fån

See also: Appendix:Variations of "fan"

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Swedish fāne, from Old Norse fáni (“vain person, swaggerer”), but of unknown ultimate origin. Related to middle Danish fåne (“fool”).[1][2] Perhaps related to or influenced by fjäll (“rock, cliff, mountain”).[3] Compare also English fumble, Norwegian Nynorsk fomme (“clumsy fool”).

Possibly loaned into English, compare fun, fond.

Pronunciation

  • Rhymes: -oːn

Noun

fån n

  1. idiot, fool, halfwit, stupid person
    Stå inte där som ett fån
    Don't stand there like an idiot

Usage notes

  • Often has connotations of seeming a bit lost and confused, in a silly, dumb, conspicuous way (that might arouse löje in severe cases). Closer to fool than idiot, but not as old-fashioned, hence the translation.
  • A synonym is fåne. Fån is always used in "som ett fån," and "är ett fån" is more common than "är en fåne."

Declension

Declension of fån
nominative genitive
singular indefinite fån fåns
definite fånet fånets
plural indefinite fån fåns
definite fånen fånens

See also

Verb

fån

  1. inflection of få:
    1. (obsolete) second-person plural present indicative
    2. (archaic or dialectal) second-person plural imperative
    • Upp, alla I som ären törstiga, kommen hit och fån vatten
      Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters
      (literally, “Ho, all of you who are thirsty, come ye here and get water”)
      (Isaiah 55:1)

References

  1. ^ Verity, A. W., Milton, J. (1904). Samson Agonistes: With Introd., Notes, Glossary and Indexes. United Kingdom: University Press, p. 147
  2. ^ Ó Muirithe, D. (2011). Words We Don't Use (Much Anymore): The Meaning of Words And Where They Come From. Ireland: Gill Books.
  3. ^ “fån”, in Svenska Akademiens ordbok [Dictionary of the Swedish Academy]‎[1] (in Swedish), 1937
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