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fade Definition

fade (fād)

intransitive verb faded, fad·ing

  1. to become less distinct; lose color, brilliance, etc.
  2. to lose freshness or strength; wither; wane
  3. to disappear slowly; die out
  4. to lose braking power: said of brakes that heat and glaze the lining in repeated hard use
  5. to curve from its direct course
  6. Radio, TV to vary in intensity: said of a signal

Etymology: ME faden < OFr fader < fade, pale < VL *fatidus, prob. < L fatuus (see fatuous); infl. by vapidus, vapid

transitive verb

  1. to cause to fade
  2. Slang to meet the bet of; cover: a dice player's term
  3. Golf to deliberately cause (a ball) to slice slightly

noun

  1. the act of fading
  2. Film, Radio, TV a fade-in or fade-out
  3. Golf the path of a ball that is faded or that slices slightly

fade Idioms

fade back

Football to move back from the line of scrimmage, as in order to throw a forward pass

fade in (or out)

Film, Radio, TV to appear or cause to appear (or disappear) gradually; make or become more (or less) distinct

fade Synonyms

fade

v.

  1. To lose color or brightness

    bleach, tone down, wash out, decolorize, become colorless, blanch, tarnish, dim, dull, discolor, pale, grow dim, flicker, neutralize, become dull, lose luster, achromatize, etiolate.

    Antonyms color, brighten, glow.

  2. To lose freshness or strength

    wither, decline, wilt, wane; see decay, weaken 1, wither.

  3. To diminish in sound

    hush, quiet, sink; see decrease 1.

  4. To disappear slowly

    evaporate, dissolve, die out; see disappear. See syn. study at disappear.

fade Usage Examples

Object

  • grandeur: Linguaphone's flagship shop enjoyed a similar faded grandeur, on the wrong side of the street opposite Harrods.
  • jean: She was wearing a revealing black décolleté top and tight, faded jeans.
  • glory: It doesn't really matter what the answer is, because the film does capture an ethereal sense of nostalgic longing for faded glory.
  • elegance: There is something about the faded elegance that lingers in the mind and lends itself to photography.
  • splendor: It definitely had that kind of faded splendor that we were kinda fascinated by.
  • spine: A near fine hardback copy in a very good dustjacket which has a partly faded spine.

Preposition: into

  • obscurity: Looking out to the north, the world faded into a gray obscurity.
  • insignificance: Galloway should resign and fade into the insignificance he deserves, and if he wont go voluntarily he should be removed.
  • oblivion: Had it not been for her, the sacrifices made in Karbala might have faded into oblivion.
  • mist: Whether these creatures faded into mist, or mist enshrouded them, he could not tell.
  • background: The lovers, sweet enough, fade quickly into the background.
  • shadow: God faded into the shadows of the hospital room like mist in the morning sun while the antibiotics were poured down my veins.

Adjective complement

resistant: The ultra modern vinyl print gives a soft smooth matte finish which is hard wearing, long lasting, crack and fade resistant.

Modifying Another Word

  • away: Then they faded away, leaving only the rainbow.
  • gradually: Notes on a piano produce a fixed sound when played which do not go up or down but gradually fade away.
  • slowly: Last song sang of a ' slowly fading sky growing emerald ' .

Followed by an intransitive particle

away: He keeps them for you in heaven, where they cannot decay or spoil or fade away.

Preposition: in

sunlight: The joints can " creep " open and leak and the color can fade in the sunlight.

Preposition: from

memory: It's amazing how quickly things fade from the memory.

Noun used with modifier

optimization: List Building vs. Search Engine Optimization It seems the excitement about search engine optimization fades in and out from time to time.

Browse dictionary entries near fade

  1. faddism
  2. faddish
  3. fad
  4. faculty
  5. facultative
  6. faculae
  7. facture
  8. factum
  9. factualism
  10. factual
  1. fade-in
  2. fade-out
  3. fadeaway
  4. faded
  5. fadeless
  6. Fadiman, Anne
  7. Fadiman, Clifton
  8. fading
  9. fado
  10. faeces