feast

feast
\ \ [13] The notion of ‘eating’ is a secondary semantic development for feast, whose underlying meaning (as may be guessed from the related festival [14] and festivity [14]) has more to do with joyousness than with the appeasement of hunger. Its ultimate source is the Latin adjective festus, which meant ‘joyful, merry’. This was used as a plural noun, festa, meaning ‘celebratory ceremonies, particularly of a religious nature’, which came down to Old French as feste. This was the source of English feast, and its modern French descendant gave English fête [18]. Incidentally, the sense ‘sumptuous meal’, present in feast but not in fête, goes back to the Latin singular noun festum.
\ \ Also related is festoon [17], acquired via French from Italian festone, which originally meant ‘ornament for a festive occasion’; and fair (as in fairground) comes ultimately from Latin fēria, first cousin to festus.
\ \ Cf.FAIR, FESTIVAL, FESTOON, FÊTE

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Feast — (f[=e]st), n. [OE. feste festival, holiday, feast, OF. feste festival, F. f[^e]te, fr. L. festum, pl. festa, fr. festus joyful, festal; of uncertain origin. Cf. {Fair}, n., {Festal}, {F[^e]te}.] 1. A festival; a holiday; a solemn, or more… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • feast´er — feast «feest», noun, verb. –n. 1. a rich meal prepared for some special occasion, usually a joyous one, and for a number of guests; banquet: »We went to the wedding feast. 2. an unusually delicious or abundant meal. 3. Figurative. something that… …   Useful english dictionary

  • Feast — may refer to: * A Festival * Ramadan, Muslim s holy month * Nineteen Day Feast, a monthly meeting held in Bahá í communities to worship, consult, and socialize. * Feast (film) , a 2006 horror film from Project Greenlight. * , the 2008 sequel to… …   Wikipedia

  • feast — ► NOUN 1) a large meal, especially a celebratory one. 2) an annual religious celebration. 3) a day dedicated to a particular saint. ► VERB 1) have a feast. 2) (feast on) eat large quantities of …   English terms dictionary

  • Feast — Feast, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Feasted}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Feasting}.] [OE. festen, cf. OF. fester to rest from work, F. f[^e]ter to celebrate a holiday. See {Feast}, n.] 1. To eat sumptuously; to dine or sup on rich provisions, particularly in large …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Feast — Feast, v. t. 1. To entertain with sumptuous provisions; to treat at the table bountifully; as, he was feasted by the king. Hayward. [1913 Webster] 2. To delight; to gratify; as, to feast the soul. [1913 Webster] Feast your ears with the music a… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • feast — feast; feast·ful; Feast; feast·er; …   English syllables

  • feast — [fēst] n. [ME feste < OFr < VL festa < pl. of L festum, festival < festus, festal, joyful, orig., of days for religious observance: see FAIR2] 1. a celebration or festival; esp., a periodic religious celebration, as in honor of God or …   English World dictionary

  • feast on — ˈfeast on [transitive] [present tense I/you/we/they feast on he/she/it feasts on present participle feasting on past tense feasted on past p …   Useful english dictionary

  • feast — [n] banquet and celebration barbecue, big feed*, blow*, blowout*, carnival, carousal, clambake, dinner, entertainment, fest, festival, festivity, fete, fiesta, gala, jollification, merrymaking, picnic, refreshment, regale, repast, spread, treat,… …   New thesaurus

  • Feast of — see Feast of Tabernacles under tabernacle ● in …   Useful english dictionary

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