fon

See also: Appendix:Variations of "fon"

Languages (25)

Translingual • English

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Catalan • Cornish • French • Gothic • Haitian Creole • Hungarian • Indonesian • Italian • Malay • Middle English • Old English • Old Frisian • Old High German • Old Irish • Old Saxon • Polish • Romanian • Saterland Frisian • Scottish Gaelic • Serbo-Croatian • Spanish • Sranan Tongo • Vilamovian

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Page categories

Translingual

Symbol

fon

1. (international standards) ISO 639-2 & ISO 639-3 language code for Fon.

English

Pronunciation

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Etymology 1

From Middle English fonne (noun). More at fun.

Noun

fon (plural fons)

1. (obsolete) A fool or idiot.
   • c. 1503–1512, John Skelton, Ware the Hauke; republished in John Scattergood, editor, John Skelton: The Complete English Poems, 1983, →OCLC, page 65, lines 128–129:

     Delt he not lyke a fon?
     Delt he not lyke a daw?

Derived terms

• fond
• fonly

References

• “fon”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɔːn/

Noun

fon (plural fons)

1. A chieftain or king of a region of Cameroon.
   • 2008, Milton Krieger, Cameroon's Social Democratic Front, →ISBN, page 71:

     Province-wide, the latter part of the 1990s witnessed considerable efforts by the regime to organize and activate a bloc of such financially dependent fons in the North West Elite Association (NWELA), […]

   • 2010, Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Cameroon, →ISBN, page 53:

     In the early 1900s, the Bafut fought several wars with the German colonizers and their allies, ending in 1907 with the exile of the fon of that time.

   • 2011, Society and Change in Bali Nyonga: Critical Perspectives, →ISBN, page 152:

     Biya's volte-face became apparent in July 1990 when he, as president of the ruling Cameroon People's Democratic Movement (CPDM) appointed Ganyonga and the fons of Mankon and Bafut into key positions of the party […]

Derived terms

• fondom

Anagrams

• NOF, OFN, ONF.

Catalan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic, Valencia) [ˈfɔn]

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Ancient Greek φωνή (phōnḗ, “sound”).

Noun

fon m (plural fons)

1. (linguistics) phone

Related terms

• al·lòfon
• -fon
• fonem
• fonètic

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

fon

1. inflection of fondre:
   1. third-person singular present indicative
   2. second-person singular imperative

Etymology 3

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

fon (Valencia)

1. (literary) third-person singular preterite indicative of ésser

   Synonym: fou (standard Catalan)

2. (colloquial) first-person singular preterite indicative of ésser

   Synonym: fui (standard Catalan, literary Valencian)

Etymology 4

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Verb

fon (Balearic)

1. first-person singular present indicative of fonar

   Synonym: fono (standard Catalan)

Cornish

Etymology

Borrowed from English phone.

Pronunciation

• (Late Cornish) IPA^(key): /foːn/
• (Middle Cornish) IPA^(key): /fɔːn/

Noun

fon m (plural fons)

1. telephone, phone

   Synonyms: pellgewsell, pellgowser

Derived terms

• fonya (“to phone”, verb)

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɔ̃/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

fon m (uncountable)

1. Fon (language)

Further reading

• “fon”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Gothic

Romanization

fōn

1. romanization of 𐍆𐍉𐌽

Haitian Creole

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɔ̃/

Etymology 1

From French fond (“bottom”).

Noun

fon

1. bottom

Etymology 2

From French front (“forehead”).

Noun

fon

1. forehead

Hungarian

Etymology

From Proto-Uralic *puna-. Cognates include Southern Mansi po̰n-, Erzya понамс (ponams) and Finnish punoa.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈfon]
• Rhymes: -on

Verb

fon

1. (transitive) to spin (to make thread by twisting fibers)

   Gyapjút fontak. ― They were spinning (or they spun) wool.

2. (transitive) to weave

   kosarat fon ― to weave baskets

3. (transitive) to weave something (into something -ba/-be)

   Gyöngyöket font a hajába. ― She wove pearls in her hair.

4. (transitive) to braid, plait (to interweave three or more strands, strips)

   A haját copfba fonta. ― She plaited her hair. (literally, “She wove her hair into a plait.”)

5. (transitive) to twist (rope)
6. (transitive) to twine (arms)

Conjugation

Conjugation of fon

Click for archaic forms			1st person sg	2nd person sg informal	3rd person sg, 2nd p. sg formal	1st person pl	2nd person pl informal	3rd person pl, 2nd p. pl formal
indica­tive	indica­tive	pre­sent	indef.	fonok	fonsz	fon	fonunk	fontok	fonnak
			def.	fonom	fonod	fonja	fonjuk	fonjátok	fonják
			2nd obj	fonlak
		past	indef.	fontam	fontál	font	fontunk	fontatok	fontak
			def.	fontam	fontad	fonta	fontuk	fontátok	fonták
			2nd obj	fontalak
		future		Future is expressed with a present-tense verb with a completion-marking prefix and/or a time adverb, or—more explicitly—with the infinitive plus the conjugated auxiliary verb fog, e.g. fonni fog.
archaic preterite		indef.	fonék	fonál	fona	fonánk	fonátok	fonának
		def.	fonám	fonád	foná	fonánk	fonátok	fonák
		2nd obj	fonálak
archaic past		Two additional past tenses: the present and the (current) past forms followed by vala (volt), e.g. fon vala, font vala/volt.
archaic future	indef.	fonandok	fonandasz	fonand	fonandunk	fonandotok	fonandanak
	def.	fonandom	fonandod	fonandja	fonandjuk	fonandjátok	fonandják
	2nd obj	fonandalak
condi­tional	pre­sent	indef.	fonnék	fonnál	fonna	fonnánk	fonnátok	fonnának
		def.	fonnám	fonnád	fonná	fonnánk (or fonnók)	fonnátok	fonnák
		2nd obj	fonnálak
	past		Indicative past forms followed by volna, e.g. font volna
sub­junc­tive	sub­junc­tive	pre­sent	indef.	fonjak	fonj or fonjál	fonjon	fonjunk	fonjatok	fonjanak
			def.	fonjam	fond or fonjad	fonja	fonjuk	fonjátok	fonják
			2nd obj	fonjalak
(archaic) past		Indicative past forms followed by légyen, e.g. font légyen
infinitive	fonni		fonnom	fonnod	fonnia	fonnunk	fonnotok	fonniuk
other forms	verbal noun		present part.	past part.	future part.	adverbial participle		causative
	fonás		fonó	font or fonott	fonandó	fonva (fonván)
The archaic passive conjugation had the same -(t)at/-(t)et suffix as the causative, followed by -ik in the 3rd-person singular (and the concomitant changes in conditional and subjunctive mostly in the 1st- and 3rd-person singular like with other traditional -ik verbs).

Potential conjugation of fon

Click for archaic forms			1st person sg	2nd person sg informal	3rd person sg, 2nd p. sg formal	1st person pl	2nd person pl informal	3rd person pl, 2nd p. pl formal
indica­tive	indica­tive	pre­sent	indef.	fonhatok	fonhatsz	fonhat	fonhatunk	fonhattok	fonhatnak
			def.	fonhatom	fonhatod	fonhatja	fonhatjuk	fonhatjátok	fonhatják
			2nd obj	fonhatlak
		past	indef.	fonhattam	fonhattál	fonhatott	fonhattunk	fonhattatok	fonhattak
			def.	fonhattam	fonhattad	fonhatta	fonhattuk	fonhattátok	fonhatták
			2nd obj	fonhattalak
archaic preterite		indef.	fonhaték	fonhatál	fonhata	fonhatánk	fonhatátok	fonhatának
		def.	fonhatám	fonhatád	fonhatá	fonhatánk	fonhatátok	fonhaták
		2nd obj	fonhatálak
archaic past		Two additional past tenses: the present and the (current) past forms followed by vala (volt), e.g. fonhat vala, fonhatott vala/volt.
archaic future	indef.	fonhatandok or fonandhatok	fonhatandasz or fonandhatsz	fonhatand or fonandhat	fonhatandunk or fonandhatunk	fonhatandotok or fonandhattok	fonhatandanak or fonandhatnak
	def.	fonhatandom or fonandhatom	fonhatandod or fonandhatod	fonhatandja or fonandhatja	fonhatandjuk or fonandhatjuk	fonhatandjátok or fonandhatjátok	fonhatandják or fonandhatják
	2nd obj	fonhatandalak or fonandhatlak
condi­tional	pre­sent	indef.	fonhatnék	fonhatnál	fonhatna	fonhatnánk	fonhatnátok	fonhatnának
		def.	fonhatnám	fonhatnád	fonhatná	fonhatnánk (or fonhatnók)	fonhatnátok	fonhatnák
		2nd obj	fonhatnálak
	past		Indicative past forms followed by volna, e.g. fonhatott volna
sub­junc­tive	sub­junc­tive	pre­sent	indef.	fonhassak	fonhass or fonhassál	fonhasson	fonhassunk	fonhassatok	fonhassanak
			def.	fonhassam	fonhasd or fonhassad	fonhassa	fonhassuk	fonhassátok	fonhassák
			2nd obj	fonhassalak
(archaic) past		Indicative past forms followed by légyen, e.g. fonhatott légyen
infinitive	(fonhatni)		(fonhatnom)	(fonhatnod)	(fonhatnia)	(fonhatnunk)	(fonhatnotok)	(fonhatniuk)
other forms	positive adjective			negative adjective		adverbial participle
	fonható			fonhatatlan		(fonhatva / fonhatván)

Derived terms

• fonadék
• fonal
• fonat
• fonál
• fonoda
• fonogat
• fonott
• fonottas
• fonódik

(With verbal prefixes):

• átfon
• befon
• belefon
• egybefon
• felfon
• keresztülfon
• kifon
• körülfon
• lefon
• megfon
• összefon
• ráfon

Expressions

• nincs kolbászból fonva a kerítés

Further reading

• fon in Géza Bárczi, László Országh, et al., editors, A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára [The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language] (ÉrtSz.), Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN.

Indonesian

Etymology 1

From Dutch foon (“phone”), from Ancient Greek φωνή (phōnḗ, “sound”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈfɔn]
• Hyphenation: fon

Noun

fon (plural fon-fon)

1. (linguistics) phone, a speech segment that possesses distinct physical or perceptual properties, considered as a physical event without regard to its place in the phonology of a language

Etymology 2

From Dutch föhn (“foehn”), from German Föhn, from Vulgar Latin *faōnius, from Latin Favōnius (“Favonius”), a Roman wind god.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈfɔn]
• Hyphenation: fon

Noun

fon (plural fon-fon)

1. (meteorology) foehn, a warm dry wind blowing down the north sides of the Alps, especially in Switzerland, and similar warm dry wind developing on the lee side of a mountain
2. (obsolete) hairdryer

Alternative forms

• fohn
• Föhn

Etymology 3

From English font, from Middle French fonte, feminine past participle of verb fondre (“to melt”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈfɔn]
• Hyphenation: fon

Noun

fon (plural fon-fon)

1. (computing, typography) font

Alternative forms

• fonta

Further reading

• “fon” in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia, Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016.

Italian

Alternative forms

• phon

Etymology

Originally a brandname, from German Fön, from Föhn, a warm, dry wind.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfɔn/
• Rhymes: -ɔn
• Hyphenation: fòn

Noun

fon m (invariable)

1. hairdryer, blowdryer

   Synonym: asciugacapelli

Derived terms

• fonare

Descendants

• Sicilian: fonu

Malay

Pronunciation

• (Etymology 1 & 3) IPA^(key): [fon]

  • Audio (Malaysia):

    (file)

  • Rhymes: -on
• (Etymology 2) IPA^(key): [fɔn]

  • Audio (Malaysia):

    (file)

  • Rhymes: -ɔn
• Hyphenation: fon

Etymology 1

Borrowed from English phone, clipping of telephone.

Noun

fon (Jawi spelling فون)

1. phone, telephone

   Fon ini siapa punya?

   Whose phone is this?

Compounds

• fon kepala
• fon telinga

Etymology 2

From English font, from Middle French fonte, feminine past participle of verb fondre (“to melt”).

Noun

fon (Jawi spelling فون)

1. (computing, typography) font

   fon serif ― serif font

Etymology 3

Borrowed from English phone, from Ancient Greek φωνή (phōnḗ, “sound”).

Noun

fon (Jawi spelling فون)

1. (linguistics) phone

See also

• -fon

Further reading

• “fon” in Pusat Rujukan Persuratan Melayu | Malay Literary Reference Centre, Kuala Lumpur: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2017.

Middle English

Etymology 1

Verb

fon

1. alternative form of fonnen

Etymology 2

Noun

fon

1. alternative form of fonne

Adjective

fon

1. alternative form of fonne

Etymology 3

From Old English ġefān, plural of ġefāh; equivalent to fo +‎ -en (plural suffix).

Noun

fon

1. plural of fo

Old English

Etymology

From earlier *fōhan [ˈfoː.xɑn], from Proto-West Germanic *fą̄han. Cognate with Old Frisian fā, Old Saxon fahan, Old Dutch fān, Old High German fāhan, Old Norse fá, Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐌷𐌰𐌽 (fahan).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /foːn/

Verb

fōn

1. to catch, capture; seize
   • c. 990, Wessex Gospels, "Gospel of Saint John", chapter 21, verse 3

     Ðā cwæð Simon Petrus tō him, Ic wylle gān on fixað. Þā cwǣdon hī tō him, And wē wyllað gān mid þē. And hī ēodon ūt, and ēodon on scip, and ne fēngon nān þing on þǣre nihte.

     Then said Simon Peter to them. I want to go fishing. Then they said to him, and we want to go with you. And they went out and went in a ship, and caught nothing in the night.

   • c. 900, translation of Bede's Ecclesiastical History

     Hēr bēoþ oft fangene sēolas and hranas and mereswīn.

     Seals, whales and dolphins are often caught here.

2. (with tō) to take what is given, receive or accept what is offered
   • The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

     Ōsrēd, þe wæs Norþanhymbra cining, æfter wræcsīþe hām cumenum ġelǣht wæs ⁊ ofslagen on XVIII Kƚ Octoƀ ⁊ his līc liġþ æt Tīnamūþe. ⁊ Æþelrēd cining feng tō nīwan wīfe, sēo wæs Ælflēd ġehāten, on III Kƚ Octobr̃.

     Osred, who was king of Northumbrian, was apprehended and slain on the 17th of October after coming home from his exile, and his body lies at Tynemouth. And King Aethelred took a new wife, whose name was Aelfled, on the third of October.

3. (with tō) to conquer, take over
   • late 9th century, translation of Orosius’ History Against the Pagans

     Æfter him feng his sunu tō Persea rīċe Xersis.

     After him his son Xerxes took over the Persian Empire.

   Hīe cwǣdon þæt hē wolde tō þǣre byrġ fōn.

   They said he would take over the city.

Conjugation

Conjugation of fōn (strong, class VII)

infinitive	fōn	fōnne
indicative mood	present tense	past tense
first person singular	fō	fēng
second person singular	fēhst	fēnge
third person singular	fēhþ	fēng
plural	fōþ	fēngon
subjunctive	present tense	past tense
singular	fō	fēnge
plural	fōn	fēngen
imperative
singular	fōh
plural	fōþ
participle	present	past
	fōnde	(ġe)fangen

Derived terms

• ætfōn
• āfōn
• befōn
• *fenġa
• forefōn
• forfōn
• ġefōn
• misfōn
• onfōn
• underfōn
• wiþfōn
• ymbfōn

Descendants

• Middle English: fon, fangen
  • Scots: fang
  • English: fang

Old Frisian

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *fanē (“from”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂pó. Cognates include Old Saxon fan and Old Dutch fan.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfon/

Preposition

fon

1. of

Descendants

• North Frisian: foon
• Saterland Frisian: fon
• West Frisian: fan

References

• Bremmer, Rolf H. (2009) An Introduction to Old Frisian: History, Grammar, Reader, Glossary, Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company, →ISBN

Old High German

Alternative forms

• fana, fona

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *afanē, *fanē, *funē (“from”).

Preposition

fon

1. from

Descendants

• Middle High German: von, vone
  • Bavarian:

    Cimbrian: bon

    Mòcheno: va

  • German: von
  • Luxembourgish: vun
  • Vilamovian: fon
  • Yiddish: פֿון (fun)

Old Irish

Alternative forms

• fond, fun, fund

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ɸon], [ɸonʲ], [ɸon͈], [ɸon͈ʲ]

The quality of the n depends on the initial sound of the following word.

Article

fon

1. Univerbation of fo (“under”) +‎ in (“the (accusative singular masculine/feminine; dative singular all genders)”)
   • c. 850-875, Turin Glosses and Scholia on St Mark, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1987, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. I, pp. 484–94, Tur. 110c

     Ba bés leusom do·bertis dá boc leu dochum tempuil, ⁊ no·léicthe indala n‑aí fon díthrub co pecad in popuil, ⁊ do·bertis maldachta foir, ⁊ n⟨o⟩·oircthe didiu and ó popul tar cenn a pecthae ind aile.

     It was a custom with them that two he-goats were brought by them to the temple, and one of the two of them was let go to the wilderness with the sin of the people, and curses were put upon him, and thereupon the other was slain there by the people for their sins.

Old Saxon

Preposition

fon

1. alternative form of fan

Polish

Etymology

Internationalism; compare English phon, French phone, German Phon, ultimately from Ancient Greek φωνή (phōnḗ).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfɔn/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔn
• Syllabification: fon

Noun

fon m inan

1. (acoustics) phon (logarithmic unit of loudness level for tones and complex sounds)

Declension

Declension of fon

	singular	plural
nominative	fon	fony
genitive	fonu	fonów
dative	fonowi	fonom
accusative	fon	fony
instrumental	fonem	fonami
locative	fonie	fonach
vocative	fonie	fony

Further reading

• fon in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French phone.

Noun

fon m (plural foni)

1. phon

Declension

Declension of fon

	singular			plural
	indefinite	definite		indefinite	definite
nominative-accusative	fon	fonul		foni	fonii
genitive-dative	fon	fonului		foni	fonilor
vocative	fonule			fonilor

Saterland Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian fon, from Proto-West Germanic [Term?], from Proto-Germanic *fanē. Cognates include West Frisian fan and German von.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɔn/
• Hyphenation: fon
• Rhymes: -ɔn

Preposition

fon (neuter or distal adverb deerfon, proximal adverb hierfon, interrogative adverb wierfon)

1. of
   • 2000, Marron C. Fort, transl., Dät Näie Tästamänt un do Psoolme in ju aasterlauwerfräiske Uurtoal fon dät Seelterlound, Fräislound, Butjoarlound, Aastfräislound un do Groninger Umelounde [The New Testament and the Psalms in the East Frisian language, native to Saterland, Friesland, Butjadingen, East Frisia and the Ommelanden of Groningen], →ISBN, Dät Evangelium ätter Matthäus 1:20:

     Wilst hie noch deeruur ättertoachte, ferskeen him n Ängel fon dän Here in n Droom un kwaad: Josef, Súun fon David, freze die nit, Maria as dien Wieuw bie die aptouníemen;

     While he was still thinking about it, came to him an angel from the Lord in a dream and said: Joseph, son of David, don't be afraid to take Maria as your wife;

2. from
   • 2000, Marron C. Fort, transl., Dät Näie Tästamänt un do Psoolme in ju aasterlauwerfräiske Uurtoal fon dät Seelterlound, Fräislound, Butjoarlound, Aastfräislound un do Groninger Umelounde [The New Testament and the Psalms in the East Frisian language, native to Saterland, Friesland, Butjadingen, East Frisia and the Ommelanden of Groningen], →ISBN, Dät Evangelium ätter Matthäus 1:21:

     Ju skäl n Súun bere; him skääst du dän Nome Jesus reke; dan hie skäl sien Foulk fon sien Sänden ferleze.

     She will bear a son; you shall give him the name Jesus; then he shall set his people free from its sins.

References

• Marron C. Fort (2015) “fon”, in Saterfriesisches Wörterbuch mit einer phonologischen und grammatischen Übersicht, Buske, →ISBN

Scottish Gaelic

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɔn̪ˠ/
• Hyphenation: fon

Preposition

fon (+ dative)

1. contraction of fo an

Usage notes

• Like the bare article an, fon triggers lenition if the following noun begins with f, c and g.

References

• Colin Mark (2003) “fo”, in The Gaelic-English dictionary, London: Routledge, →ISBN, page 307

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Ancient Greek φωνή (phōnḗ).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fôːn/

Noun

fȏn m (Cyrillic spelling фо̑н)

1. (linguistics) phone

Declension

Declension of fon

	singular	plural
nominative	fȏn	foni
genitive	fona	fona
dative	fonu	fonima
accusative	fon	fone
vocative	fone	foni
locative	fonu	fonima
instrumental	fonom	fonima

Etymology 2

Borrowed from French fond.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fôːn/

Noun

fȏn m (Cyrillic spelling фо̑н)

1. basis, foundation
2. (painting) the first layer that lays the foundation for the painting

Declension

Declension of fon

	singular	plural
nominative	fȏn	fónovi
genitive	fona	fonova
dative	fonu	fonovima
accusative	fon	fonove
vocative	fone	fonovi
locative	fonu	fonovima
instrumental	fonom	fonovima

Synonyms

• (basis): ȍsnova
• (foundation layer): fȍnd

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from English phone

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfon/ [ˈfõn]
• Rhymes: -on
• Syllabification: fon

Noun

fon m (plural fones)

1. (Mexico, US, Philippines) phone

   Synonyms: teléfono, celular

Derived terms

• fonazo

Further reading

• “fon”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10

Sranan Tongo

Etymology

From Kalabari fom (“to strike”). Compare Jamaican Creole fom, fum.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /foŋ/, /fon/, [fʊ̞̃ŋ], [fɔ̝ŋ]

Verb

fon

1. to beat, to thrash, to pummel
2. to mash, to puree

Derived terms

• fonfon

Descendants

• Aukan: fon
• Saramaccan: fón

Vilamovian

Etymology

From Middle High German von (“from”), from Old High German fon, fona (“from”). Cognate with German von.

Preposition

fon

1. from
2. of (belonging to)