fair

1 of 5

adjective

ˈfer

: marked by impartiality and honesty : free from self-interest, prejudice, or favoritism

a very fair person to do business with

b(1)

: conforming with the established rules : allowed

(2)

: consonant with merit or importance : due

a fair share

: open to legitimate pursuit, attack, or ridicule

fair game

: not very good or very bad : of average or acceptable quality

Her work was only fair.

a patient upgraded from serious to fair condition

: sufficient but not ample : adequate

a fair understanding of the work

a fair chance of winning

: moderately numerous, large, or significant

takes a fair amount of time

a fair number of participants

: not stormy or foul : fine

fair weather

: having very little color, coloring, or pigmentation : very light

fair hair

fair skin

a person of fair complexion

: pleasing to the eye or mind especially because of fresh, charming, or flawless quality

The innkeeper had two fair daughters.

: superficially pleasing : specious

she trusted his fair promises

: clean, pure

fair sparkling water

: clear, legible

an old manuscript written in a fair hand

: ample

a fair estate

: promising, likely

in a fair way to win

: favorable to a ship's course

a fair wind

: being such to the utmost : utter

a fair treat to watch him—

New Republic

archaic : free of obstacles

fair

2 of 5

noun (1)

: a gathering of buyers and sellers at a particular place and time for trade

: a competitive exhibition usually with accompanying entertainment and amusements

an agricultural fair

: an exhibition designed to acquaint prospective buyers or the general public with a product

a book fair

: an exposition that promotes the availability of services or opportunities

health fairs

job fairs

: a sale of assorted articles usually for a charitable purpose

fair

3 of 5

adverb

: in a manner that is honest or impartial or that conforms to rules : in a fair manner

play fair

chiefly British : fairly sense 3

fair makes you want to cry

fair

4 of 5

verb

faired; fairing; fairs

intransitive verb

of the weather : clear

transitive verb

: to join so that the external surfaces blend smoothly

fair

5 of 5

noun (2)

: something that is fair or fortunate (see fair entry 1)

obsolete : beauty, fairness

archaic : woman

especially : sweetheart

Did you know?

Fair in Love and War

For many people, the word fair brings to mind the aphorism “all is fair in love and war.” We have been using some variation of this saying for quite some time, although, as with many such expressions, it is difficult to pinpoint exactly when it began. As far back as 1578 John Lyly wrote “anye impietie may lawfully be committed in loue, which is lawlesse.” We do not see evidence of war juxtaposed with love until 1687, when Aphra Behn wrote “All Advantages are lawful in Love and War” in her play The Emperor of the Moon. By 1717 this had morphed into “All advantages are fair in love and war” in William Taverner’s play The Artful Husband. Finally, by 1789 we find the line used exactly as it is today in the novel The Relapse: “Tho’ this was a confounded lie, my friend, ‘all is fair in love and war’.”

Example Sentences

Adjective "You boys not looking for any trouble, are you?" The question was fair. Millat's Crew looked like trouble. —

Zadie Smith, White Teeth, (2000) 2001 "I have a good relationship with both Eddie and David. I think they've been fair to me." —

Joni Mitchell, quoted in Rolling Stone, 30 May 1991 Everybody out, the Iraqis said, except CNN. Even CNN isn't sure why they made that decision. Perhaps it is because CNN alone is seen globally. What the Iraqis told us is that they had found our coverage since August to have been "fair." —

Peter Arnett, Washington Post, 25-31 Mar. 1991 That's a fair question, and it deserves an honest reply. He is known as a very fair man. I try to be fair to my children. He claims that the competition wasn't fair. It's not fair that she gets to leave early and I don't. a fair and impartial jury a bargain that is fair to everyone “What a bad movie!” “Be fair! Parts of it are actually pretty funny.” I can't say I liked the movie, but, to be fair, parts of it are pretty funny. She did poorly on the test, but, to be fair, so did a lot of other people. Noun (1) At night the sparkling lights, hurdy-gurdy music of the merry-go-round, excited children, and screams of the riders on the roller coaster that races overhead recall the gaiety of a carnival midway at a county fair. —

Witold Rybczynski, Atlantic, May 1993 Back at the street fair, in the smoky heat among vendors of souvenirs and street food, a flock of kids dances around a boom box playing Lionel Richie. —

Barbara Kingsolver, New York Times Magazine, 12 Sept. 1993 "Do you like to go out? You know, party?" "Who doesn't?" "Well, the Ebony Fashion Fair is in three weeks. You want to go?" —

Terry McMillan, Waiting to Exhale, 1992 Adverb we expect everyone on this basketball court to play fair it fair takes your breath away when you find out what properties in London are going for See More

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

To be fair, a balloon is an unlikely attack mechanism for initiating a surprise nuclear war. —

Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 15 Feb. 2023 To be fair, Shopify’s bounce comes after an outsized drop – even in the tech sector. —

Geoffrey Morgan, Bloomberg.com, 14 Feb. 2023 To be fair, Musk did go out and do more or less much exactly that for electric cars and reusable rockets. —

IEEE Spectrum, 14 Feb. 2023 So, to be fair, his dishes went in one sink and mine in another. —

Marisa Kashino, Washington Post, 13 Feb. 2023 To be fair, none of us are fortune tellers, and predicting sudden market changes, new regulations and other unforeseeable factors is an impossible task. —

Greg Coticchia, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2023 To be fair, the flood warnings, which have been in place since 2018, save lives, as Google points out. —

Liza Featherstone, The New Republic, 13 Feb. 2023 To be fair, few singers could hope to live up to that level of hype. —

Ed Masley, The Arizona Republic, 12 Feb. 2023 To be fair, the Academy could not have had the previous all-time Grammy winner on hand to honor Beyoncé. —

Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 9 Feb. 2023

Noun

During the fair, the LAFC will hold two soccer clinics — one on Thursday, one on Sunday — accommodating about 40 participants each. —

Los Angeles Times, 14 Feb. 2023 The fair also includes a focus section spotlighting galleries that have been in operation for 12 years or fewer. —

Degen Pener, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Feb. 2023 For 2023, the fair has extended dates giving visitors an extra day to browse. —

Chadd Scott, Forbes, 12 Feb. 2023 In addition to the standard ticketing during the day, the fair also consists of two special ticketed evenings. —

Isiah Magsino, Town & Country, 27 Jan. 2023 The fair also coincides with Monster Bulls (Feb. 11) and Silver Spurs Rodeo (Feb. 17-19). —

Patrick Connolly, Orlando Sentinel, 26 Jan. 2023 The enrollment fair included more than 30 schools, most from the IPS district but also some from Warren Township. —

Caroline Beck, The Indianapolis Star, 11 Jan. 2023 Now in its 20th year, Miami Art Week’s flagship fair is bigger than ever: 283 premier galleries from 38 countries and territories are presenting, with 26 participating for the first time. —

Harper's BAZAAR, 28 Nov. 2022 The free fair also features art objects and live music. —

San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Nov. 2022

Adverb

Currently, two large-scale renovation projects are in the works to make the fair-going experience safer and more enjoyable for guests, Black said. —

Claire Reid, Journal Sentinel, 14 July 2022

Verb

The biggest talking point heading into Sunday’s race, was how the field would fair in what points-leader Power called maybe the worst Turn 1s in the series. —

Nathan Brown, The Indianapolis Star, 5 Sep. 2022 The measures aren’t likely to fair well in the U.S. Senate. —

Brooke Baitinger, Sun Sentinel, 9 June 2022 These freezes often kill off other spiders, but the Joro spider may fair better in colder environments. —

Joshua Hawkins, BGR, 4 Mar. 2022 Companies who understand this are poised to fair better in today’s competitive market for talent. —

Dr. Angela Jackson, Forbes, 31 Jan. 2022 Venezuelans applying for asylum in Miami tend to fair well in the city’s immigration courts, Allen said, receiving approval at a much higher rate than other nationalities. —

Washington Post, 23 Nov. 2021 Keynote speaker is Steve Barbeaux of the Alaska Fisheries Science Center, who will describe how unprecedented warming in the Gulf of Alaska caused a cod crash in 2018 and a fishery shutdown in 2020, and how the stock might fair in a warming world. —

Anchorage Daily News, 13 Apr. 2021 And since non-asteroid-belt asteroids don't tend to fair well in independent orbits, the researchers predict Itokawa will either break apart or collide with Earth within the next million years. —

Jake Parks, Discover Magazine, 29 Aug. 2018 See More

Word History

Etymology

Adjective, Adverb, Verb, and Noun (2)

Middle English fager, fair, from Old English fæger; akin to Old High German fagar beautiful

Noun (1)

Middle English feire, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin feria weekday, fair, from Late Latin, festal day, from Latin feriae (plural) holidays — more at feast

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 5

Noun (1)

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adverb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1635, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Noun (2)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Kids Definition

fair

1 of 3 adjective

ˈfa(ə)r

ˈfe(ə)r

: attractive in appearance : beautiful

our fair city

: clean entry 1 sense 2, pure

fair sparkling water

: clear entry 1 sense 3, legible

make a fair copy

: not stormy or cloudy

fair weather

: unbiased, just

wanted fair treatment

: observing the rules : allowed

fair play

: open to lawful pursuit or attack

fair game

: promising, likely

a fair chance of winning

: favorable to a ship's course

a fair wind

: not dark

fair skin

: neither good nor bad

did a fair job

fairness noun

fair

2 of 3 adverb

: in a fair manner

play fair

fair

3 of 3 noun

: a gathering of buyers and sellers for trade

: an exhibition (as of farm products) usually with accompanying entertainment, amusements, and competitions

: a sale of articles usually for a charitable purpose

Legal Definition

fair

adjective

: characterized by honesty and justice : free from self-interest, deception, injustice, or favoritism

a fair and impartial tribunal

: reasonable as a basis for exchange

a fair wage

a fair valuation

: consistent with merit or importance

fair and just compensation for the injuries

: conforming with established laws or standards : being in accordance with a person's rights under the law

fair judicial process

fairly adverb

fairness noun

单词	fairs
释义	fair 1 of 5 adjective ˈfer 1 a : marked by impartiality and honesty : free from self-interest, prejudice, or favoritism a very fair person to do business with b(1) : conforming with the established rules : allowed (2) : consonant with merit or importance : due a fair share c : open to legitimate pursuit, attack, or ridicule fair game 2 a : not very good or very bad : of average or acceptable quality Her work was only fair. a patient upgraded from serious to fair condition b : sufficient but not ample : adequate a fair understanding of the work a fair chance of winning c : moderately numerous, large, or significant takes a fair amount of time a fair number of participants 3 : not stormy or foul : fine fair weather 4 : having very little color, coloring, or pigmentation : very light fair hair fair skin a person of fair complexion 5 : pleasing to the eye or mind especially because of fresh, charming, or flawless quality The innkeeper had two fair daughters. 6 : superficially pleasing : specious she trusted his fair promises 7 a : clean, pure fair sparkling water b : clear, legible an old manuscript written in a fair hand 8 : ample a fair estate 9 a : promising, likely in a fair way to win b : favorable to a ship's course a fair wind 10 : being such to the utmost : utter a fair treat to watch him—New Republic 11 archaic : free of obstacles fair 2 of 5 noun (1) 1 : a gathering of buyers and sellers at a particular place and time for trade 2 a : a competitive exhibition usually with accompanying entertainment and amusements an agricultural fair b : an exhibition designed to acquaint prospective buyers or the general public with a product a book fair c : an exposition that promotes the availability of services or opportunities health fairs job fairs 3 : a sale of assorted articles usually for a charitable purpose fair 3 of 5 adverb 1 : in a manner that is honest or impartial or that conforms to rules : in a fair manner play fair 2 chiefly British : fairly sense 3 fair makes you want to cry fair 4 of 5 verb faired; fairing; fairs intransitive verb of the weather : clear transitive verb : to join so that the external surfaces blend smoothly fair 5 of 5 noun (2) 1 : something that is fair or fortunate (see fair entry 1) 2 obsolete : beauty, fairness 3 archaic : woman especially : sweetheart Phrases for fair : to the greatest extent or degree : fully the rush is on for fair no fair : something that is not according to the rules that's no fair Did you know? Fair in Love and War For many people, the word fair brings to mind the aphorism “all is fair in love and war.” We have been using some variation of this saying for quite some time, although, as with many such expressions, it is difficult to pinpoint exactly when it began. As far back as 1578 John Lyly wrote “anye impietie may lawfully be committed in loue, which is lawlesse.” We do not see evidence of war juxtaposed with love until 1687, when Aphra Behn wrote “All Advantages are lawful in Love and War” in her play The Emperor of the Moon. By 1717 this had morphed into “All advantages are fair in love and war” in William Taverner’s play The Artful Husband. Finally, by 1789 we find the line used exactly as it is today in the novel The Relapse: “Tho’ this was a confounded lie, my friend, ‘all is fair in love and war’.” Synonyms Adjective bright clear cloudless sunny sunshiny unclouded Noun (1) display exhibit exhibition expo exposition show Adverb clean cleanly fairly legally See all Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Adjective "You boys not looking for any trouble, are you?" The question was fair. Millat's Crew looked like trouble. —Zadie Smith, White Teeth, (2000) 2001 "I have a good relationship with both Eddie and David. I think they've been fair to me." —Joni Mitchell, quoted in Rolling Stone, 30 May 1991 Everybody out, the Iraqis said, except CNN. Even CNN isn't sure why they made that decision. Perhaps it is because CNN alone is seen globally. What the Iraqis told us is that they had found our coverage since August to have been "fair." —Peter Arnett, Washington Post, 25-31 Mar. 1991 That's a fair question, and it deserves an honest reply. He is known as a very fair man. I try to be fair to my children. He claims that the competition wasn't fair. It's not fair that she gets to leave early and I don't. a fair and impartial jury a bargain that is fair to everyone “What a bad movie!” “Be fair! Parts of it are actually pretty funny.” I can't say I liked the movie, but, to be fair, parts of it are pretty funny. She did poorly on the test, but, to be fair, so did a lot of other people. Noun (1) At night the sparkling lights, hurdy-gurdy music of the merry-go-round, excited children, and screams of the riders on the roller coaster that races overhead recall the gaiety of a carnival midway at a county fair. —Witold Rybczynski, Atlantic, May 1993 Back at the street fair, in the smoky heat among vendors of souvenirs and street food, a flock of kids dances around a boom box playing Lionel Richie. —Barbara Kingsolver, New York Times Magazine, 12 Sept. 1993 "Do you like to go out? You know, party?" "Who doesn't?" "Well, the Ebony Fashion Fair is in three weeks. You want to go?" —Terry McMillan, Waiting to Exhale, 1992 Adverb we expect everyone on this basketball court to play fair it fair takes your breath away when you find out what properties in London are going for See More Recent Examples on the Web Adjective To be fair, a balloon is an unlikely attack mechanism for initiating a surprise nuclear war. —Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 15 Feb. 2023 To be fair, Shopify’s bounce comes after an outsized drop – even in the tech sector. —Geoffrey Morgan, Bloomberg.com, 14 Feb. 2023 To be fair, Musk did go out and do more or less much exactly that for electric cars and reusable rockets. —IEEE Spectrum, 14 Feb. 2023 So, to be fair, his dishes went in one sink and mine in another. —Marisa Kashino, Washington Post, 13 Feb. 2023 To be fair, none of us are fortune tellers, and predicting sudden market changes, new regulations and other unforeseeable factors is an impossible task. —Greg Coticchia, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2023 To be fair, the flood warnings, which have been in place since 2018, save lives, as Google points out. —Liza Featherstone, The New Republic, 13 Feb. 2023 To be fair, few singers could hope to live up to that level of hype. —Ed Masley, The Arizona Republic, 12 Feb. 2023 To be fair, the Academy could not have had the previous all-time Grammy winner on hand to honor Beyoncé. —Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 9 Feb. 2023 Noun During the fair, the LAFC will hold two soccer clinics — one on Thursday, one on Sunday — accommodating about 40 participants each. —Los Angeles Times, 14 Feb. 2023 The fair also includes a focus section spotlighting galleries that have been in operation for 12 years or fewer. —Degen Pener, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Feb. 2023 For 2023, the fair has extended dates giving visitors an extra day to browse. —Chadd Scott, Forbes, 12 Feb. 2023 In addition to the standard ticketing during the day, the fair also consists of two special ticketed evenings. —Isiah Magsino, Town & Country, 27 Jan. 2023 The fair also coincides with Monster Bulls (Feb. 11) and Silver Spurs Rodeo (Feb. 17-19). —Patrick Connolly, Orlando Sentinel, 26 Jan. 2023 The enrollment fair included more than 30 schools, most from the IPS district but also some from Warren Township. —Caroline Beck, The Indianapolis Star, 11 Jan. 2023 Now in its 20th year, Miami Art Week’s flagship fair is bigger than ever: 283 premier galleries from 38 countries and territories are presenting, with 26 participating for the first time. —Harper's BAZAAR, 28 Nov. 2022 The free fair also features art objects and live music. —San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Nov. 2022 Adverb Currently, two large-scale renovation projects are in the works to make the fair-going experience safer and more enjoyable for guests, Black said. —Claire Reid, Journal Sentinel, 14 July 2022 Verb The biggest talking point heading into Sunday’s race, was how the field would fair in what points-leader Power called maybe the worst Turn 1s in the series. —Nathan Brown, The Indianapolis Star, 5 Sep. 2022 The measures aren’t likely to fair well in the U.S. Senate. —Brooke Baitinger, Sun Sentinel, 9 June 2022 These freezes often kill off other spiders, but the Joro spider may fair better in colder environments. —Joshua Hawkins, BGR, 4 Mar. 2022 Companies who understand this are poised to fair better in today’s competitive market for talent. —Dr. Angela Jackson, Forbes, 31 Jan. 2022 Venezuelans applying for asylum in Miami tend to fair well in the city’s immigration courts, Allen said, receiving approval at a much higher rate than other nationalities. —Washington Post, 23 Nov. 2021 Keynote speaker is Steve Barbeaux of the Alaska Fisheries Science Center, who will describe how unprecedented warming in the Gulf of Alaska caused a cod crash in 2018 and a fishery shutdown in 2020, and how the stock might fair in a warming world. —Anchorage Daily News, 13 Apr. 2021 And since non-asteroid-belt asteroids don't tend to fair well in independent orbits, the researchers predict Itokawa will either break apart or collide with Earth within the next million years. —Jake Parks, Discover Magazine, 29 Aug. 2018 See More Word History Etymology Adjective, Adverb, Verb, and Noun (2) Middle English fager, fair, from Old English fæger; akin to Old High German fagar beautiful Noun (1) Middle English feire, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin feria weekday, fair, from Late Latin, festal day, from Latin feriae (plural) holidays — more at feast First Known Use Adjective before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 5 Noun (1) 14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1 Adverb before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1 Verb 1635, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense Noun (2) before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2 Phrases Containing fair a fair crack of the whip a fair shake a fair hearing all's fair in love and war bid fair fair/square deal fair ball fair and square fair chance fair catch fair enough fair copy fair game fair-haired fair market value fair-minded fair play fair sex fair's fair fair share fair-spoken fair to middling fair to say fair-trade agreement fair trade fair use fair wage fair warning fair-weather fun fair get a fair shake it's a fair cop job fair only fair no fair turnabout is fair play trade fair science fair world's fair vanity fair county fair play fair fair shake fair whack gave him a fair shake for fair See More a fair crack of the whip a fair shake a fair hearing all's fair in love and war bid fair fair/square deal fair ball fair and square fair chance fair catch fair enough fair copy fair game fair-haired fair market value fair-minded fair play fair sex fair's fair fair share fair-spoken fair to middling fair to say fair-trade agreement fair trade fair use fair wage fair warning fair-weather fun fair get a fair shake it's a fair cop job fair only fair no fair turnabout is fair play trade fair science fair world's fair vanity fair county fair play fair fair shake fair whack gave him a fair shake for fair See More Kids Definition fair 1 of 3 adjective ˈfa(ə)r ˈfe(ə)r 1 : attractive in appearance : beautiful our fair city 2 a : clean entry 1 sense 2, pure fair sparkling water b : clear entry 1 sense 3, legible make a fair copy 3 : not stormy or cloudy fair weather 4 a : unbiased, just wanted fair treatment b : observing the rules : allowed fair play c : open to lawful pursuit or attack fair game 5 a : promising, likely a fair chance of winning b : favorable to a ship's course a fair wind 6 : not dark fair skin 7 : neither good nor bad did a fair job fairness noun fair 2 of 3 adverb : in a fair manner play fair fair 3 of 3 noun 1 : a gathering of buyers and sellers for trade 2 : an exhibition (as of farm products) usually with accompanying entertainment, amusements, and competitions 3 : a sale of articles usually for a charitable purpose Legal Definition fair adjective 1 : characterized by honesty and justice : free from self-interest, deception, injustice, or favoritism a fair and impartial tribunal 2 : reasonable as a basis for exchange a fair wage a fair valuation 3 : consistent with merit or importance fair and just compensation for the injuries 4 : conforming with established laws or standards : being in accordance with a person's rights under the law fair judicial process fairly adverb fairness noun fairs noun plural of fair as in exhibitions a public showing of objects of interest a dazzling array of sleek cabin cruisers at the annual boat fair Synonyms & Similar Words Relevance exhibitions exhibits displays expos expositions productions demonstrations auctions presentations shows performances sales offerings spectacles extravaganzas pageants presentments
随便看	trucks truckway truculence truculences truculencies truculency truculent truculently Trudeau trudellite trudge trudged trudgen crawl trudgen stroke trudgens trudgeons trudger trudgers trudges trudging trudgings truditur dies die true true airspeed true altitude

fair

adjective

noun (1)

adverb

verb

noun (2)

Did you know?

Synonyms

Example Sentences

Word History

Phrases Containing fair

Kids Definition

Legal Definition

noun