fuzz

C2+ Topic:General Vocabulary

US /fʌz/ UK /fʌz/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
a mass of fine, fluffy fibers or hair; to make blurred

A soft fuzz covered the surface of the peach.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a mass of fine, fluffy... fluff down lint fur napfrizz

Word family

Forms fuzzing

Derived forms fuzzyfuzziness

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

peach fuzz
the fine soft hairs covering the skin of a peach

Noun + noun

Simplified etymology

Fuzz meaning a frizzy mass entered English in the late 17th century, probably from Dutch or German; fuzzy is recorded around 1600 with the sense “spongy.” The separate American slang term for the police dates from the 1920s and may be a form of fuss, perhaps referring to the police making a fuss.

Etymology

Of uncertain origin, probably a back-formation from 'fuzzy', or borrowed from Low German/Dutch 'voos' ('spongy'); first attested in the 17th century.

Topics

General Vocabulary

External links

# fuzz

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /fʌz/
**IPA (UK):** /fʌz/

## Meanings
1. a mass of fine, fluffy fibers or hair; to make blurred

## Examples
- A soft fuzz covered the surface of the peach.

## Synonyms
- fluff
- down
- lint
- fur
- nap
- frizz

## Derived Forms
- fuzzy
- fuzziness

## Etymology
Of uncertain origin, probably a back-formation from 'fuzzy', or borrowed from Low German/Dutch 'voos' ('spongy'); first attested in the 17th century.

## AI Etymology
Fuzz is of uncertain origin, probably a back-formation from 'fuzzy', or borrowed from Low German/Dutch 'voos' ('spongy'); first attested in the 17th century. Its formation runs backward from an existing longer form, producing a shorter base that then carries the same family of senses. As a noun and verb, it denotes "a mass of fine, fluffy fibers or hair; to make blurred", keeping the historical idea close to its dictionary sense. Derivative forms include fuzzy, fuzziness.

## Topics
- General Vocabulary

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