fawn

pronunciation

How to pronounce fawn in British English: UK [fɔ:n] word uk audio image

How to pronounce fawn in American English: US [fɔn] word us audio image

Noun:

a color varying around light grayish brown
young deer
Verb:

show submission or fear
try to gain favor by cringing or flattering
have fawns

Word Origin

fawn: fawn: Fawn ‘young deer’ [14] and fawn ‘grovel’ [13] are two distinct words. The latter did not always have the negative associations of ‘servility’ which it usually carries today. Originally it simply referred to dogs showing they were happy – by wagging their tails, for instance. It was a derivative of Old English fægen ‘happy’, an adjective of Germanic origin which survives in the archaic fain ‘willingly’ (as in ‘I would fain go’). Fawn ‘young deer’ comes via Old French faon ‘young of an animal’ and Vulgar Latin *fētō from Latin fētus ‘giving birth, offspring’ (whence English foetus).The general sense ‘young of an animal’ survived into the early 17th century in English (James I’s translation of the Psalms, for instance, in 1603, has ‘the fawn of unicorns’ in Psalm 29, where the Authorized Version simply refers to ‘a young unicorn’), but on the whole ‘young of the deer’ seems to have been the main sense of the word from the 15th century onwards.Its use as a colour term, after the pale yellowish brown of a young deer’s coat, dates from the 19th century.=> fain, foetus

fawn (n.): "young deer," mid-14c., from Anglo-French (late 13c.), Old French (12c.) faon, feon "young animal," especially "young deer," from Vulgar Latin *fetonem (nominative *feto), from Latin fetus "a bringing forth; an offspring" (see fetus). It was used of the young of any animal as recently as King James I's private translation of the Psalms, but the sense has been mainly of deer since 15c. Color use is by 1881.

fawn (v.): Old English fægnian "rejoice, be glad, exult, applaud," from fægen "glad" (see fain); used in Middle English to refer to expressions of delight, especially a dog wagging its tail (early 13c.), hence "court favor, grovel, act slavishly" (early 14c.). Related: Fawned; fawning.

1. Once , when he thought he had him safe , the fawn sprang over the bushes and disappeared .

2. To satisfy the queen , he took part of the inside of a young fawn , which the wicked woman thought was poor little snow-white , and was overjoyed to think she was dead .

3. In the morning the wound was so much better that the fawn felt the foot almost as strong as ever , and so , when he again heard the holloa of the hunters , he could not rest .

4. After they had been alone in the forest for some time , and the little sister had grown a lovely maiden , and the fawn a large stag , a numerous hunting party came to the forest , and amongst them the king of the country .

5. So they went together , and when the king saw it he sent his companion home , and went on alone so quickly that he arrived there before the fawn ; and , going up to the little door , knocked and said softly , " dear little sister , let me in . "