feisty

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English

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Etymology

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1896, American, feist (small, aggressive dog) +‎ -y;[1] the term feist (now rare) itself originally meant “stink”, and earlier “fart”, from Middle English, from Old English, from Proto-Germanic, presumably from Proto-Indo-European – see feist for details.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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feisty (comparative feistier or more feisty, superlative feistiest or most feisty)

  1. Tenacious, energetic, spunky.
    (Can we add an example for this sense?)
  2. Belligerent; prepared to stand and fight, especially in spite of relatively small stature or some other disadvantage.
    (Can we add an example for this sense?)
  3. Easily offended and ready to bicker.
    (Can we add an example for this sense?)

Derived terms

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Translations

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References

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  1. ^ Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “feisty”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

Anagrams

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