fox

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Cunning as a fox were his would-be friends; but having got him to the bush, there they let him gambol as he would, ensnaring him to his own almost utter ruin A new light flashes upon his brain; his folly appears plainly to his mind; he had ruthlessly deserted his fond parents; sought evil counsel; was deserted by his false friends; and was now in a deplorable condition indeed.

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Definitions (46)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (13)

  1. noun Any of various carnivorous mammals of the genus Vulpes and related genera, related to the dogs and wolves and characteristically having upright ears, a pointed snout, and a long bushy tail.
  2. noun The fur of one of these mammals.
  3. noun A crafty, sly, or clever person.

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Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (3)

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Examples (50)

  • I'll be seeing you soon, I hope CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE SHE LIVES (IN A TIME OF HER OWN) The cunning of the fox is as murderous as the violence of the wolf Thomas Paine, The Crisis I turn around so fast that I lose my balance. —  Steele, Allen - [Near-Space 05] - A King of Infinite Space
  • What? That Spartan boy with the fox was a well bred 'un, you can take my word for it. —  The Hill A Romance of Friendship
  • Do you not think this fox was a true Christian, my Princess Katharine said: "I lament his destruction. —  Chivalry
  • The hound did not dare to follow, but the sportsmen came up, and entering the cabin, found it in possession of the fox; the frightened woman and children huddled into one corner, and the fox (who was taken alive) grinning at them In all ages of fable, the fox has been the principal hero. —  Anecdotes of the Habits and Instinct of Animals
  • "How sad, for the sake of an old-time piece of literature," he said, "that the fox is a carnivorous animal and doesn't care particularly about fruit IMMORAL We all have plenty of faults without the Truly Good taking the trouble to invent them for us Illustration: The Fox and the Grapes The Fox and the Crow A crow, having stolen a piece of flesh, perched in a tree to enjoy it at leisure. —  Fables For The Times
 

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Etymologies (5)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Middle English, from Old English.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (4)

  1. from Middle English fox, Southern vox (cf. fixen, vixen), from Anglo-Saxon fox = Old Saxon vohs, vus (Schmeller) = Dutch vos = Middle Low German Low German vos= Old High German fuhs, Middle High German vuhs, German fuchs (Old Danish fos, a fox, from Low German; Icelandic fox, only in the fig. sense of fraud) = Gothic (Moesogothic) *fauhs (not recorded), with suffix -s (masculine), cf. Gothic (Moesogothic) fauho = Old High German foha, Middle High German vohe, feminine, a she-fox (sometimes used as masculine), = Icelandic fōa, feminine, a fox (modern Icelandic tōa, prob. an alteration of fōa, due to a superstitious notion of not calling a fox by its right name); ult. origin unknown. Hence Anglo-Saxon *fyxen, fixen, English fixen, vixen = German föchsin, a she-fox.
  2. from fox, n.
  3. Prob., as foxed, foxfire, foxy, etc., in related senses indicate, from fox, n., with reference to the red or rusty color of the common fox.
  4. Prob. in allusion to fox or fox.
 

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/fɑks/
by American Heritage

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