Folklore Folk"lore` noun , or Folk" lore` Tales, legends, or superstitions long current among the people. Trench.

Folkmote Folk"mote` noun [ Anglo-Saxon folcmōt folk meeting.] An assembly of the people ; esp. (Sax. Law) , a general assembly of the people to consider and order matters of the commonwealth; also, a local court. [ Hist.]

To which folkmote they all with one consent
Agreed to travel.

Spenser.

Folkmoter Folk"mot`er noun One who takes part in a folkmote, or local court. [ Obsolete] Milton.

Follicle Fol"li·cle noun [ Latin folliculus a small bag, husk, pod, dim of follis bellows, an inflated ball, a leathern money bag, perhaps akin to English bellows : confer French follicule . Confer 2d Fool .] 1. (Botany) A simple podlike pericarp which contains several seeds and opens along the inner or ventral suture, as in the peony, larkspur and milkweed.

2. (Anat.) (a) A small cavity, tubular depression, or sac; as, a hair follicle . (b) A simple gland or glandular cavity; a crypt. (c) A small mass of adenoid tissue; as, a lymphatic follicle .

Follicular Fol·lic"u·lar adjective 1. Like, pertaining to, or consisting of, a follicles or follicles.

2. (Medicine) Affecting the follicles; as, follicular pharyngitis.

Folliculated Fol·lic"u·la`ted adjective Having follicles.

Folliculous Fol·lic"u·lous adjective [ Latin folliculosus full of husks: confer French folliculeux .] Having or producing follicles.

Folliful Fol"li·ful adjective Full of folly. [ Obsolete]

Follow Fol"low transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Followed ; present participle & verbal noun Following .][ Middle English foluwen , folwen , folgen , Anglo-Saxon folgian , fylgean , fylgan ; akin to Dutch volgen , Old High German folg...n , German folgen , Icelandic fylgja , Swedish följa , Danish fölge , and perhaps to English folk .] 1. To go or come after; to move behind in the same path or direction; hence, to go with (a leader, guide, etc.); to accompany; to attend.

It waves me forth again; I'll follow it.

Shak.

2. To endeavor to overtake; to go in pursuit of; to chase; to pursue; to prosecute.

I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall follow them.

Ex. xiv. 17.

3. To accept as authority; to adopt the opinions of; to obey; to yield to; to take as a rule of action; as, to follow good advice.

Approve the best, and follow what I approve

. Milton.

Follow peace with all men.

Hebrew xii. 14.

It is most agreeable to some men to follow their reason; and to others to follow their appetites.

J. Edwards.

4. To copy after; to take as an example.

We had rather follow the perfections of them whom we like not, than in defects resemble them whom we love.

Hooker.

5. To succeed in order of time, rank, or office.

6. To result from, as an effect from a cause, or an inference from a premise.

7. To watch, as a receding object; to keep the eyes fixed upon while in motion; to keep the mind upon while in progress, as a speech, musical performance, etc.; also, to keep up with; to understand the meaning, connection, or force of, as of a course of thought or argument.

He followed with his eyes the flitting shade.

Dryden.

8. To walk in, as a road or course; to attend upon closely, as a profession or calling.

O, had I but followed the arts!

Shak.

O Antony! I have followed thee to this.

Shak.

Follow board (Founding) , a board on which the pattern and the flask lie while the sand is rammed into the flask. Knight. -- To follow the hounds , to hunt with dogs. -- To follow suit (Card Playing) , to play a card of the same suit as the leading card; hence, colloquially, to follow an example set. -- To follow up , to pursue indefatigably.

Syn. - To pursue; chase; go after; attend; accompany; succeed; imitate; copy; embrace; maintain. - To Follow , Pursue . To follow (v.t.) denotes simply to go after; to pursue denotes to follow with earnestness, and with a view to attain some definite object; as, a hound pursues the deer. So a person follows a companion whom he wishes to overtake on a journey; the officers of justice pursue a felon who has escaped from prison.

Follow Fol"low intransitive verb To go or come after; -- used in the various senses of the transitive verb: To pursue; to attend; to accompany; to be a result; to imitate.

Syn. - To Follow , Succeed , Ensue . To follow (v.i.) means simply to come after; as, a crowd followed . To succeed means to come after in some regular series or succession; as, day succeeds to day, and night to night. To ensue means to follow by some established connection or principle of sequence. As wave follows wave, revolution succeeds to revolution; and nothing ensues but accumulated wretchedness.

Follow Fol"low noun The art or process of following; specif., in some games, as billiards, a stroke causing a ball to follow another ball after hitting it. Also used adjectively; as, follow shot.

Follower Fol"low·er noun [ Middle English folwere , Anglo-Saxon folgere .] 1. One who follows; a pursuer; an attendant; a disciple; a dependent associate; a retainer.

2. A sweetheart; a beau. [ Colloq.] A. Trollope.

3. (Steam Engine) (a) The removable flange, or cover, of a piston. See Illust. of Piston . (b) A gland. See Illust. of Stuffing box .

4. (Machinery) The part of a machine that receives motion from another part. See Driver .

5. Among law stationers, a sheet of parchment or paper which is added to the first sheet of an indenture or other deed.

Syn. -- Imitator; copier; disciple; adherent; partisan; dependent; attendant.

Following Fol"low·ing noun 1. One's followers, adherents, or dependents, collectively. Macaulay.

2. Vocation; business; profession.

Following Fol"low·ing adjective 1. Next after; succeeding; ensuing; as, the assembly was held on the following day.

2. (Astron.) (In the field of a telescope) In the direction from which stars are apparently moving (in consequence of the earth's rotation); as, a small star, north following or south following . In the direction toward which stars appear to move is called preceding .

» The four principal directions in the field of a telescope are north , south , following , preceding .

Following edge Following edge (Aëronautics) See Advancing-edge , above.

Following surface Following surface (Aëronautics) See Advancing-surface , above.

Folly Fol"ly noun ; plural Follies . [ Middle English folie , foli , French folie , from fol , fou , foolish, mad. See Fool .] 1. The state of being foolish; want of good sense; levity, weakness, or derangement of mind.

2. A foolish act; an inconsiderate or thoughtless procedure; weak or light-minded conduct; foolery.

What folly 'tis to hazard life for ill.

Shak.

3. Scandalous crime; sin; specifically, as applied to a woman, wantonness.

[ Achan] wrought folly in Israel.

Josh. vii. 15.

When lovely woman stoops to folly .

Goldsmith.

4. The result of a foolish action or enterprise.

It is called this man's or that man's " folly ," and name of the foolish builder is thus kept alive for long after years.

Trench.

Folwe Fol"we transitive verb To follow. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Fomalhaut Fo"mal·haut` noun [ Arabic , prop., mouth of the large fish: confer French Fomalhaut .] (Astron.) A star of the first magnitude, in the constellation Piscis Australis , or Southern Fish.

Foment Fo·ment" transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Fomented ; present participle & verbal noun Fomenting .] [ French fomenter , from Latin fomentare , from fomentum (for fovimentum ) a warm application or lotion, from fovere to warm or keep warm; perhaps akin to Greek ... to roast, and English bake .] 1. To apply a warm lotion to; to bathe with a cloth or sponge wet with warm water or medicated liquid.

2. To cherish with heat; to foster. [ Obsolete]

Which these soft fires . . . foment and warm.

Milton.

3. To nurse to life or activity; to cherish and promote by excitements; to encourage; to abet; to instigate; -- used often in a bad sense; as, to foment ill humors. Locke.

But quench the choler you foment in vain.

Dryden.

Exciting and fomenting a religious rebellion.

Southey.

Foment Fo"ment noun 1. Fomentation.

2. State of excitation; -- perhaps confused with ferment .

He came in no conciliatory mood, and the foment was kept up.

Julian Ralph.

Fomentation Fo`men·ta"tion noun [ .... fomentatio : confer French fomentation .] 1. (Medicine) (a) The act of fomenting; the application of warm, soft, medicinal substances, as for the purpose of easing pain, by relaxing the skin, or of discussing tumors. (b) The lotion applied to a diseased part.

2. Excitation; instigation; encouragement.

Dishonest fomentation of your pride.

Young.

Fomenter Fo·ment"er noun One who foments; one who encourages or instigates; as, a fomenter of sedition.

Fomes Fo"mes (fō"mēz) noun ; plural Fomites (fŏm"ĭ*tēz). [ Latin fomes , -itis , touch-wood, tinder.] (Medicine) Any substance supposed to be capable of absorbing, retaining, and transporting contagious or infectious germs; as, woolen clothes are said to be active fomites .

Fon Fon (fŏn) noun [ Of Scand. origin; confer Icelandic fāni silly, fāna to act silly, Swedish fåne fool. Confer Fond , adjective ] A fool; an idiot. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Fond Fond obsolete imperfect of Find . Found. Chaucer.

Fond Fond adjective [ Compar. Fonder ; superl. Fondest .] [ For fonned , past participle of Middle English fonnen to be foolish. See Fon .] 1. Foolish; silly; simple; weak. [ Archaic]

Grant I may never prove so fond
To trust man on his oath or bond.

Shak.

2. Foolishly tender and loving; weakly indulgent; over-affectionate.

3. Affectionate; loving; tender; -- in a good sense; as, a fond mother or wife. Addison.

4. Loving; much pleased; affectionately regardful, indulgent, or desirous; longing or yearning; -- followed by of (formerly also by on ).

More fond on her than she upon her love.

Shak.

You are as fond of grief as of your child.

Shak.

A great traveler, and fond of telling his adventures.

Irving.

5. Doted on; regarded with affection. [ R.]

Nor fix on fond abodes to circumscribe thy prayer.

Byron.

6. Trifling; valued by folly; trivial. [ Obsolete] Shak.

Fond Fond transitive verb To caress; to fondle. [ Obsolete]

The Tyrian hugs and fonds thee on her breast.

Dryden.

Fond Fond intransitive verb To be fond; to dote. [ Obsolete] Shak.

Fond Fond noun [ French, from Latin fundus . See Fund .] [ Obsolete, or used as a French word] 1. Foundation; bottom; groundwork; specif.: (a) (Lace Making) The ground. (b) (Cookery) The broth or juice from braised flesh or fish, usually served as a sauce.

2. Fund, stock, or store.

Fondant Fon"dant (fŏn"d a nt; Fr. fôN`däN") noun [ French, lit., melting, present participle of fondre to melt, Latin fundere . See Found to cast.] A kind of soft sweetmeat made by boiling solutions to the point of crystallization, usually molded; as, cherry fondant .

Fonde Fond"e transitive verb & i. [ Anglo-Saxon fandian to try.] To endeavor; to strive; to try. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Fondle Fon"dle transitive verb [ imperfect & past participle Fondled ; present participle & verbal noun Fondling .] [ From Fond , v. ] To treat or handle with tenderness or in a loving manner; to caress; as, a nurse fondles a child.

Syn. -- See Caress .

Fondler Fon"dler noun One who fondles. Johnson.

Fondling Fon"dling noun [ From Fondle .] The act of caressing; manifestation of tenderness.

Cyrus made no . . . amorous fondling
To fan her pride, or melt her guardless heart.

Mickle.

Fondling Fond"ling noun [ Fond + - ling .] 1. A person or thing fondled or caressed; one treated with foolish or doting affection.

Fondlings are in danger to be made fools.

L'Estrange.

2. A fool; a simpleton; a ninny. [ Obsolete] Chapman.

Fondly Fond"ly adverb 1. Foolishly. [ Archaic] Verstegan (1673).

Make him speak fondly like a frantic man.

Shak.

2. In a fond manner; affectionately; tenderly.

My heart, untraveled, fondly turns to thee.

Goldsmith.

Fondness Fond"ness noun 1. The quality or state of being fond; foolishness. [ Obsolete]

Fondness it were for any, being free,
To covet fetters, though they golden be.

Spenser.

2. Doting affection; tender liking; strong appetite, propensity, or relish; as, he had a fondness for truffles.

My heart had still some foolish fondness for thee.

Addison.

Syn. -- Attachment; affection; love; kindness.

Fondon Fon"don noun [ Confer French fondant flux.] (Metal.) A large copper vessel used for hot amalgamation.

Fondu Fon`du" (fŏn"du") adjective [ French fondu , p.p. of fondre to melt, blend. See Found to cast.] Blended; passing into each other by subtle gradations; -- said of colors or of the surface or material on which the colors are laid.

Fondue Fon`due" noun [ Also erroneously Fon`du" .] [ French See Fondu ; confer Fondant .] (Cookery) A dish made of cheese, eggs, butter, etc., melted together.

Fondus Fon`dus" noun [ French fondu , propast participle p. of fondre to melt, blend. See Found to cast.] A style of printing calico, paper hangings, etc., in which the colors are in bands and graduated into each other. Ure.

Fone Fone noun ; plural of Foe . [ Obsolete] Spenser.

Fonge Fong"e transitive verb [ See Fang , transitive verb ] To take; to receive. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Fonly Fon"ly adverb [ See Fon .] Foolishly; fondly. [ Obsolete] Spenser.

Fonne Fon"ne noun A fon. [ Obsolete] Chaucer.

Font Font noun [ French fonte , from fondre to melt or cast. See Found to cast, and confer Fount a font.] (Print.) A complete assortment of printing type of one size, including a due proportion of all the letters in the alphabet, large and small, points, accents, and whatever else is necessary for printing with that variety of types; a fount.

Font Font noun [ Anglo-Saxon font , fant , from Latin fons , fontis , spring, fountain; confer Old French font , funt , French fonts , fonts baptismaux , plural See Fount .] 1. A fountain; a spring; a source.

Bathing forever in the font of bliss.

Young.

2. A basin or stone vessel in which water is contained for baptizing.

That name was given me at the font .

Shak.

Fontal Font"al adjective Pertaining to a font, fountain, source, or origin; original; primitive. [ R.]

From the fontal light of ideas only can a man draw intellectual power.

Coleridge.

Fontanel Fon"ta·nel` noun [ French fontanelle , prop., a little fountain, from fontaine fountain. See Fountain .] 1. (Medicine) An issue or artificial ulcer for the discharge of humors from the body. [ Obsolete] Wiseman.

2. (Anat.) One of the membranous intervals between the incompleted angles of the parietal and neighboring bones of a fetal or young skull; -- so called because it exhibits a rhythmical pulsation.

» In the human fetus there are six fontanels, of which the anterior, or bregmatic, situated at the junction of the coronal and sagittal sutures, is much the largest, and remains open a considerable time after birth.

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