firk

English

Part or all of this entry has been imported from the 1913 edition of Webster’s Dictionary, which is now free of copyright and hence in the public domain. The imported definitions may be significantly out of date, and any more recent senses may be completely missing.
(See the entry for firk in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.)

Alternative forms

Pronunciation
  • Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)k

Etymology 1

From Middle English firken, ferken (“to proceed, hasten”), from Old English fercian (“to bring, assist, support, carry, conduct, convey, proceed”); perhaps akin to Old English faran (“to fare, go”), English fare; if so, equivalent to fare +‎ -k. Cognate with Old High German fuora (“benefit, sustenance, support”), Swabian fergen, ferken (“to bring, dispatch”).

Verb

firk (third-person singular simple present firks, present participle firking, simple past and past participle firked)

  1. (transitive) To carry away or about; carry; move.
  2. (transitive) To drive away.
    I'll fer him, and firk him, and ferret him. - Shakespeare The Life of Henry the Fifth: IV, iv
  3. (transitive) To rouse; raise up.
  4. (intransitive) To move quickly; go off or fly out suddenly; turn out.
    • Ben Jonson
      A wench is a rare bait, with which a man / No sooner's taken but he straight firks mad.

Noun

firk (plural firks)

  1. A stroke; lash.

Etymology 2

Probably an alteration of freak.

Noun

firk (plural firks)

  1. (Britain dialectal) A freak; trick; quirk.
Derived terms
  • firkery
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.