Meanings
fib1
plural fibs
- informalA lie, especially one that is more or less inconsequential.
Aſk me no queſtions, and I'll tell you no fibs.
1773, [Oliver] Goldsmith, She Stoops to Conquer: Or, The Mistakes of a Night. A Comedy. […], London: […] F[rancis] Newbery, […], →OCLC, Act III, page 511 more example
Wouldn’t that serve as an excuse, in Boston? I am told they are very sincere; they don't tell fibs.
1878 July–October, Henry James, Jr., chapter VI, in The Europeans. A Sketch. […], volume I, London: Macmillan and Co., published 1878, →OCLC, page 226Synonyms: alternative fact, anti-fact, invention, bluff, bollocks, bullshit, canard, cap
present singular third person fibs · participle present fibbing · participle past fibbed · past fibbed
- informalintransitiveTo lie, especially more or less inconsequentially.
fib2
fib3
present singular third person fibs · participle present fibbing · participle past fibbed · past fibbed
- archaicthieves' cantboxingTo punch, especially a series of punches in rapid succession; to beat; to hit; to strike.
Fib the cove's quarron in the rumpad for the lour in his bung; beat the fellow in the highway for the money in his purse.
1785, Francis Grose, A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, 2nd edition, published 1788, To Fib4 more examples
The Chicken himself attributed this punishment to his having had the misfortune to get into Chancery early in the proceedings, when he was severely fibbed by the Larkey one, and heavily grassed.
1846 October 1 – 1848 April 1, Charles Dickens, Dombey and Son, London: Bradbury and Evans, […], published 1848, →OCLCAs Biggs and his party arrived, I heard Hawkins say to Berry, "For heaven’s sake, my boy, fib with your right, and mind his left hand!"
1852, William Makepeace Thackeray, “The Fight at Slaughter House”, in Men's Wives, page 16Then there was a wild scuffle and a furious outcry, and all the bargemen for a moment seemed to hug me and themselves too; when, as there was no room to hit out, in the phraseology of the ring, I fibbed at half-a-dozen waistcoats and faces with all my might and main.
1865, Grantley Berkeley, “Eton Boys”, in My Life and Recollections, volume 1, page 311Quoth he, "Thou dost surely jest when thou sayest that thou dost not understand such words. Answer me this: Hast thou ever fibbed a chouse quarrons in the Rome pad for the loure in his bung?"
1883, Howard Pyle, The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood […], New York, N.Y.: […] Charles Scribner’s Sons […], →OCLC, part sixth, page 207Synonyms: pummel
fib4
plural fibs
- neologismA kind of experimental poem where the number of syllables in each line is the next succeeding Fibonacci number.
FIB5
plural FIBs
- abbreviationinitialismnatural sciencesInitialism of focused ion beam.
- abbreviationinitialismInitialism of flying inflatable boat.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA lie, especially one that is more or less inconsequential.
verbTo punch, especially a series of punches in rapid succession; to beat; to hit; to strike.
More synonyms by meaning
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
fib · noun, verb
Unknown. Probably from fable; compare fible-fable (“nonsense”).
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian измислица, несъзнателна лъжа
- измислица (izmislica)a more or less inconsequential lie
- несъзнателна лъжа (nesăznatelna lăža)a more or less inconsequential lie
- послъгвам (poslăgvam)to tell a more or less inconsequential lie
Czech (malá, nevinná) lež, lhát
- (malá, nevinná) leža more or less inconsequential lie
- lhátto tell a more or less inconsequential lie
- vymýšlet sito tell a more or less inconsequential lie
- kecatto tell a more or less inconsequential lie
Danish løgn, nødløgn
- løgna more or less inconsequential lie
- nødløgna more or less inconsequential lie
- hvid løgna more or less inconsequential lie
- usandheda more or less inconsequential lie
Dutch leugentje, gejok
- leugentjea more or less inconsequential lie
- gejoka more or less inconsequential lie
- jokkento tell a more or less inconsequential lie
Estonian luiskama
- luiskamato tell a more or less inconsequential lie
Finnish vale
- valea more or less inconsequential lie
French baratin, bobard
- baratina more or less inconsequential lie
- bobarda more or less inconsequential lie
- craquea more or less inconsequential lie
- baratinerto tell a more or less inconsequential lie
- bobarderto tell a more or less inconsequential lie
German Flunkerei, Schwindelei
- Flunkereia more or less inconsequential lie
- Schwindeleia more or less inconsequential lie
- Fabulationa more or less inconsequential lie
- Fantasiegeschichtea more or less inconsequential lie
- fabulierento tell a more or less inconsequential lie
- flunkernto tell a more or less inconsequential lie
- schwindelnto tell a more or less inconsequential lie
- lügento tell a more or less inconsequential lie
Hungarian füllentés, lódítás
- füllentésa more or less inconsequential lie
- lódítása more or less inconsequential lie
- füllentto tell a more or less inconsequential lie
- lódítto tell a more or less inconsequential lie
Indonesian bisa-bisaan, bohong
- bisa-bisaana more or less inconsequential lie
- bohonga more or less inconsequential lie
- bokisa more or less inconsequential lie
- berbohongto tell a more or less inconsequential lie
- bisa-bisaanto tell a more or less inconsequential lie
- ngebokisto tell a more or less inconsequential lie
Italian menzogna, bugia
- menzognaa more or less inconsequential lie
- bugiaa more or less inconsequential lie
- baggianataa more or less inconsequential lie
- bufalaa more or less inconsequential lie
- folaa more or less inconsequential lie
- frottolaa more or less inconsequential lie
- fandoniaa more or less inconsequential lie
- mentireto tell a more or less inconsequential lie
Japanese 方便
- 方便 (hōben)a more or less inconsequential lie
Norwegian Bokmål hvit løgn
- hvit løgna more or less inconsequential lie
Polish kłamstewko, bujda
- kłamstewkoa more or less inconsequential lie
- bujdaa more or less inconsequential lie
- kłamaćto tell a more or less inconsequential lie
- skłamaćto tell a more or less inconsequential lie
Portuguese mentirinha, peta
- mentirinhaa more or less inconsequential lie
- petaa more or less inconsequential lie
Russian вы́думка, до́мысел
- вы́думка (výdumka)a more or less inconsequential lie
- до́мысел (dómysel)a more or less inconsequential lie
- непра́вда (neprávda)a more or less inconsequential lie
- привира́ть (privirátʹ)to tell a more or less inconsequential lie
- привра́ть (privrátʹ)to tell a more or less inconsequential lie
Spanish milonga, patraña
- milongaa more or less inconsequential lie
- patrañaa more or less inconsequential lie
- trolaa more or less inconsequential lie
- mentirijillaa more or less inconsequential lie
- mentirillaa more or less inconsequential lie
- mentiritaa more or less inconsequential lie
Turkish uydurma
- uydurmaa more or less inconsequential lie
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with fib
Anagrams
Cite this entry
fib. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fib
“fib.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fib. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “fib,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/fib.
Source: fib on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.