Etymology

outfox

O1U1T1F4O1X8

Today it means: To beat (someone) in a competition of wits with superior cleverness or cunning; to outsmart. Full definition →

English fox ← Middle English fox ← Old English fox
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*úd
  2. Proto-Germanic*ūt
  3. Proto-Germanic*ūt-
  4. Old Englishūt-
  5. Middle Englishut-
  6. Englishout-
  7. Proto-Indo-European*púḱsos
  8. Proto-Germanic*fuhsaz
  9. Old Englishfox
  10. Middle Englishfox
  11. Englishfox
  12. English todayoutfox

From out- + fox.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.