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fenny

adj
/ˈfɛni/US

Etymology

From Middle English fenny, fenni (“marshy, muddy; of meat: putrid, rotten; of a person: sinful, vile”), from Old English fenniġ (“dirty; marshy, muddy, fenny”), from fen, fenn (“marsh, fen; mud”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pen- (“moist, wet; mud; swamp; water”)) + -iġ (suffix forming adjectives). The English word is analysable as fen + -y (suffix meaning ‘having the quality of’ forming adjectives).

  1. inherited from *pen-✻ — “moist, wet; mud; swamp; water”
  2. inherited from fenniġ — “dirty; marshy, muddy, fenny”
  3. inherited from fenny

Definitions

  1. Characteristic of or resembling a fen (“characteristically alkaline wetland containing…

    Characteristic of or resembling a fen (“characteristically alkaline wetland containing peat below the waterline”); marshy, swampy; also, of land: containing a fen or fens.

    • [I]nnumerable popingayes of ſundry kindes are found chattering in the groues of thoſe fenny places.
    • [F]or ſo many faire and Nauigable Riuers ſo neere adioyning, and piercing thorovv ſo faire a naturall Land, free from any inundations, or large Fenny vnvvholſome Marſhes, I haue not ſeene, read, nor heard of: […]
    • Elephant. Elephantus. […] Their differences are according to place; ſo ſome live in fenny places, ſome on mountaines, ſome in fields, others in vvoods, &c.

  2. Now chiefly of plants

    Now chiefly of plants: growing or living in a fen.

    • Fillet of a Fenny Snake, / In the Cauldron boyle and bake: […]
    • Of the Indian Dragons there are alſo ſaid to be tvvo kindes, one of them fenny, and liuing in the Marſhes, vvhich are ſlovv of pace and vvithout combes on their heades like females: […]

  3. Muddy

    Muddy; hence, dirty, filthy.

    • Lord vvhat a nothing is this little Span, / VVe call a Man! / VVhat fenny traſh maintaines the ſmooth'ring fires / Of his desires!
  4. ›+ 2 more definitions

    1. Alternative form of fennie (“fenestration”).

    2. A female given name, short for Fenella.

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for fenny. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA