Library / English Dictionary

    FAIR

    Pronunciation (US): Play  (GB): Play

     I. (noun) 

    Sense 1

    Meaning:

    A traveling show; having sideshows and rides and games of skill etc.play

    Synonyms:

    carnival; fair; funfair

    Classified under:

    Nouns denoting acts or actions

    Hypernyms ("fair" is a kind of...):

    show (the act of publicly exhibiting or entertaining)

    Meronyms (parts of "fair"):

    midway (the place at a fair or carnival where sideshows and similar amusements are located)

    Sense 2

    Meaning:

    A sale of miscellany; often for charityplay

    Example:

    the church bazaar

    Synonyms:

    bazaar; fair

    Classified under:

    Nouns denoting acts or actions

    Hypernyms ("fair" is a kind of...):

    cut-rate sale; sale; sales event (an occasion (usually brief) for buying at specially reduced prices)

    Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "fair"):

    book fair; bookfair (bazaar at which books are sold or auctioned off in order to raise funds for a worthy cause)

    craft fair (a fair at which objects made by craftsmen are offered for sale)

    Sense 3

    Meaning:

    A competitive exhibition of farm productsplay

    Example:

    she won a blue ribbon for her baking at the county fair

    Classified under:

    Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects

    Hypernyms ("fair" is a kind of...):

    exhibition; expo; exposition (a collection of things (goods or works of art etc.) for public display)

    Sense 4

    Meaning:

    Gathering of producers to promote businessplay

    Example:

    book fair

    Classified under:

    Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects

    Hypernyms ("fair" is a kind of...):

    assemblage; gathering (a group of persons together in one place)

    Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "fair"):

    book fair; bookfair (fair organized by publishers or booksellers to promote the sale of books)

     II. (adjective) 

    Comparative and superlative

    Comparative: fairer  Listen to US pronunciation  Listen to GB pronunciation

    Superlative: fairest  Listen to US pronunciation  Listen to GB pronunciation

    Sense 1

    Meaning:

    Very pleasing to the eyeplay

    Example:

    young fair maidens

    Synonyms:

    bonnie; bonny; comely; fair; sightly

    Classified under:

    Adjectives

    Similar:

    beautiful (delighting the senses or exciting intellectual or emotional admiration)

    Derivation:

    fairness (the quality of being good looking and attractive)

    Sense 2

    Meaning:

    (used of hair or skin) pale or light-coloredplay

    Example:

    a fair complexion

    Synonyms:

    fair; fairish

    Classified under:

    Adjectives

    Similar:

    blond; blonde; light-haired (being or having light colored skin and hair and usually blue or grey eyes)

    Derivation:

    fairness (the property of having a naturally light complexion)

    Sense 3

    Meaning:

    Free of clouds or rainplay

    Example:

    today will be fair and warm

    Classified under:

    Adjectives

    Similar:

    clear (free from clouds or mist or haze)

    Sense 4

    Meaning:

    (of a baseball) hit between the foul linesplay

    Example:

    he hit a fair ball over the third base bag

    Classified under:

    Adjectives

    Similar:

    in-bounds (between the first and third base lines)

    Domain category:

    ball; baseball; baseball game (a ball game played with a bat and ball between two teams of nine players; teams take turns at bat trying to score runs)

    Antonym:

    foul ((of a baseball) not hit between the foul lines)

    Sense 5

    Meaning:

    Free from favoritism or self-interest or bias or deception; conforming with established standards or rulesplay

    Example:

    by fair means or foul

    Synonyms:

    fair; just

    Classified under:

    Adjectives

    Similar:

    antimonopoly; antitrust (of laws and regulations; designed to protect trade and commerce from unfair business practices)

    clean; sporting; sportsmanlike; sporty (exhibiting or calling for sportsmanship or fair play)

    fair-minded (of a person; just and impartial; not prejudiced)

    fair-and-square (just and honest)

    Also:

    just (used especially of what is legally or ethically right or proper or fitting)

    impartial (showing lack of favoritism)

    reasonable; sensible (showing reason or sound judgment)

    Attribute:

    equity; fairness (conformity with rules or standards)

    Antonym:

    unfair (not fair; marked by injustice or partiality or deception)

    Derivation:

    fairness (conformity with rules or standards)

    Sense 6

    Meaning:

    Gained or earned without cheating or stealingplay

    Example:

    an fair penny

    Synonyms:

    fair; honest

    Classified under:

    Adjectives

    Similar:

    equitable; just (fair to all parties as dictated by reason and conscience)

    Sense 7

    Meaning:

    (of a manuscript) having few alterations or correctionsplay

    Example:

    a clean manuscript

    Synonyms:

    clean; fair

    Classified under:

    Adjectives

    Similar:

    legible ((of handwriting, print, etc.) capable of being read or deciphered)

    Sense 8

    Meaning:

    Attractively feminineplay

    Example:

    the fair sex

    Classified under:

    Adjectives

    Similar:

    feminine (associated with women and not with men)

    Derivation:

    fairness (the quality of being good looking and attractive)

    Sense 9

    Meaning:

    Not excessive or extremeplay

    Example:

    reasonable prices

    Synonyms:

    fair; fairish; reasonable

    Classified under:

    Adjectives

    Similar:

    moderate (being within reasonable or average limits; not excessive or extreme)

    Derivation:

    fairness (conformity with rules or standards)

    Sense 10

    Meaning:

    Lacking exceptional quality or abilityplay

    Example:

    the performance was middling at best

    Synonyms:

    average; fair; mediocre; middling

    Classified under:

    Adjectives

    Similar:

    ordinary (not exceptional in any way especially in quality or ability or size or degree)

     III. (verb) 

    Verb forms

    Present simple: I / you / we / they fair  Listen to US pronunciation  Listen to GB pronunciation ... he / she / it fairs  Listen to US pronunciation  Listen to GB pronunciation

    Past simple: faired  Listen to US pronunciation  Listen to GB pronunciation

    Past participle: faired  Listen to US pronunciation  Listen to GB pronunciation

    -ing form: fairing  Listen to US pronunciation  Listen to GB pronunciation

    Sense 1

    Meaning:

    Join so that the external surfaces blend smoothlyplay

    Classified under:

    Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

    Hypernyms (to "fair" is one way to...):

    join (cause to become joined or linked)

    Sentence frame:

    Somebody ----s something

     IV. (adverb) 

    Sense 1

    Meaning:

    Without favoring one party, in a fair evenhanded mannerplay

    Example:

    deal fairly with one another

    Synonyms:

    evenhandedly; fair; fairly

    Classified under:

    Adverbs

    Sense 2

    Meaning:

    In conformity with the rules or laws and without fraud or cheatingplay

    Example:

    they played fairly

    Synonyms:

    clean; fair; fairly

    Classified under:

    Adverbs

    Credits

     Context examples: 

    It is characterized by hypopigmentation of the skin, hair, and eyes, resulting in very fair skin, white colored hair, and reduced pigmentation in the iris and retina.

    (Oculocutaneous Albinism, NCI Thesaurus)

    It happened once that the father was going to the fair, and asked his wife’s daughters what he should bring them.

    (Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

    As the schooner paid off, the fore- and main-sheets were slacked away for fair wind.

    (The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

    It is a fair argument that wherever No. 3 came from is also the source of Nos. 1 and 2.

    (The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

    I cook breakfast, I eat, then I sleep on the beach three hours. I wake up. It is ten o'clock. Snow is falling. There is wind, much wind that blows fair.

    (Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

    It is only fair to them to say that.

    (The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

    Dave was fair and very wise.

    (The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

    But dark or fair, she is my own dear little girlie, and her mother’s pet.

    (The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

    I am very sensible, madam, of the hardship to my fair cousins, and could say much on the subject, but that I am cautious of appearing forward and precipitate.

    (Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

    The other was fair, as fair as can be, with great wavy masses of golden hair and eyes like pale sapphires.

    (Dracula, by Bram Stoker)


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