1894 Field 9 June 846/2 The average price realized for Irish creamery butter was 88s f.o.r. at this creamery.
F.O.T. n. (also f.o.t.) free on truck.
Π
1888 Lockwood's Dict. Mech. Engin. F.O.T., free on truck. The same as F.I.T.
F.P.A. n. Family Planning Association.
ΘΚΠ
society > society and the community > social relations > an association, society, or organization > specific societies or organizations > [noun] > other specific associations or organizations
Tityre-tu1623
Peep o' Day Boys1780
law society1821
kongsi1839
B'nai B'rith1862
Molly Maguire1867
Kennel Club1874
Ethical Society1877
Kyrle Society1877
Molly1877
Sierra Club1891
subak1897
Workers' Educational Association1905
senior1906
W.E.A.1910
Lions Club1922
godless1927
F.P.A.a1940
Diners' Club1950
amnesty1961
Sealed Knot1971
Greenpeace1972
lions1972
Gaysoc1976
Group of Eight1977
Group of Seven1977
meeja1983
G71986
G81988
the world > life > biology > biological processes > procreation or reproduction > contraception > [noun] > agency advising on
F.P.A.a1940
a1940 9th Ann. Rep. Family Planning Assoc. 2 The Report on the Committee before which the F.P.A. presented evidence in December, 1937.
1966 New Statesman 17 June 870/1 When Mr Robinson, the Minister of Health, opened the Family Planning Association's recent conference in London he gave the final pat to the..mantle of respectability resting on the FPA's shoulders.
1986 Roundabout (Brisbane) 19 June 14/1 The 30 second commercial features Brisbane Bullets captain Larry Sengstock, as part of the FPA's campaign.
F.P.S. n. (also f.p.s.) feet per second.
Π
1945 T. A. Dickinson Aeronaut. Dict. 433/2 F.P.S., feet per second.
1962 J. Glenn in J. Glenn et al. Into Orbit 200 It was 25,730 fps instead of 25,738 fps.
F.P.S. n. (also f.p.s.) foot-pound-second; (cf. foot n. and int. Compounds 3).
Π
1892 G. F. Barker Physics i. ii. 10 In applied physics another absolute system is sometimes used, based upon the foot, the pound, and the second... This system is called the foot-pound-second system, or more briefly the F.P.S. system.
1962 A. R. W. Hayes Revision Physics §1. 4. The foot-poundal is the f.p.s. unit of energy or work.
F.R.A.S. n. Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society.
Π
1884 N.E.D. at A F.R.A.S., Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society.
F.R.C.S. n. Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons.
ΘΚΠ
the world > health and disease > healing > healer > surgeon > [noun] > fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons
F.R.C.S.1829
1829 Edinb. Med. & Surg. Jrnl. 32 p.iv Observations on painful subcutaneous tubercle, with histories and cases of the disease. By William Wood, F.R.C.S.
1936 H. L. Mencken Amer. Lang. (ed. 4) 272 A surgeon is usually plain Mr., and prefers to be so called, though he may have M.D. on his card, along with F.R.C.S. (fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons).
1984 Whitaker's Almanack 221/2 Serjeant Surgeon, W. Slack, m. ch., f.r.c.s.
F.R.G. n. Federal Republic of Germany.
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society > authority > rule or government > a or the state > [noun] > state ruled by the people > specific
F.R.G.1960
1960 Internat. Affairs (Moscow) Dec. 69/1 The greatest concentration of American armed forces in Europe is in the F.R.G.
1978 Europa Year Bk. I. 712/1 Saarland, under French occupation, was rejoined with the FRG administratively in January 1957.
F.R.S. n. Fellow of the Royal Society.
ΘΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > scholarly knowledge, erudition > learned person, scholar > [noun] > learned association > the Royal Society > fellow of
Greshamist1665
F.R.S.1731
1731 Gentleman's Mag. 1 181/1 The Gardeners Dictionary: By Phillip Miller, F.R.S.
1969 Listener 22 May 728/2 It is heartening these days to find John Sparrow reaffirming his faith in that civilisation..whose key emblems he takes to be an FRS and a Chancery Judge.
F.S. n. (also f.s.) feet per second.
Π
1880 Encycl. Brit. XI. 304/2 The bullets themselves should retain a velocity of about 500 f.s. on striking.
1902 Encycl. Brit. XXIX. 171/1 Velocities ranging from 100 to 2800 feet per second (f/s).
1905 Kynoch Jrnl. July 156 Accuracy does not demand a muzzle velocity higher than 2,300 f.s.
F.S.A. n. Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries.
Π
1884 N.E.D. at A F.S.A., Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries.
F.W.D. n. (also f.w.d.) front- (or four-) wheel drive.
Π
1958 News Chron. 25 Nov. 7/5 (advt.) The Austin commercial range includes all-purpose vehicles..and the FWD Gipsy with rubber torsion suspension.
1959 Motor 11 Feb. 62/1 Nowadays f.w.d. is invariably combined with independent front wheel springing.
b. Photography. F, f = Focal length. Used in combination with numbers to indicate the ratio between the focal length of the lens and the diameter of the stop.
ΚΠ
1892 C. H. Bothamley Ilford Man. Photogr. v. 34 For example, f/8 and f/16 mean that the diameter of the stop is, in the first case, one-eighth, and, in the second case, one-sixteenth of the focal length of the lens.
1903 A. Watkins Photography (ed. 2) 42 Instead of having to work out afresh the value of the diaphragm, it is much more convenient to regard the lengthening of the camera as a separate influence which I have named the F factor.
1903 A. Watkins Photography (ed. 2) 43 The F factor to allow for the lengthened focus of the lens, and S the value of the subject.
1903 A. Watkins Photography (ed. 2) 45 The F figure (distance of image to lens in terms of focus of lens) is always the same as the degree of enlargement plus 1.
1918 Photo-miniature Mar. (Gloss.) F(f/·) Numbers—denote the ‘speed’ of a lens. About the most rapid lens is f/3 to f/4·5... The f/ number is the number of times the diameter of the stop will divide into the focal length of the lens.
1919 Brit. Jrnl. Photogr. Almanac 238 In almost all lenses the diameter of the stop which really determines the F. No. is a little greater than the real diameter owing to the converging action of the front lens.
1959 News Chron. 20 June 6/7 The apertures or stops, as they are sometimes called, are marked in f/numbers. If a lens is described as an f/4 lens, it means that is its maximum or widest aperture.
1968 A. Diment Great Spy Race vii. 107 I started photographing right then, the light meter said I was okay on F2·8 at a thirtieth.
1970 Amateur Photographer 13 May 66/1 The actual diameter of the hole was marked on it, so that f/11 showed that the hole was one eleventh of the focal length.
Draft additions 1993
[Abbreviation of fibre.] F Plan Diet, a commercial name for a type of high-fibre diet. Frequently elliptical, as F-Plan.
ΘΠ
the world > food and drink > food > diet > [noun] > specific diets
Lessian diet1646
milk-diet1671
flesh-diet1731
meagre1770
bean-diet1820
mono-diet1920
Hay diet1925
Mediterranean diet1928
Atkins1972
slim1977
F Plan Diet1982
1982 A. Eyton F-Plan 9 The F-Plan shows you how to cut your calorie intake and at the same time increase your intake of dietary fibre from the unrefined cereal foods and the fruits and vegetables which provide it.
1983 Financial Times 18 Aug. 9/4 The newly promoted F plan diet, which underlined the nutritional value of beans, fortuitously coincided with the Heinz campaign message.
1983 Which? Oct. 443/1 The ‘F-Plan’ is probably the best known, but many of today's diets—both for slimming and health reasons—recommend a high intake of fibre.
1984 Official Gaz. (U.S. Patent Office) 1 May tm43/2 P. Leiner Nutritional Products, Inc., Torrance, Calif...F Plan Diet... For vitamins and dietary food supplements.
Draft additions September 2013
FAO n. for (the) attention of.
Π
1988 New Scientist 9 June 97/2 (advt.) For further details regarding these posts..Fax: 05394 3411 (Mark FAO Earthquest).
1991 Church Times 1 Nov. 15/4 Application form and further details from: The County Hall... (FAO: Mrs PM Tyrrell).
2010 A. Campbell Maya (2011) xiii. 163 He passed me a yellow folder, marked ‘FAO client 532f’.
Draft additions 1993
FCL n. full container load.
ΘΠ
society > travel > transport > transport or conveyance in a vehicle > transport of goods in a vehicle > [noun] > by container
LCL1882
FCL1968
1968 Proc. Internat. Container Symp. (London Chamber of Commerce) May 83/2 The provision of the complete door-to-door operation by them, irrespective of whether cargo moves in full container loads (FCL) or less than container load (LCL) quantities, is generally assumed to sound the death knell of the forwarding agent in the Australian trade.
Draft additions 1993
FT n. Financial Times; esp. in FT Index, any of a number of stock indices published daily by the Financial Times newspaper; cf. Footsie n.2
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society > trade and finance > stocks and shares > [noun] > stock index
FT Index1960
Hang Seng index1969
Nikkei-Dow(-Jones)1970
Footsie1984
society > communication > journalism > journal > newspaper > [noun] > titles of newspapers > Financial Times
pink 'un1878
FT1960
1960 Financial Times 2 Jan. 6 (in figure) F.T. Industrial ordinary index 50%.
1965 Financial Times 1 Jan. 17/1 There were 764 gains in F.T.-quoted stocks.
1981 ‘D. Jordan’ Double Red xv. 69 The FT index had predictably plunged to a new low.
Draft additions December 2013
FOB n. Medicine faecal occult blood; cf. occult blood n. at occult adj. and n. Compounds.
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1981 Ann. Rheumatic Dis. 40 456/2 Every stool specimen passed was tested within 1 hour for faecal occult blood (FOB).
2005 Times 3 Aug. 8/2 Of those testing positive in the FOB test, half will be found to be normal when tested further.
Draft additions October 2009
f-number n. Photography and Optics the ratio of the focal length of a lens, telescope, etc., to the effective diameter of the aperture, used typically to express its light-gathering power (a lower f-number corresponding to a larger aperture); cf. relative aperture n. at relative n., adj., and adv. Compounds.
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1898 Photogr. Times May 215/1 When the distance focused upon is equal to ten times the square of the focal length divided by the f number, the sharp focus becomes infinite in depth.
1918 Camera Craft Aug. 325/2 How comes it that the buyer so often finds the f-number of the aperture to be less than it is marked?
1958 Pop. Mech. Apr. 203/1 The lower a lens' f-number, the greater its light-passing ability.
2001 F. Watson in P. Moore 2002 Yearbk. Astron. ii. 225 The speed with which an extended object like a nebula can be recorded depends not on the aperture of the telescope..but only on its focal ratio, or f/number.
Draft additions September 2004
FDI n. Economics = foreign direct investment n. at foreign adj., n.2, and adv. Compounds 2.
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1974 Jrnl. Internat. Business Stud. 5 93 The parts suppliers have also been active in foreign direct investment (FDI).
2002 Foreign Policy Sept. 60/1 During the eight years before NAFTA, the average annual flow of FDI into Mexico was approximately $3.47 billion.
Draft additions April 2004
FEMA n. U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency, an agency of the U.S. federal government established in 1979 to coordinate disaster relief and prevention efforts.
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1978 Reorganization Plan No. 3 (Disaster Preparedness): Hearings before Subcomm. Intergovernmental Relations (U.S. Congr. Senate Comm. Governmental Affairs) 3 The establishment of the Federal Emergency Management Agency—FEMA—an independent unit in the executive branch, whose director will report directly to the President.
2004 Los Angeles Times (Electronic ed.) 8 Jan. (Home ed.) b8 [Governor] Schwarzenegger has asked for public agency and individual relief from FEMA.
Draft additions July 2010
FET n. Electronics field-effect transistor.
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1956 Sci. Abstr. B. 59 537/1 A field-effect transistor (f.e.t.) is a unipolar device.
1977 Science 18 Mar. 1232/2 In FET's hot electrons produced by electric fields in the channel at the surface change the threshold voltage when they escape.
2006 O. Bishop Electronics: First Course (ed. 2) 96/1 The FET saturates because the voltage across the load resistor brings the drain terminal almost down to zero.
Draft additions June 2016
FFS int. (also ffs) slang (originally in the language of electronic communications) ‘for fuck's sake’; expressing exasperation, annoyance, or urgency (cf. for fuck's sake at fuck n. Phrases 5a).In quot. 1991 as n.: a use of this expression.
ΚΠ
1991 Guardian 17 Jan. 31/2 At least the F in AFAIK does not stand for ‘the F-word’—it often does... Exasperation may prompt an FFS, for heaven's sake.
1999 Re: Wish me Luck in alt.fan.pastiche (Usenet newsgroup) 2 Dec. Oh FFS, the tears were pouring down my face—they still do when I read the Editors Cut—don't tell me you lost that too.
2012 S. Kinsella I've got your Number 391 What kind of movie starts with a mother fish and all her little glowy eggs being eaten by a shark, FFS? It's supposed to be for children.
2015 Sun 18 Jan. (Fabulous Mag.) 15/2 I ask what he's looking for in a tenant... ‘Someone who's happy with a short-term let because I'm possibly selling...’ Oh FFS!
Draft additions March 2012
FGC n. = female genital cutting n. at female n. and adj. Compounds 1c.
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1997 D. Carr Female Genital Cutting 1/2 Female genital cutting (FGC)..is used to describe medically unnecessary procedures that involve the..removal of the clitoris [etc.].
2007 Guardian (Nexis) 27 Oct. (Suppl.) 5 The..rescue centre.., run by ActionAid and the Kenya Alliance for the Advancement of Children, has given sanctuary to 650..girls..fleeing child marriage and FGC.
Draft additions March 2012
FGM n. = female genital mutilation n. at female n. and adj. Compounds 1c.
Π
1990 PR Newswire Europe (Nexis) 4 Oct. Medically the removal of a healthy organ is mutilation. The male version removes a piece of skin, but removal of healthy labia and clitoris is classified as ‘female genital mutilation’ or FGM.
2009 S. Windle et al. in J. Ehiri Maternal & Child Health x. 170/2 Most women with FGM live in one of the 28 African or Middle Eastern countries where FGM is practiced.
Draft additions March 2006
fMRI n. Medicine = functional magnetic resonance imaging n. at functional adj. and n. Compounds; (also) a scan carried out using this technique.
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the world > health and disease > healing > diagnosis or prognosis > radiography or radiology > scanning > [noun] > magnetic resonance imaging
magnetic resonance imaging1977
MRI1983
functional magnetic resonance imaging1988
fMRI1993
1993 Magn. Resonance Med. 30 161 The methods are applied to experimental FMRI data from the motor-cortex.
1997 Daily Tel. 17 Mar. 14/7 PET and fMRI detect brain regions with the highest blood flow—regions which are working hardest.
2002 T. Shimoda Fourth Treasure (2003) 88 We primarily conduct brain fMRIs in this lab. If you want good results, the subject's head has to be absolutely immobile.
Draft additions July 2002
FMV n. = full-motion video n. at full adj., n.2, and adv. Compounds 1b.
Π
1985 Back Stage 30 Aug. b20/2 Full motion video (FMV) teleconferencing, EM (Electronic Mail), CBI (Computer Based Instruction), et al.
1991 New Scientist 21 Sept. 35/2 The multimedia units due to go on sale in Europe early next year will offer FMV.
2000 S. Poole Trigger Happy iv. 90 FMV sequences can be graceful and beautiful in their own right (especially in the Final Fantasy games, where they alone can eat up $4 million of the budget).
Draft additions June 2001
FoE n. (also FOE) = Friends of the Earth n. at friend n. and adj. Phrases 11.
Π
1971 Ecologist Dec. 33/1 The dropping of the Boeing SST scheme, the non-flooding of the Grand Canyon and the halting of the Alaska oil pipeline may all legitimately be put down to successful FOE lobbying there.
1986 Griffitti (Brisbane) Sept. 9/1 FOE Adelaide called a rally to march on the Labor Party state conference.
1997 Guardian 13 Aug. (Society section) 5/5 The failure so far to protect the threatened Offham Marshes site of special scientific interest in East Sussex makes FoE fear for the future.
Draft additions June 2015
FOMO n. colloquial fear of missing out, anxiety that an exciting or interesting event may be happening elsewhere, often aroused by posts seen on a social media website.
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2004 North Coast Jrnl. Weekly (Humboldt County, Calif.) (Electronic ed.) 12 Aug. It's a great event; I feel like I have to go, since it's free for me. The real reason is this thing called FOMO; it's a disease, the Fear Of Missing Out syndrome.
2006 Re: Hardly Strictly Schedule Up in rec.music.gdead (Usenet newsgroup) 12 Sept. Sounds like somebody has a serious case of festival FOMOitis..fear of missing out. Festivals became much more fun for me when I accepted not having to see a complete show of most anybody... However a bit of FOMO does break out once in awhile.
2013 Huffington Post (Nexis) 12 Apr. If you're experiencing serious FOMO (damn you, Instagram!), it appears you can watch Coachella in livestream.
Draft additions September 2008
FP n. chiefly Scottish former pupil (or pupils); esp. in the names of certain rugby clubs which were originally established by alumni of a particular school.
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1906 C. E. Edwards Merchiston Castle School Reg. 169 The Club appears for many years to have played one or two matches at least against the Edinburgh Academicals, the Glasgow Academicals, and the Royal High School F.P.s.
1955 J. Thompson Hist. Daniel Stewart's Coll. Pref. 7 The chapter on cricket was written by an F.P. who wishes to remain anonymous.
1993 I. Welsh Trainspotting (1994) 63 Nay wey though, will they offer a George Heriots FP a porterin joab in a hotel. That's only fir us plebs.
2007 Evening News (Edinb.) (Nexis) 9 Oct. 18 Bruce changed the rugby landscape in Scotland. Before he came along, all the FP clubs were virtual closed shops.
Draft additions December 2004
FSA n. British Financial Services Act (of 1986), a statute regulating the investment business in the United Kingdom (rare after 1997 formation of the Financial Services Authority).
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1987 Financial Times 16 Jan. 16/5 The protagonist, a brewing company, would not even have been covered by the FSA.
1999 Scotl. on Sunday (Nexis) 21 Feb. 5 The vagaries of the Financial Services Act (the FSA was drafted in 1986 before angel investment activity really took off) mean that much of what angels do is illegal.
Draft additions December 2004
FSA n. British Financial Services Authority, an organization established in 1997 to act as the regulator of financial companies and institutions in the United Kingdom.
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1997 Evening Standard 28 Oct. 35/2 The Bill will also set out the statutory objectives of the FSA.
2003 Daily Tel. 19 May 25/1 The FSA is particularly interested in share purchases and complex bets taken out on the Selfridges share price, known as contracts for difference.
Draft additions August 2007
FTL adj. (and adv.) Science Fiction faster than light (also as adv.).
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1964 F. Pohl in If Nov. 115/2 Until some frabjous super-Batman invented the mythical FTL drive it would always be so. At possible speeds..it was a matter of decades to reach almost every worthwhile planet.
1969 Amazing Stories Mar. 73/2 They'll probably stay sub-light... But would it help us to go FTL?
2001 Sci. Fiction Chron. July 26/3 The problem is with a new FTL drive that apparently works except that the six guys who've tested it haven't been heard from since.
Draft additions March 2012
FTM adj. and n. (also FtM) (a) adj. = female-to-male adj. 3; (b) n. = female-to-male n.
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the world > life > sex and gender > transgender person > [noun]
she-male1842
ladyboy1857
mujerado1882
transsexual1949
transsexualist1954
male-to-female1977
transgender1979
transperson1979
FTM1987
MTF1990
the world > life > sex and gender > transgender person > [adjective]
transsexual1957
transsexualist1959
male-to-female1966
female-to-male1971
transgender1974
trans1981
FTM1987
MTF1990
1987 T. Spinder et al. in R. Rolland et al. Neuro-endocrinol. Reprod. ii. 105 This study included 13 agonadal female-to-male (f-to-m) transsexuals.
1991 P. Califia Advocate Adviser x. 150 Many female-to-male transsexuals (FTMs) choose to skip genital surgery and use dildos for penetration.
2007 in S. Driver Queer Girls & Pop. Culture ii. 27 I have had intimate relationships with FTMs (female to males), so I myself would not identify as a lesbian.
2011 Buffalo (N.Y.) News (Nexis) 29 May f9 After long deliberations and plenty of therapy,..[he] begins testosterone treatments as he starts his female-to-male (FTM) transition.
Draft additions June 2016
FWIW adv. (also fwiw) colloquial (originally in the language of electronic communications) ‘for what it's worth’; acknowledging uncertainty about the likely value or impact of a remark (cf. for what it's worth at worth adj. Phrases 4).
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1986 Re: UNIX v.3 Query in net.unix (Usenet newsgroup) 27 Aug. Supposidly [sic], SVR3 was developed on the 400 line, and ports to the 3B5/15 line are not due out until early next year. FWIW.
1987 B-52's don't fly out of Moffett Naval Air Station in mod.politics.arms-d (Usenet newsgroup) 6 Jan. I spoke with a person that was a crew member of a P3-ORION out of Moffett. Although the Navy will not admit or deny the presence of nuclear depth-charges...he said that they routinely carry them during training... FWIW.
1991 Guardian 17 Jan. 31/1 Typical examples [of abbreviations used on bulletin board systems] are BTW (by the way), IMHO (in my humble opinion), OTOH (on the other hand), and FWIW (for what it's worth).
1999 Re: 2nd RFD: rec.carousels in news.groups (Usenet newsgroup) 5 Dec. I believe it is also the way that the American library-cataloging systems describe the topic, fwiw.
2015 Toronto Star (Nexis) 26 Apr. (Insight section) 3 FWIW, I grew up as a farm kid and we had a pig named Handsome.
Draft additions September 2016
FTA n. (a) = free trade area n. at free trade n. Compounds 2; (b) = free trade agreement n. at free trade n. Compounds 2.
Π
1957 Observer 3 Nov. 2/5 By 1970 the UK may be importing £85 million worth of steel..from the FTA and exporting to them £70 million worth.
1995 Economist 16 Sept. 23/2 Although the theologians of GATT would allow FTAs and customs unions under various conditions, America would have none of it.
2002 W. H. Cooper Free Trade Agreements (Congressional Res. Service) 1 Developed countries have also formed FTAs with developing countries to encourage them toward trade and investment liberalization.
2006 S. Sheen in Y. Sato & S. Limaye Japan in Dynamic Asia 128 By signing an FTA, both countries would mutually abolish trade barriers, including tariffs and import quotas.
Draft additions March 2017
FOI n. freedom of information; (now) frequently attributive in FOI request.
Π
1953 Daily News-Record (Harrisonburg, Va.) 9 Oct. 1/2 (heading) Judge Paul at FOI conference.
1991 B. McIntyre Adv. Newsgathering xviii. 258 The agency is required by law to respond to an FOI request within ten days.
2010 Private Eye 30 Apr. 16/2 After a taxpayer blew the whistle and put in an FoI request, the..council..called in external auditors.
Draft additions March 2017
FOIA n.
Brit. /ˈfɔɪə/
, /ˈfɔɪə/U.S. /ˈfɔɪə/
Freedom of Information Act; a law which permits individuals to request the public release of documents or data in the possession of a government or its agencies; frequently attributive in FOIA request. Since 1966, when the Freedom of Information Act was first enacted in the United States, many English-speaking countries including Australia, Ireland, and the United Kingdom have instituted legislation with the same name./ˈfɔɪə/Π
1968 Admin. Law Rev. 20 446 The FOIA represents a set of sweeping principles which leaves to..the agencies and their clients the resolution of complex problems regarding disclosure of particular records.
1981 Syracuse (N.Y.) Post-Standard 28 Dec. a10/3 Any changes should be made only after proper consideration is given to the impact on the FOIA government-wide.
1992 Washington Post 26 Oct. 29/2 The acknowledgment that State improperly handled the FOIA request on Mr. Clinton.
1999 Guardian (Nexis) 11 Oct. (Media section) 10 The principle of executive privilege is used to exempt the White House from most FOIA requests.
2010 Atlantic May 40/3 Such exchanges rarely amount to anything illicit, but most FOIA requests, on all subjects, are dry holes.
Draft additions June 2018
Physics. Denoting a force or its magnitude.
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the world > matter > physics > mechanics > force > [noun]
force1665
F1687
power1696
1687 Philos. Trans. 1686–7 (Royal Soc.) 16 275 But what is the proportion of f to g (that of the force impressed, to the Impulse of Gravity in each Body) remains to be enquired by Experiment.
1746 B. Franklin Let. 16 Oct. in Papers (1961) III. 86 As it is a Maxim that the Force of Bodies in Motion is equal to the Quantity of Matter multiply'd by the Celerity, or F = C × A.
1868 Trans. Inst. Civil Engineers Ireland 8 16 At the end of the piston rod and the little end of the connecting rod the force F is decomposed into two, one along the connecting rod..and the other at right angles to the piston rod.
1961 M. G. Say Electr. Engineer's Ref. Bk. (ed. 10) i. 18 Sometimes the displacement l of a point is directly proportional to the force f applied, so that l = kf, where k is a constant..(Hooke's Law).
2007 S. Holzner Physics Workbk. for Dummies iv. 64 Calculate the net force first and then use that in F = m · a.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1894; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
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