English
foo fighter
Foo fighter may come from French feu ‘fire’.
- Frenchc. 1600–presentfeu‘fire’uncertain
- Englishearliest quotation 1965foo fighter
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Frenchc. 1600–presentfeu‘fire’uncertain
- Englishearliest quotation 1965foo fighter
Earliest quotation: 1965, James Holledge, Flying Saucers Over Australia: “A former Dutch journalist, Jack Kunst first became interested…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂- ‘to shine’
phone, professor, famous, ben, phase, favor, ban, fantasy, favourite, fancy, fame, emphasis, fate, photographer, phenomenon, profession, fatal, bee, fairy, fabulous, abandon, infant, confession, confess, phantom, symphony, beacon, beck, eff, fab, fay, boon, bane, prophetic, epiphany, fable, banish, buoy, nefarious, profess, 125 more
through Latin focus ‘hearth’
Today it means
noun Any of various unidentified flying objects, as reported by Allied pilots during World War II.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / French feu / foo fighter