firk

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English

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Part or all of this entry has been imported from the 1913 edition of Webster’s Dictionary, which is now free of copyright and hence in the public domain. The imported definitions may be significantly out of date, and any more recent senses may be completely missing.
(See the entry for firk”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.)

Alternative forms

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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From Middle English firken, ferken (to proceed, hasten), from Old English fercian (to bring, assist, support, carry, conduct, convey, proceed), from Proto-West Germanic *farikōn, frequentative of Proto-Germanic *faraną (to travel, fare). Akin to Old English faran (to fare, go), English fare; if so, equivalent to fare +‎ -k. Cognate with Old High German fuora (benefit, sustenance, support), Swabian fergen, ferken (to bring, dispatch).

Verb

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firk (third-person singular simple present firks, present participle firking, simple past and past participle firked)

  1. (transitive, obsolete) To carry away or about; carry; move.
  2. (transitive, obsolete) To drive away.
  3. (transitive, obsolete) To rouse; raise up.
  4. (intransitive, obsolete) To move quickly; go off or fly out suddenly; turn out.

Noun

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firk (plural firks)

  1. A stroke; lash.

Etymology 2

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Probably an alteration of freak.

Noun

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firk (plural firks)

  1. (UK dialectal) A freak; trick; quirk.
Derived terms
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