Word origins

• exigeantexigent; demanding
• exigeanteA demanding woman.
• exoreicRunning or draining to the sea.
• exposéThe act of exposing somebody or something; a shameful showing up.
• exquisite corpseA collective art game in which several collaborating artists assemble a sentence or image, usually by following a prompt, or being allowed to see the only last contribution.
• extermineTo exterminate (someone or something); to destroy.
• externatA day school.
• extimacyIn the works of Jacques Lacan: the quality of being extimate.
• extimateMost distant or faraway; outermost, uttermost.
• extincteurA small hollow conical instrument for putting out a candle.
• extirpTo extirpate (something).
• extradosThe outer or upper curve of an arch.
• EychenneA surname from French [in turn from Occitan].
• fabulistA person who writes, tells, or extensively studies fables.
• faburdenA kind of counterpoint with a drone bass.
• façonnéA fabric having a pattern woven into it, especially one in which the pattern stands out from a sheer background.
• -factionThe act of creating something, or (more broadly) any process involving the specified thing.
• fadaiseA vapid or meaningless remark; a commonplace; nonsense.
• FaillerA surname from French.
• fairy balletA genre of ballet that developed in the 19th century, featuring fantasy characters and often employing technical effects.
• fairy operaA genre of opera, often with magical elements.
• fairy taleA folktale or literary story featuring fairies or similar fantasy characters.
• fais do-doA Cajun dance party.
• fait accompliSomething which has already happened, before those affected had the chance to raise objections or queries; especially, such a thing that cannot be undone.
• faites vos jeuxIn roulette, the call made by the croupier when gamblers can place their bets.
• falbalaA furbelow.
• falcadeA horse's movement of throwing itself on its haunches two or three times, bending in very quick curvets.
• FalgoustA surname from French.
• false friendA word in a language that bears a deceptive resemblance to a word in another language but in fact has a different meaning.
• falucheA type of beret, decorated with ribbons and badges, traditionally worn by some French students.
• FameuseA kind of sweet red apple originating in Canada.
• famille roseA type of Chinese porcelain, primarily from the 18th and 19th centuries, decorated in (chiefly pink) overglaze enamels.
• fanalA lighthouse
• fanfaronadeEmpty, self-assertive boasting; an instance of such behaviour.
• FanguyA surname from French.
• fanionA small flag used for marking positions, especially by soldiers and surveyors.
• FaouziA male given name from Arabic, variant of Fawzi
• faradismTreatment with faradic electricity; faradization.
• farandoleA lively chain dance in 6/8 time, of Provençal origin.
• far bretonA traditional cake or dessert from the Brittany region in France, with a base similar in composition to a clafoutis batter, a flan-style eggs-and-milk custard with flour, with prunes or raisins commonly added.
• farceurA person who writes farces, or who performs in them.
• farcyThe horse disease glanders, especially its cutaneous form.
• fardageScrap material, used to fill space and/or prevent goods from moving about during transport
• far leftThe most radical part of the political left wing.
• farmer-generalA member of a privileged association in France, before the French Revolution, who collected duties on behalf of the king, along with bonus fees for themselves.
• faroucheSullen or recalcitrant.
• FarrengA surname from French [in turn from Occitan].
• far rightThe most right-wing or conservative part of a political faction or grouping.
• fasciationThe binding up of a limb, etc., with bandages.
• fascineOriginally a cylindrical bundle of small sticks of wood, and now often a bundle of plastic pipes, bound together, and used for strengthening purposes, such as in revetments for riverbanks, and in mats for dams, jetties, etc.
• fatigableSusceptible to fatigue; easily able to become physically exhausted.
• Fat TuesdayThe Tuesday before the onset of Lent.
• fauchA village in Tarn department, France.
• fauchardAn early European weapon consisting of a curved blade on a long pole.
• faujasiteA zeolite mineral consisting of sodalite cages connected through hexagonal prisms.
• faussebrayeA second rampart, exterior and parallel to the main rampart, and considerably below its level.
• faute de mieuxFor want of something better; for lack of an alternative; as a makeshift.
• fauvetteAny of a number of small songbird, such as nightingales or warblers.
• fauvistOf or pertaining to fauvism.
• faux amiA false friend; one of a pair of words in different languages or dialects that look similar and may be related but that differ significantly in meaning.
• faux boisThe artistic imitation of wood or wood grains in various media.
• faux fraisThe faux frais of production.
• faux pasAn embarrassing or tactless blunder.
• FawverA surname from French.
• febrifugeSynonym of antipyretic (“a fever-reducing medication”).
• feculenceThe state or quality of being feculent.
• féerieA fantastical theatrical production or film featuring fairies.
• félibreA member of a literary fellowship founded in 1854 to promote the literature and culture of Provence in France; also someone who adheres to such ideas, a traditional Provençal poet.
• felquisteA member of the Front de Libération du Québec, a militant Quebec separatist group founded in the 1960s.
• femme fataleAn attractive and seductive but ultimately dangerous woman.
• femme incompriseA misunderstood or unappreciated woman.
• fenestronA protected tail rotor of a helicopter, operating like a ducted fan.
• FenouilletA French variety of apple with a taste like fennel.
• fer-de-lanceBothrops lanceolatus or other lancehead snakes of genus Bothrops.
• fer-de-molineSynonym of millrind.
• fermièrePrepared in a simple rustic style.
• ferripriveSuffering from a deficiency of iron
• ferronnièreA headband that encircles the wearer's forehead, usually with a small jewel suspended in the centre.
• FervidorThermidor (the eleventh month of the French Revolutionary Calendar)
• fête champêtreA garden party (pastoral festival) that was a popular form of entertainment in the 18th century, particularly popular at the French court, at Versailles. In theory it is a simple pastoral festival but in practice it was often contrived and elaborate with orchestras and fancy dress.
• feudalityThe state or quality of being feudal; feudal form or constitution.
• feu de joieA bonfire.
• feuillemorteOf the color of dead or dying leaves: dull yellowish or orangish brown.
• feuilletéA dish made with thin layers of puff pastry.
• feuilletineCrispy flakes of crêpe used in desserts.
• feuilletonA section of a European newspaper typically dedicated to arts, culture, criticism, and light literature.
• feuilletonistA writer of feuilletons.
• fiacreA small horse-drawn carriage for hire; a hackney carriage.
• fiancéA man who is engaged to be married; the man to whom one is engaged; an intended.
• fiancéeA woman who is engaged to be married; the woman to whom one is engaged.
• fiantsThe dung of the wolf, fox or badger.
• ficelleA very narrow French loaf.
• FichenA surname from French.
• fichuA woman's lightweight triangular scarf worn over the shoulders and tied in front, or tucked into a bodice to cover the exposed part of the neck and chest.
• fiddlewoodThe wood of several West Indian trees, mostly of the genus Citharexylum.
• fideismThe doctrine that faith is the basis of all knowledge.
• fideistA subscriber to fideism.
• fiertéPride, high self-esteem.
• FigarolA village in Haute-Garonne department, Occitania, France.
• figuranteA female figurant, especially a ballet dancer.