different between fair vs ability
fair
English
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /f??/, /f??/
- (General American) IPA(key): /f???/
- (General Australian) IPA(key): /fe?(?)/
- (General New Zealand) IPA(key): /f??/
- Rhymes: -??(?)
- Homophone: fare
Etymology 1
From Middle English fayr, feir, fager, from Old English fæ?er (“beautiful”), from Proto-West Germanic *fagr, from Proto-Germanic *fagraz (“suitable, fitting, nice”), from Proto-Indo-European *peh??- (“to fasten, place”).
Cognate with Scots fayr, fare (“fair”), Danish feir, faver, fager (“fair, pretty”), Norwegian fager (“fair, pretty”), Swedish fager (“fair, pretty”), Icelandic fagur (“beautiful, fair”), Umbrian pacer (“gracious, merciful, kind”), Slovak pekný (“good-looking, handsome, nice”). See also peace.
Adjective
fair (comparative fairer, superlative fairest)
- (archaic or literary) Beautiful, of a pleasing appearance, with a pure and fresh quality.
- 1460-1500, The Towneley Plays?
- He is so fair, without lease, he seems full well to sit on this.
- 1460-1500, The Towneley Plays?
- Unblemished (figuratively or literally); clean and pure; innocent.
- 1605, The Booke of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments, London: Robert Barker, “The order for the administration of the Lords Supper, or holy Communion,”[1]
- The Table hauing at the Communion time a faire white linnen cloth vpon it, shall stand in the body of the Church, or in the Chancell, where Morning prayer and Euening prayer be appointed to be said.
- 1665, Robert Hooke, Micrographia, London, Observation 21, “Of Moss, and several other small vegetative Substances,” p. 135,[2]
- […] I have observ’d, that putting fair Water (whether Rain-water or Pump-water, or May-dew, or Snow-water, it was almost all one) I have often observ’d, I say, that this Water would, with a little standing, tarnish and cover all about the sides of the Glass that lay under water, with a lovely green […]
- 1605, The Booke of Common Prayer, and Administration of the Sacraments, London: Robert Barker, “The order for the administration of the Lords Supper, or holy Communion,”[1]
- Light in color, pale, particularly with regard to skin tone but also referring to blond hair.
- 1677, Matthew Hale, The Primitive Origination of Mankind, Considered and Examined According to the Light of Nature, page 200
- the northern people large and fair-complexioned
- This new-comer was a man who in any company would have seemed striking. In complexion fair, and with blue or gray eyes, he was tall as any Viking, as broad in the shoulder.
- 1677, Matthew Hale, The Primitive Origination of Mankind, Considered and Examined According to the Light of Nature, page 200
- Just, equitable.
- “[…] it is not fair of you to bring against mankind double weapons?! Dangerous enough you are as woman alone, without bringing to your aid those gifts of mind suited to problems which men have been accustomed to arrogate to themselves.”
- Adequate, reasonable, or decent.
- Their performance has been only fair.
- (nautical, of a wind) Favorable to a ship's course.
- 1885, Richard F. Burton, The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night, Night 563:
- I shipped with them and becoming friends, we set forth on our venture, in health and safety; and sailed with a fair wind, till we came to a city called Madínat-al-Sín; […]
- 1885, Richard F. Burton, The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night, Night 563:
- Not overcast; cloudless; clear; pleasant; propitious; said of the sky, weather, or wind, etc.
- 1909, Frank R. Stockton, The adventures of Captain Horn Chapter 42
- They had good weather and tolerably fair winds, and before they entered the Straits of Magellan the captain had formulated a plan for the disposition of Garta.
- 1909, Frank R. Stockton, The adventures of Captain Horn Chapter 42
- Free from obstacles or hindrances; unobstructed; unencumbered; open; direct; said of a road, passage, etc.
- c. 1610?, Walter Raleigh, A Discourse of War
- The caliphs obtained a mighty empire, which was in a fair way to have enlarged.
- c. 1610?, Walter Raleigh, A Discourse of War
- (shipbuilding) Without sudden change of direction or curvature; smooth; flowing; said of the figure of a vessel, and of surfaces, water lines, and other lines.
- (baseball) Between the baselines.
- (rugby, of a catch) Taken direct from an opponent's foot, without the ball touching the ground or another player.
- (cricket, of a ball delivered by the bowler) Not a no-ball.
- (statistics) Of a coin or die, having equal chance of landing on any side, unbiased.
Synonyms
- (beautiful): beautiful, pretty, lovely
- (unblemished): pure, clean, neat
- (light in color): pale
- (just): honest, just, equitable
Derived terms
Translations
Noun
fair (plural fair)
- Something which is fair (in various senses of the adjective).
- When will we learn to distinguish between the fair and the foul?
- (obsolete) A woman, a member of the ‘fair sex’; also as a collective singular, women.
- 1744, Georg Friedrich Händel, Hercules, act 2, scene 8
- Love and Hymen, hand in hand, / Come, restore the nuptial band! / And sincere delights prepare / To crown the hero and the fair.
- 1819, Lord Byron, Don Juan, III.24:
- If single, probably his plighted Fair / Has in his absence wedded some rich miser […].
- 1744, Georg Friedrich Händel, Hercules, act 2, scene 8
- (obsolete) Fairness, beauty.
- A fair woman; a sweetheart.
- 1743, William Shenstone, A Pastoral Ballad
- I have found out a gift for my fair.
- 1743, William Shenstone, A Pastoral Ballad
- (obsolete) Good fortune; good luck.
- c. 1590–1592, William Shakespeare, The Taming of the Shrew, Act V scene ii[3]:
- Now, fair befall thee, good Petruchio!
- c. 1590–1592, William Shakespeare, The Taming of the Shrew, Act V scene ii[3]:
Verb
fair (third-person singular simple present fairs, present participle fairing, simple past and past participle faired)
- (transitive) To smoothen or even a surface (especially a connection or junction on a surface).
- (transitive) To bring into perfect alignment (especially about rivet holes when connecting structural members).
- (transitive, art) To make an animation smooth, removing any jerkiness.
- 1996, Computer Animation '96: June 3-4, 1996, Geneva, Switzerland (page 136)
- Since the sequence of data contain sampling noises, the captured motion is not smooth and wiggles along the moving path. There are well-known fairing algorithms in Euclidean space based on difference geometry.
- 1996, Computer Animation '96: June 3-4, 1996, Geneva, Switzerland (page 136)
- (transitive) To construct or design with the aim of producing a smooth outline or reducing air drag or water resistance.
- 1920, Technical Report of the Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (page 206)
- Two forward cars were provided with the model. One of these (shown detached in Fig. 1) was faired at its after end, with a view to possible reduction of head resistance, and to induce a better flow of air to the propeller.
- 1920, Technical Report of the Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (page 206)
- (transitive, obsolete) To make fair or beautiful.
Synonyms
- (to reduce air drag or water resistance): to streamline
Derived terms
- fair off
- fair up
- fairing
Translations
Adverb
fair (comparative more fair or fairer, superlative most fair or fairest)
- clearly, openly, frankly, civilly, honestly, favorably, auspiciously, agreeably
Derived terms
- bid fair
- fair and square
Etymology 2
From Middle English feyre, from Old French foire, from Latin f?riae.
Noun
fair (plural fairs)
- A community gathering to celebrate and exhibit local achievements.
- An event for public entertainment and trade, a market.
- An event for professionals in a trade to learn of new products and do business, a trade fair.
- A travelling amusement park (called a funfair in British English and a (travelling) carnival in US English).
Derived terms
- fairgrounds
- funfair
Translations
References
- fair at OneLook Dictionary Search
- fair in Keywords for Today: A 21st Century Vocabulary, edited by The Keywords Project, Colin MacCabe, Holly Yanacek, 2018.
- fair in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
Anagrams
- RIFA, fiar, rifa-
German
Etymology
From English fair, from Old English fæ?er, from Proto-West Germanic *fagr, from Proto-Germanic *fagraz, whence also Middle High German vager (“splendid, wonderful”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /f??r/, [f????], [fe???], [f???]
- Hyphenation: fair
Adjective
fair (comparative fairer, superlative am fairsten)
- (especially sports) fair (just, honest, equitable, adequate)
Declension
Synonyms
- anständig
- ehrlich
- gerecht
- gleich
- ausgeglichen
- angemessen
- sauber
Antonyms
- unfair
Derived terms
- Fairness (rarely Fairheit)
- Fairplay
- Fair-Use-Doktrin
Further reading
- “fair” in Duden online
- “fair” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache
Hungarian
Etymology
From English fair.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [?f?r], [?f??r]
- Hyphenation: fair
- Rhymes: -?r
Adjective
fair (comparative fairebb, superlative legfairebb)
- fair (just, equitable)
- Synonyms: méltányos, tisztességes, becsületes, igazságos, korrekt, sportszer?
Declension
Derived terms
- fair play
- fairül
Further reading
- fair in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh: A magyar nyelv értelmez? szótára (’The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: ?ISBN
Irish
Etymology
See aire (“watching, attention”)
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [f?a??]
Verb
fair (present analytic faireann, future analytic fairfidh, verbal noun faire, past participle fairthe)
- to watch
Conjugation
Mutation
References
- MacBain, Alexander; Mackay, Eneas (1911) , “fair”, in An Etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic Language, Stirling, ?ISBN, page 160
Polish
Etymology
From English fair.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /f?r/
Adjective
fair (not comparable)
- fair (just, equitable)
- Synonym: uczciwy
Declension
Indeclinable.
Adverb
fair (not comparable)
- fairly (in a fair manner)
- Synonym: uczciwie
Related terms
- (noun) fair play
Further reading
- fair in Wielki s?ownik j?zyka polskiego, Instytut J?zyka Polskiego PAN
- fair in Polish dictionaries at PWN
fair From the web:
- what fair is going on right now
- what fairs are open
- what fairs are open near me
- what fairy am i
- what fairy tail character am i
- what fairies actually look like
- what fairytale is donkey from
- what fair is open today
ability
English
Alternative forms
- abilitie, hability, habilitie (obsolete)
Etymology
First attested in the 1300s. From Middle English abilite (“suitability, aptitude, ability”), from Middle French habilité, from Old French ableté, from Latin habilit?s (“aptness, ability”), from habilis (“apt, fit, skillful, able”), equivalent to able +? -ity.
Pronunciation
- (US) IPA(key): /??b?l.?.ti/, /??.b?l.?.ti/
- Rhymes: -?l?ti
Noun
ability (countable and uncountable, plural abilities)
- (obsolete) Suitableness. [Attested from around (1350 to 1470) until the late 17th century.]
- (uncountable) The quality or state of being able; capacity to do or of doing something; having the necessary power. [First attested from around (1350 to 1470).]
- The legal wherewithal to act. [First attested in the mid 17th century.]
- (now limited to Scotland dialects) Physical power. [First attested from around (1350 to 1470).]
- (archaic) Financial ability. [First attested in the early 16th century.]
- (uncountable) A unique power of the mind; a faculty. [First attested in the late 16 th century.]
- (countable) A skill or competence in doing; mental power; talent; aptitude. [First attested in the early 17 th century.]
- 1769, King James Bible, Acts 11:29
- Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren.
- 1769, King James Bible, Acts 11:29
Usage notes
- Ability, capacity : these words come into comparison when applied to the higher intellectual powers.
- Ability has reference to the active exercise of our faculties. It implies not only native vigor of mind, but that ease and promptitude of execution which arise from mental training. Thus, we speak of the ability with which a book is written, an argument maintained, a negotiation carried on, etc. It always supposes something to be done, and the power of doing it.
- Capacity has reference to the receptive powers. In its higher exercises it supposes great quickness of apprehension and breadth of intellect, with an uncommon aptitude for acquiring and retaining knowledge. Hence it carries with it the idea of resources and undeveloped power. Thus we speak of the extraordinary capacity of such men as Lord Bacon, Blaise Pascal, and Edmund Burke. "Capacity," says H. Taylor, "is requisite to devise, and ability to execute, a great enterprise."
- The word abilities, in the plural, embraces both these qualities, and denotes high mental endowments.
Synonyms
- (quality or state of being able): capacity, faculty, capability
- (a skill or competence): See Thesaurus:skill
- (high level of skill or capability): talent, cleverness, dexterity, aptitude
- (suitability or receptiveness to be acted upon): capability, faculty, capacity, aptness, aptitude
Antonyms
- inability, unability
- disability
Derived terms
- notability
Related terms
- able
Translations
Further reading
- ability in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
- ability in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
References
ability From the web:
- what ability is associated with linguistic intelligence
- what ability is associated with interpersonal intelligence
- what ability mean
- what ability hatches eggs faster
- what ability scores for druid
- what ability of cells is affected by taxol
- what ability do i have kotlc
- what ability of cells is affected by 5-fu
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