fair

¹

[ fair ]

adjective

, fair·er, fair·est.

1. free from bias, dishonesty, or injustice:

   a fair decision;

   a fair judge.

2. legitimately sought, pursued, done, given, etc.; proper under the rules:

   a fair fight.

3. moderately large; ample:

   a fair income.

4. of a light hue; not dark:

   fair skin.

   Synonyms: blond, pale

5. pleasing in appearance; attractive:

   a fair young maiden.

   Synonyms: lovely, comely, pretty

6. neither excellent nor poor; moderately or tolerably good:

   fair health.

   Synonyms: favorable, acceptable, adequate, tolerable, passable

7. marked by favoring conditions; promising:

   I can now assure my two little daughters of a fair future.

   The chief medical officer pronounced him in a fair way to recovery.

8. Meteorology.
   1. (of the sky) bright; sunny; cloudless to half-cloudy.
   2. (of the weather) fine; with no prospect of rain, snow, or hail; not stormy.
9. unobstructed; not blocked up:

   The way was fair for our advance.

   Synonyms: unencumbered, clear, open

10. without irregularity or unevenness:

    a fair surface.

11. free from blemish, imperfection, or anything that impairs the appearance, quality, or character:

    Her fair reputation was ruined by gossip.

    Synonyms: unstained, unsullied, pure, spotless, clean

12. easy to read; clear:

    fair handwriting.

    Synonyms: legible, readable, intelligible

13. seemingly good or sincere but not really so:

    The suitor beguiled his mistress with fair speeches.

14. courteous; civil:

    fair words.

    Synonyms: gracious, polite

15. Nautical. (of a wind or tide) tending to aid the progress of a vessel.
16. Medicine/Medical. (of a patient's condition) having stable and normal vital signs and other favorable indicators, as appetite and mobility, but being in some discomfort and having the possibility of a worsening state.
17. Dialect. scarcely; barely:

    It was just fair daylight when we started working.

adverb

, fair·er, fair·est.

1. in a fair manner:

   He doesn't play fair.

2. straight; directly, as in aiming or hitting:

   He threw the ball fair to the goal.

3. favorably; auspiciously.
4. British, Australian. entirely; completely; quite:

   It happened so quickly that it fair took my breath away.

noun

1. Archaic. something that is fair.
2. Archaic.
   1. a woman.
   2. a beloved woman.

verb (used with object)

1. to make the connection or junction of (surfaces) smooth and even.
2. Shipbuilding.
   1. to draw and adjust (the lines of a hull being designed) to produce regular surfaces of the correct form.
   2. to adjust the form of (a frame or templet) in accordance with a design, or cause it to conform to the general form of a hull.
   3. to restore (a bent plate or structural member) to its original form.
   4. to align (the frames of a vessel under construction) in proper position.
3. to bring (rivet holes in connecting structural members) into perfect alignment.
4. Obsolete. to make fair.

verb phrase

1. South Midland and Southern U.S. (of the weather) to clear:

   It's supposed to fair off toward evening.

fair

²

[ fair ]

noun

1. an exhibition, usually competitive, of farm products, livestock, etc., often combined with entertainment and held annually by a county or state.
2. a periodic gathering of buyers and sellers in an appointed place.
3. an exposition in which different exhibitors participate, sometimes with the purpose of buying or selling:

   More than twenty-five employers with multiple open positions will be meeting with applicants at this weekend’s job fair.

4. an exhibition and sale of articles to raise money, often for some charitable purpose.

fair

¹

/ fɛə /

noun

1. a travelling entertainment with sideshows, rides, etc, esp one that visits places at the same time each year
2. a gathering of producers of and dealers in a given class of products to facilitate business

   a book fair

3. an event including amusements and the sale of goods, esp for a charity; bazaar
4. a regular assembly at a specific place for the sale of goods, esp livestock

fair

²

/ fɛə /

adjective

1. free from discrimination, dishonesty, etc; just; impartial
2. in conformity with rules or standards; legitimate

   a fair fight

3. (of the hair or complexion) light in colour
4. beautiful or lovely to look at
5. moderately or quite good

   a fair piece of work

6. unblemished; untainted
7. (of the tide or wind) favourable to the passage of a vessel
8. sunny, fine, or cloudless
9. informal.
   prenominal thorough; real

   a fair battle to get to the counter

10. pleasant or courteous
11. apparently good or valuable, but really false

    fair words

12. open or unobstructed

    a fair passage

13. (of handwriting) clear and legible
14. a fair crack of the whip or a fair shake of the dice or a fair go informal.
    a fair opportunity; fair chance
15. fair and square
    in a correct or just way
16. fair do's
    1. equal shares or treatment
    2. an expression of appeal for equal shares or treatment
17. fair enough!
    an expression of agreement
18. fair go! informal.
    come off it!; I don't believe it!
19. fair to middling
    about average

adverb

1. in a fair way; correctly

   act fair, now!

2. absolutely or squarely; quite

   the question caught him fair off his guard

3. dialect.
   really or very

   fair tired

verb

1. dialect.
   intr (of the weather) to become fine and mild

noun

1. archaic.
   a person or thing that is beautiful or valuable, esp a woman

Derived Forms

• ˈfairness, noun

Other Words From

• fairness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of fair¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English fæger “beautiful, attractive”; cognate with Old Saxon, Old High German fagar, “beautiful, peaceful,” fagr, “beautiful, bright,” Gothic fagrs “fitting”

Origin of fair²

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English feire, from Anglo-French, Old French, from Late Latin fēria “religious festival, holiday” ( Medieval Latin: “market”), in Latin only plural; akin to feast

Word History and Origins

Origin of fair¹

C13: from Old French feire, from Late Latin fēria holiday, from Latin fēriae days of rest: related to festus festal

Origin of fair²

Old English fæger ; related to Old Norse fagr , Old Saxon, Old High German fagar , Gothic fagrs suitable

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. bid fair, to seem likely:

   This entry bids fair to win first prize.

2. fair and square,
   1. honestly; justly; straightforwardly:

      He won the race fair and square.

   2. honest; just; straightforward:

      He was admired for being fair and square in all his dealings.

3. fair to middling, Informal. only tolerably good; so-so.

More idioms and phrases containing fair

• all's fair in love and war
• play fair
• turnabout is fair play

Synonym Study

Fair, impartial, disinterested, unprejudiced refer to lack of bias in opinions, judgments, etc. Fair implies the treating of all sides alike, justly and equitably: a fair compromise. Impartial, like fair, implies showing no more favor to one side than another, but suggests particularly a judicial consideration of a case: an impartial judge. Disinterested implies a fairness arising particularly from lack of desire to obtain a selfish advantage: The motives of her guardian were entirely disinterested. Unprejudiced means not influenced or swayed by bias, or by prejudice caused by irrelevant considerations: an unprejudiced decision.

Example Sentences

He won fair and square but to call it an overwhelming mandate to dismantle the government is ridiculous.

From Salon

He was fiercely attacked for attending a book fair in Jerusalem in 2012.

From BBC

Conflating neo-Nazis with protesters for Palestinian human rights is in itself problematic, but blurring the hard right’s direct connection to white nationalism with “let’s be fair to both sides” comments was inexcusable.

From Los Angeles Times

Like most women of a certain age, Bates has dealt with her fair share of ageism.

From Los Angeles Times

Last month, Gallup reported that “Americans continue to register record-low trust in the mass media, with 31% expressing a ‘great deal’ or ‘fair amount’ of confidence in the media to report the news ‘fully, accurately and fairly,’ similar to last year’s 32%.

From Salon

Related Words

• bazaar
• celebration
• display
• exhibit
• festival
• gala
• market
• pageant
• show