adjective
feist′i·er, feist′i·est full of spirit; specif.,
- quarrelsome, aggressive, belligerent, etc.
- lively, energetic, assertive, etc.
Origin of feisty
feist + -y
adjective
The definition of feisty is someone aggressive or lively.
An example of feisty is someone who likes to pick fights with their friends just for fun.
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feisty
Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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feisty
adjective
feist·i·er, feist·i·est- Full of spirit or determination; plucky or spunky: “Feisty, smart, and courageous child protagonists … populate [her] fictional world” ( Carolyn L. Shute ) andiron
- Quarrelsome or aggressive: “A bunch of guys got tipsy … One of them got feisty and starting swinging punches at the others” ( Didi Emmons )
Origin of feisty
From feistRelated Forms:
- feist′i·ness
noun
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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"Feisty." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Feisty.
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Feisty. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Feisty
Adjective
(comparative feistier or more feisty, superlative feistiest or most feisty)
- Tenacious, energetic, spunky.
- Belligerent; prepared to stand and fight, especially in spite of relatively small stature or some other disadvantage.
- Easily offended and ready to bicker.
Origin
1896, American, feist (“small, aggressive dog”) + -y; the term feist (now rare) itself originally meant “stink”, and earlier “fart”, from Middle English, from Old English, from Proto-Germanic, presumably from Proto-Indo-European – see feist for details.
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
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MLA Style
"Feisty." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Feisty.
APA Style
Feisty. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Feisty
Sentence Examples
- I am the proud mom of a feisty two year old little girl, and I balance my time between her and my private practice in Westchester County, NY.
- Eva Longoria Parker's life in the spotlight began when she was crowned as a real-life beauty queen, but now the sexy actress has really hit her stride playing feisty Gabrielle Solis on Desperate Housewives.
- Apparently, when the feisty Greyhound found himself getting "restless" with home life, he ran to the racetrack to hook up with his "girlfriend", whose name was She's the Fastest.
- Some researchers prefer the terms flexible, active or feisty, and cautious instead of the somewhat judgmental terms of easy, difficult, and slow-to-adapt, respectively.
- This fear is one reason why some researchers prefer to describe children in this category as "active" or "feisty" rather than to use the negative term difficult.
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