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freak

noun
/fɹiːk/

Etymology

First appears c. 1567. The sense "sudden change of mind, a whim" is of uncertain origin. Probably from a dialectal word related to Middle English frekynge (“capricious behavior; whims”) and Middle English friken, frikien (“to move briskly or nimbly”), from Old English frīcian (“to leap, dance”), or Middle English frek (“insolent, daring”), from Old English frec (“desirous, greedy, eager, bold, daring”), from Proto-West Germanic *frek, from Proto-Germanic *frekaz, *frakaz (“hard, efficient, greedy, bold, audacious”) (in which case, it would be related to the noun under Etymology 2). Compare Old High German freh (“eager”), Old English frēcne (“dangerous”). For the meaning development compare Russian заско́к (zaskók) akin to скок (skok), скака́ть (skakátʹ).

  1. derived from *frekaz✻
  2. derived from *frek✻
  3. derived from frec — “desirous, greedy, eager, bold, daring”
  4. derived from frek — “insolent, daring”
  5. inherited from frīcian — “to leap, dance”
  6. inherited from friken

Definitions

  1. Someone or something that is markedly unusual or unpredictable.

    • The two-headed calf was a freak.
    • freak of nature, freak of the weather, freak of the imagination
    • [H]aving a dinner-party at his rooms to entertain some friends from London, nothing would satisfy Mr. Foker but painting Mr. Buck’s door vermilion, in which freak he was caught by the proctors …

  2. A hippie.

  3. A drug addict.

    • Smith and Sturges [June 1969] note in their study of the San Francisco drug scene that freak means "anyone addicted to drugs."
  4. ›+ 14 more definitions

    1. A person who is extremely abnormal in appearance, social behavior, sexual orientation,…

      A person who is extremely abnormal in appearance, social behavior, sexual orientation, gender identity, or business practices; an oddball, a unique person, originally in a displeasing or alienating way.

      • St. Bart’s was not particularly pleased either with Lake’s methods or with their results, but kept him on because it was fashionable to have at least one distinguished freak on the staff.
      • Gentrification often starts with the artists, revolutionaries, freaks, transfolks, and queers (what I would call my people) moving into poor neighborhoods inhabited by people of color.

    2. A person whose physique has grown far beyond the normal limits of muscular development

      A person whose physique has grown far beyond the normal limits of muscular development; often a bodybuilder weighing more than 260 pounds (120 kg).

    3. An enthusiast, or person who has an obsession with, or extreme knowledge of, something.

      • Bob's a real video-game freak. He owns every games console of the last ten years.
      • Anyone […] who seems "hung up" on some idea, activity or interactional disposition, might be called a "freak."
      • Presently […] college students […] use freak to denote any kind of enthusiast.

    4. A very sexually perverse individual.

      • She's a freak in the sheets!

    5. A wild dance.

      • Get your freak on.

    6. A sudden change of mind.

      • And then, with heart more hard than stone, He pick'd my marrow from the bone. To vex me more, he took a freak To slit my tongue and make me speak: But, that which wonderful appears, I speak to eyes, and not to ears.

    7. A streak of colour

      A streak of colour; variegation.

    8. Euphemistic form of fuck (“smallest amount of concern or consideration”).

      • So why am I grieving over someone who doesn't even give a freak about me? These vindictive ideas flowed through my head. A part of me wanted to carve my name into his little Saturn leather seats, but I remembered they weren't leather.
      • They hear you, not out in the car, but when you practically say it to their face, they could make things hard for you, just to get back at you. You never know.” “Hey, Flor, not for nothin', but I don't give a freak about them guys or[…]
      • Because I've seen the vampires up there, and they don't give a freak about anyone or anything. Tell me you are different." "I am trying to be. The urges are hard to overcome, but, I assure you, you're safe with me.

    9. To react extremely or irrationally, usually under distress or discomposure.

      • When the owner found a bunch of beatniks in there, he freaked, but that was later.
      • But after one night turned into five days, I was freaking out. I missed him.

    10. To be placed or place someone under the influence of a psychedelic drug, (especially) to…

      To be placed or place someone under the influence of a psychedelic drug, (especially) to experience reality withdrawal, or hallucinations (nightmarish), to behave irrational or unconventional due to drug use.

    11. To streak

      To streak; to variegate

      • Freakt with many a mingled hue.
      • […] in fine diaper of silver and mother-of-pearl freaking the intense azure; Now scurrying close overhead, wild ink-hued random racers that fling sheeted […]

    12. Strange, weird, unexpected.

      • a freak genius
      • freak accident
      • A freak goal gave Forest the lead when a clearance by keeper John Ruddy bounced off Nathan Tyson and flew in.

    13. A man, particularly a bold, strong, vigorous man.

    14. A fellow

      A fellow; a petulant young man.

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for freak. 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