50 words starting with F

• fabricate verb

  to invent something false in order to deceive; to make or build something

  He fabricated an excuse about a broken bus to explain why he was late.

  Like invent, make up, falsify

• facade noun

  the front of a building; a false appearance that hides the truth

  The old palace has a beautiful brick facade.

  Like front, exterior, pretense

• facile adjective

  too simple, showing little careful thought

  The essay offered a facile answer to a complicated question.

  Like simplistic, superficial, shallow

• faction noun

  a small group within a larger one that disagrees with the rest

  A faction of the club wanted to change the meeting day.

  Like group, camp, side

• fallacious adjective

  based on a false idea or faulty reasoning

  The argument was fallacious because it ignored half of the evidence.

  Like false, mistaken, invalid

• fallacy noun

  a mistaken belief, or an error in reasoning

  It is a fallacy that we use only ten percent of our brains.

  Like misconception, myth, error

• fallible adjective

  able to make mistakes

  Even the best scientists are fallible, so they check each other’s work.

  Like imperfect, error-prone, human

• falter verb

  to lose strength or confidence and start to hesitate or stumble

  Her voice faltered for a moment, but then she finished her speech.

  Like hesitate, waver, stumble

• fanatic noun

  a person with extreme, unreasonable enthusiasm for a belief or activity

  My cousin is a cricket fanatic who watches every single match.

  Like zealot, extremist

• fanciful adjective

  imaginative but not realistic

  The book has fanciful drawings of cities floating in the clouds.

  Like imaginative, fantastic, unrealistic

• fathom verb

  to understand something difficult after thinking about it

  I could not fathom how the magician made the coin disappear.

  Like comprehend, understand, grasp

• feasible adjective

  possible to do and likely to work

  Building a small solar panel is a feasible project for our class.

  Like possible, practical, achievable

• feeble adjective

  very weak in body or effect

  The old dog gave a feeble wag of its tail.

  Like weak, frail, faint

• feign verb

  to pretend to have a feeling or condition

  He feigned sleep when his mother came to check on him.

  Like pretend, fake, sham

• fervent adjective

  showing very strong and sincere feeling

  She is a fervent supporter of protecting the forests.

  Like passionate, ardent, intense

• fervor noun

  very strong and eager feeling

  The crowd cheered with fervor as the runners crossed the line.

  Like passion, zeal, enthusiasm

• fickle adjective

  changing your mind or loyalty often and without reason

  The fickle fans cheered for one team, then switched to the other at half-time.

  Like changeable, unpredictable, inconstant

• fidelity noun

  loyalty to a person or promise; how exactly something is copied

  The translation was praised for its fidelity to the original poem.

  Like faithfulness, loyalty, accuracy

• figurative adjective

  using words in an imaginative way, not with their usual meaning

  “Raining cats and dogs” is a figurative expression for heavy rain.

  Like metaphorical, symbolic, non-literal

• finesse noun

  great skill and grace in handling something

  The goalkeeper caught the ball with finesse.

  Like skill, grace, delicacy

• flagrant adjective

  shockingly obvious and openly wrong

  Pushing to the front of the line was a flagrant violation of the rules.

  Like blatant, glaring, outrageous

• flamboyant adjective

  bold, colorful, and showy in a way that draws attention

  The singer wore a flamboyant gold jacket covered in sequins.

  Like showy, flashy, dazzling

• flaunt verb

  to show something off proudly to make others notice or envy it

  He flaunted his new phone in front of all his classmates.

  Like show off, parade, display

• flaw noun

  a small fault or weakness that makes something imperfect

  The jeweler found a tiny flaw inside the crystal.

  Like defect, fault, imperfection

• flippant adjective

  not serious or respectful about something that deserves seriousness

  The teacher did not like his flippant answer about the safety rules.

  Like frivolous, glib, offhand

• flourish verb

  to grow well and be healthy; to be very successful

  Tomatoes flourish in our greenhouse even in winter.

  Like thrive, prosper, bloom

• fluctuate verb

  to rise and fall again and again in an irregular way

  Temperatures in the desert fluctuate greatly between day and night.

  Like vary, change, swing

• fluent adjective

  able to speak or write a language easily and well

  After a year in Japan, my aunt became fluent in Japanese.

  Like proficient, articulate

• foolhardy adjective

  recklessly brave in a way that ignores obvious danger

  Crossing the swollen river at night would be foolhardy.

  Like reckless, rash, imprudent

• foreboding noun

  a feeling that something bad is going to happen

  The dark clouds gave the hikers a sense of foreboding.

  Like apprehension, dread, unease

• forestall verb

  to prevent something by acting before it happens

  The early warning forestalled panic when the river rose.

  Like prevent, avert, preempt

• forfeit verb

  to lose something as a penalty for breaking a rule or failing to act

  The team forfeited the match because they arrived an hour late.

  Like lose, surrender, give up

• forge verb

  to shape metal by heating and hammering it; to make a false copy of something to deceive people

  The blacksmith forged a new sickle from an old iron bar.

  Like shape, hammer out, counterfeit

• forgo verb

  to choose to go without something you would like

  She decided to forgo dessert so she would have room for the Dashain feast.

  Like give up, do without, renounce

• formidable adjective

  large, powerful, or difficult in a way that inspires fear or respect

  Everest is a formidable challenge, even for experienced climbers.

  Like daunting, impressive, intimidating

• forsake verb

  to leave or give up someone or something completely

  The sailors would not forsake their friend on the island.

  Like abandon, desert, give up

• forthright adjective

  direct and honest in what you say

  She gave a forthright answer when asked why the project was late.

  Like frank, candid, blunt

• fortify verb

  to make a place stronger against attack; to strengthen

  The villagers fortified the riverbank with stones before the monsoon.

  Like strengthen, reinforce, protect

• fortitude noun

  courage and strength of mind in pain or difficulty

  The porters showed great fortitude carrying heavy loads up the steep trail.

  Like courage, endurance, resilience

• fortuitous adjective

  happening by lucky chance

  Our fortuitous meeting at the airport saved us a long taxi ride.

  Like lucky, chance, accidental

• foster verb

  to encourage the growth or development of something

  The science club fosters curiosity in young students.

  Like encourage, promote, nurture

• fragile adjective

  easily broken or damaged

  Pack the glass jars carefully, because they are fragile.

  Like delicate, breakable, frail

• fraught adjective

  full of something unpleasant such as danger or worry

  The journey across the high pass was fraught with danger.

  Like filled, laden, rife

• frenzy noun

  a state of wild, uncontrolled excitement or activity

  There was a shopping frenzy in the market the day before Dashain.

  Like fever, furor, madness

• frivolous adjective

  not serious or important; silly

  We had no time for frivolous questions during the exam review.

  Like trivial, silly, flippant

• frugal adjective

  careful to spend little money or use few resources

  My frugal grandfather saves every piece of string and paper.

  Like thrifty, economical, careful

• fruitful adjective

  producing good or useful results

  The meeting with the scientists was fruitful, and we got many new ideas.

  Like productive, successful, rewarding

• fruitless adjective

  failing to produce any useful result

  After a fruitless search for the key, we called a locksmith.

  Like futile, useless, unsuccessful

• futile adjective

  having no chance of success

  It was futile to try to stop the river with sandbags alone.

  Like pointless, useless, vain

• futility noun

  the quality of being pointless and having no chance of success

  They soon saw the futility of arguing with a referee.

  Like pointlessness, uselessness, fruitlessness