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Synonyms

fist

1 American  
[fist] / fɪst /

noun

  1. the hand closed tightly, with the fingers doubled into the palm.

  2. Informal. the hand.

  3. Informal. a person's handwriting.

  4. Printing. index.

verb (used with object)

  1. to make (one's hand) into a fist.

  2. to grasp in the fist.

fist 2 American  
[fahyst] / faɪst /

noun

  1. feist.

fist British  
/ fɪst /

noun

  1. a hand with the fingers clenched into the palm, as for hitting

  2. Also called: fistful.  the quantity that can be held in a fist or hand

  3. an informal word for hand index

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. (tr) to hit with the fist

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
fist Idioms  

  1. see hand over fist.

Etymology

Origin of fist

before 900; Middle English; Old English fȳst; cognate with German Faust fist; perhaps akin to five

Explanation

Want to hit a punching bag? First you need to curl your fingers into your palm to make a fist, or a clenched hand. You might make a fist and bump it against your friend's as a greeting, or use it to clutch something tightly: "She held the balloon in one fist, and an ice cream cone in the other." Fists are also used to punch hard, and a fist fight is a serious physical altercation. When we trace this word back to its origin, we find a closely related root meaning "five," for the five fingers of a hand.

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Both Keiko Fujimori and another of the front runners in the opinion polls, Rafael López Aliaga, have promised to use an "iron fist" to tackle the crime wave the country is experiencing.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2026

He described throwing out his fist as an “instant reaction.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026

Video shows renderings of the building with golden escalators and a golden statue of the president raising his fist in the air.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 1, 2026

Another video shows Kid Rock pumping his fist before a second gunship appears to fly by his mansion, which he has dubbed the Southern White House.

From BBC • Mar. 30, 2026

A potato, fist sized, enough for a child’s breakfast.

From "Nory Ryan’s Song" by Patricia Reilly Giff

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.