1 a canine tooth, esp. of a dog or wolf.
2 the tooth of a venomous snake, by which poison is injected.
3 the root of a tooth or its prong.
4 Brit. colloq. a person's tooth.
Derivatives:
fanged adj. (also in comb.). fangless adj.
Etymology: OE f. ON fang f. a Gmc root = to catch
* * *
I. \\ˈfaŋ\ verb (-ed/-ing/-s)Etymology: Middle English fangen, fongen, alteration of fon (past feng, past participle fangen, fongen), from Old English fōn (past fēng, past participle fangen, fongen) — more at pact
2. obsolete
b. : to receive as a guest
II. \\ˈfaŋ, ˈfaiŋ\ noun
(-s)
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English; akin to Old High German fang seizure, Old Norse fang grip; derivative from the root of Old English fōn to seize
3.
a. : a long sharp tooth by which the prey of an animal is seized and held or torn : a long pointed tooth; especially : one of the long, hollow or grooved, and often erectile, teeth of venomous serpents
b. : one of the chelicerae of a spicer at the tip of which a poison gland opens
4. : the root of a tooth or one of the processes or prongs into which a root divides
5. : any of various sharp or elongated processes: as
b. : a projecting tooth or prong (as on a lock, the plate of a belt clamp, or the end of a tool)
c. : a branch on a normally unbranched thickened tap root (as of a sugar beet or carrot)
III. transitive verb
(-ed/-ing/-s)
1. : to strike with or as if with fangs
he jumped aside but the snake fanged him
the wind … fanged his ears — Countee Cullen
2. : to supply (a pump) with water so as to make it work : prime
3. : to fit with or as if with fangs
the gray rocks were fanged with long icicles — Victor Canning
Usage: usually capitalized
Etymology: French Fan, perhaps modification of Fang Mpangwe
1.
a. : an African people occupying the Ogowe basin, French Equatorial Africa and noted for their carved and painted religious masks
b. : a member of such people — called also Pahouin, Pangwe
2. : a Bantu language of the Fang people
* * *
fang1/fang/, n.
1. one of the long, sharp, hollow or grooved teeth of a venomous snake by which poison is injected.
2. a canine tooth.
3. a tooth resembling a dog's.
4. the root of a tooth.
5. one of the chelicerae of a spider.
6. a pointed, tapering part of a thing.
7. Mach. the tang of a tool.
fang2
/fang/, v.t. Brit. Dial.
to seize; grab.
[bef. 900; ME fangen to seize, catch; c. OS fangan, G fangen, var. of proto-Gmc *fanhan-, whence OE fon, c. OS, OHG, Goth fahan, ON fa; akin to OE gefangian to fasten]
* * *
fang /fang/
noun
1. The tooth of a wolf, dog, etc
2. The venom-tooth of a snake
3. The embedded part of a tooth, etc
4. A claw or talon (obsolete)
5. A point (of a tool)
6. A prong
7. A grip or catch (Shakespeare)
8. Grip or power of suction in a pump (Scot)
transitive verb (obsolete; Shakespeare phang)
1. To seize upon or catch
2. To prime a pump
ORIGIN: OE fang, from the same root as fōn to seize
• • •
fanged adjective
Having fangs or anything resembling them
fangˈless adjective
* * *
one of the long pointed teeth that some animals have, for example snakes, dogs, and tigers
Thesaurus: types and parts of teethhyponym
* * *
–n.
1. a long, pointed tooth of a dog, wolf, or snake. Poisonous snakes have hollow or grooved fangs for injecting venom. »
His fangs like spears in him uprose (Walter de la Mare).
2. a long, slender, tapering part of anything. The root of a tooth or the prong of a fork is called a fang.
–v.t.
╂[earlier, a catching, Old English fang booty, prey]
1. a member of a people of Gabon, Cameroon, and Equatorial Guinea, noted for their artwork and elaborate mythology.
2. the Bantu language of this people. Also, Fan.
* * *
[fang; fäng] 1.1) a member of a people inhabiting parts of Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon
2) the Bantu language of this people
2.
adj. of or relating to this people or their language
Origin:
French, probably from Fang Pangwe
* * *
/ˈfæŋ/ noun, pl fangs [count]
: a long, sharp tooth
the fangs of a rattlesnake
a tiger baring/showing its fangs
fanged /ˈfæŋd/ adj
a fanged monster [=a monster that has fangs]
* * *
either of two long sharp teeth at the front of the mouths of some animals, such as a snake or dog
Word Origin:
late Old English (denoting ‘booty’ or ‘spoils’), from Old Norse fang ‘capture, grasp’. A sense ‘trap, snare’ is recorded from the mid 16th cent.; both this and the original sense survive in Scots. The current sense (also mid 16th cent.) reflects the same idea of ‘something that catches and holds’.
Example Bank:
•
The snake sank its fangs into its victim.
•
The wolf growled and bared its sharp fangs.
* * *
FangUseful english dictionary. 2012.