From Middle English fast, fest, from Old English fæst (“firm, secure”), from Proto-West Germanic *fast, from Proto-Germanic *fastuz; see it for cognates and further etymology. The development of “rapid” from an original sense of “secure” apparently happened first in the adverb and then transferred to the adjective; compare hard in expressions like “to run hard”. The original sense of “secure, firm” is now slightly archaic, but retained in the related fasten (“make secure”). Also compare close meaning change from Latin rapiō (“to snatch”) to Latin rapidus (“rapid, quick”), from Irish sciob (“to snatch”) to Irish sciobtha (“quick”).
1
Rail transport, Railways, TransportUK A train that calls at only some stations it passes between its origin and destination, typically just the principal stations.
fast
intj
Etymology
From Middle English fast, fest, from Old English fæst (“firm, secure”), from Proto-West Germanic *fast, from Proto-Germanic *fastuz; see it for cognates and further etymology. The development of “rapid” from an original sense of “secure” apparently happened first in the adverb and then transferred to the adjective; compare hard in expressions like “to run hard”. The original sense of “secure, firm” is now slightly archaic, but retained in the related fasten (“make secure”). Also compare close meaning change from Latin rapiō (“to snatch”) to Latin rapidus (“rapid, quick”), from Irish sciob (“to snatch”) to Irish sciobtha (“quick”).
Etymology From Middle English fast, faste, from Old English fæste, from fæst + -e (adverb-forming suffix).
1
In a firm or secure manner, securely; in such a way as not to be moved; safe, sound .
Hold this rope as fast as you can.
Do as I bid you, ſhut doores after you, Faſt binde, faſt finde, A Prouerbe neuer ſtale in thrifty minde.c. 1596–1598 (date written), W[illiam] Shakespeare, The Excellent History of the Merchant of Venice. […] (First Quarto), [London]: […] J[ames] Roberts [for Thomas Heyes], published 1600, →OCLC, [Act II, scene v], signature D2, recto:
1 more example
Nine hundred of the ſtrongeſt Men were employed to draw up theſe Cords by many Pulleys faſtned on the Poles, and thus, in leſs than three Hours, I was raiſed and flung into the Engine, and there tyed faſt.1726 October 28, [Jonathan Swift], “The Author Gives Some Account of Himself and Family, His First Inducements to Travel. […]”, in Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World. […] [Gulliver’s Travels], volume I, London: […] Benj[amin] Motte, […], →OCLC, part I (A Voyage to Lilliput), page 20:
2
Of sleeping Deeply or soundly .
The princess was sleeping fast, and her servants were fast asleep too.
3
Immediately following in place or time; close, very near .
The horsemen came fast on our heels.
Fast by the sturdy batsman the ball unheeded sped. / That ain't my style, said Casey. Strike one, the umpire said.
4
Quickly, with great speed; within a short time .
Do it as fast as you can.
Faster than a speeding bit, the internet upended media and entertainment companies. Piracy soared, and sales of albums and films slid. Newspapers lost advertising and readers to websites. Stores selling books, CDs and DVDs went bust. Doomsayers predicted that consumers and advertisers would abandon pay-television en masse in favour of online alternatives.2013 August 17, “Pennies streaming from heaven”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8849:
5
Ahead of the correct time or schedule.
I think my watch is running fast.
fast
verb
Etymology
From Middle English fasten, from Old English fæstan (“to fast”), from Proto-West Germanic *fastēn, from Proto-Germanic *fastāną (“to fast”), from the same root as Proto-Germanic *fastijaną (“to fasten”), derived from *fastuz, and thereby related to Etymology 1. The religious sense is presumably introduced in the Gothic church, from Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐍃𐍄𐌰𐌽 (fastan, “hold fast (viz. to the rule of abstinence)”). This semantic development is unique to Gothic, the term glosses Greek νηστεύω (nēsteúō), Latin ieiuno which do not have similar connotations of "holding fast". The feminine noun Old High German fasta likely existed in the 8th century (shift to neuter Old High German fasten from the 9th century, whence modern German Fasten). The Old English noun originally had the sense "fortress, enclosure" and takes the religious sense only in late Old English, perhaps influenced by Old Norse fasta. The use for reduced nutrition intake for medical reasons or for weight reduction develops by the mid-1970s, back-formed from the use of the verbal noun fasting in this sense (1960s).
1
To practice religious abstinence, especially from food.
Thou didst fast and weep for the child.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, 2 Samuel 12:21:
Fasting he went to sleep, and fasting waked.1671, John Milton, “The First Book”, in Paradise Regain’d. A Poem. In IV Books. To which is Added, Samson Agonistes, London: […] J[ohn] M[acock] for John Starkey […], →OCLC, page 2:
2 more examples
1677 George Fox, The Hypocrites Fast and Feast Not God's Holy Day, p. 8 (paraphrasing Matthew 6:16-18). And is it not the Command of Christ, that in their Fast they should not appear unto men to fast?
It is at the core of the Vision Quest, the solitary period of fasting and closeness to the earth to discover one's life path and purpose.2007, John Zerzan, Silence, page 3:
2
To reduce or limit one's nutrition intake for medical or health reasons, to diet.
The ideal would be to fast in a situation where you are not tempted by food1977, Suza Norton, “To get the most benefit from fasting use a body-building diet”, in Yoga Journal, Jul-Aug 1977, p. 40:
After the equilibration period, the rats designated for deprivation studies were made to fast for 24, 48, 72, or 96 hr according to experimental design.1983, Experimental Lung Research, volumes 5-6, Informa healthcare, page 134:
3
Sciences To cause (a person or animal) to abstain, especially from eating.
At 11 weeks of age, all mice were fasted overnight and underwent gallbladder ultrasonography to determine ejection fraction.Walker et al. (2007)
Kittens, when fasted overnight, were not hypoglycemic (<60 mg/dl).Semick et al. (2018)
Etymology Abbreviation. Coined in recognition of the word fast, e.g. (medical sense) describing the need for speedy diagnosis and treatment.
1
Abbreviation, Acronym, Mnemonic An acronym for remembering desirable characteristics for goal-setting: frequently discussed, ambitious, specific, transparent.
What’s more, FAST goals work well across a wide range of industries. Technology companies such as Google, Intuit, and Netflix use an approach called objectives and key results (OKRs) to put these principles into action. FAST goals are also used in companies in more traditional industries, including AB InBev, Burger King, and Kraft Heinz.2018 June 5, Charles Sull and Donald Sull, “With Goals, FAST Beats SMART”, in MIT Sloan Management Review, archived from the original on 19 Aug 2018:
From Middle English fast, fest, from Old English fæst (“firm, secure”), from Proto-West Germanic *fast, from Proto-Germanic *fastuz; see it for cognates and further etymology. The development of “rapid” from an original sense of “secure” apparently happened first in the adverb and then transferred to the adjective; compare hard in expressions like “to run hard”. The original sense of “secure, firm” is now slightly archaic, but retained in the related fasten (“make secure”). Also compare close meaning change from Latin rapiō (“to snatch”) to Latin rapidus (“rapid, quick”), from Irish sciob (“to snatch”) to Irish sciobtha (“quick”).
Firm against attack; fortified by nature or art; impregnable; strong.
out-lawes […] lurking in woods and fast places1596 (date written; published 1633), Edmund Spenser, A Vewe of the Present State of Irelande […], Dublin: […] Societie of Stationers, […], →OCLC; republished as A View of the State of Ireland […] (Ancient Irish Histories), Dublin: […] Society of Stationers, […] Hibernia Press, […] [b]y John Morrison, 1809, →OCLC:
3
Of people Steadfast, with unwavering feeling. (Now mostly in set phrases like fast friend(s).)
I still hear you sayin', "Dear one, hold me fast"1933, Will Hudson, Irving Mills, Eddy DeLange, Moonglow:
4
Moving with great speed, or capable of doing so; swift, rapid; light.
I am going to buy a fast car.
5
Of a neutron Having a kinetic energy between 1 million and 20 million electron volts; often used to describe the energy state of free neutrons at the moment of their release by a nuclear fission or nuclear fusion reaction (i.e., before the neutrons have been slowed down by anything).
Nuclear physics
Plutonium-240 has a much higher fission cross-section for fast neutrons than for thermal neutrons.
6
Of a place, characterised by business, hustle and bustle, etc.
Sydney is a fast city, and the pace is becoming increasingly more frantic.1968, Carl Ruhen, The Key Club, Sydney: Scripts, page 15:
7
Causing unusual rapidity of play or action.
a fast racket, or tennis court
a fast track
2 more examples
a fast billiard table
a fast dance floor
8
Computing, Engineering, Mathematics, Natural sciences, Physical sciences, SciencesOf a piece of hardware Able to transfer data in a short period of time.
But at the microlevel it consists of an unimaginable number of atoms connected by springy chemical bonds, all jiggling around at a rate that even our fastest supercomputer might envy.2007 November 18, Jim Holt, “Mind of a Rock”, in The New York Times:
9
Deep or sound (of sleep); fast asleep (of people).
Since his majesty went into the field, I have seen her rise from her bed, throw her nightgown upon her, unlock her closet, take forth paper, fold it, write upon’t, read it, afterwards seal it, and again return to bed; yet all this while in a most fast sleep.c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i]:
10
Of dyes or colours Not running or fading when subjected to detrimental conditions such as wetness or intense light; permanent.
All the washing has come out pink. That red tee-shirt was not fast.
Mineral pigments were probably the first materials used for dyeing. They were generally not fast to water.1979, Kax Wilson, A History of Textiles, Westview Press, →ISBN, page 87:
1 more example
Cochineal is remarkably fast on protein fibers, remaining brilliant and saturated despite exposure to sunlight and washing.2026, Sara Temme, “Two Insects nad Their Brilliant Reds”, in Handwoven, volume XLVII, number 1, page 19:
Roses, damask and red, are fast flowers of their smells.1625, Francis [Bacon], “Of Gardens”, in The Essayes […], 3rd edition, London: […] Iohn Haviland for Hanna Barret, →OCLC:
12
Dated Having an extravagant lifestyle or immoral habits.
a fast woman
[…] we remember once hearing a fast man suggest that they were evidently "nobs who had overdrawn the badger by driving fast cattle, and going it high" — the exact signification of which words we did not understand […]1852, John Swaby, Physiology of the Opera, page 74:
3 more examples
Had Senator Wilson won the unenviable reputation of being a fast man—a lover of wine, or had he shown himself to the public in a state of inebriety, unable to stand erect in Fanueil Hall for instance, leaning upon the desk to “maintain the center of gravity,” and uttering words that fell sprawling in “muddy obscurity” from lips redolent of rum, rendering it necessary for a prompter and an interpreter to sculpture his speech into symmetry for the public ear and the public press, he would have been pelted from his high office with the indignant ballots of his constituents.1867, George W. Bungay, “Temperance and its Champions”, in The Herald of Health and Journal of Physical Culture, volume I, page 277:
“I don’t like that young woman,” said Lady Hermione; she’s fast.” “Dear Lady!” “I’ve no doubt you think me old-fashioned. Well, I’m glad I am. I say she’s fast, and what’s more, heartless. I was watching her before supper, and I’m sorry for Tony Lee. She’s been flirting as hard as she can go with Harry Vibart-not to give it a worse name-and she’s got Jim Playfair on a string too. She can’t even leave Frank Bellingham alone, though she’s staying in his house.”1933, Dorothy L. Sayers, The Queen’s Square:
You're alone with her at last / And you're waiting 'til you think the time is right / Cause you've heard she's pretty fast / And you're hoping that she'll give you some tonight.1979, Doug Fieger, Good Girls Don't:
13
Dated, Offensive, Vernacular Uncharacteristically mature or promiscuous for one's age.
Of a girl or young woman
[…] if she is of the slightly faster kind that gives smart lunch parties at the Strand Corner House, her diet is sometimes a little stronger; she takes to novels of the orchid house and the tiger's lair, to the artless erotics of Miss Elinor Glyn, Mr Hubert Wales, and Miss Victoria Cross.1918, Walter Lionel George, A Novelist on Novels:
14
Ahead of the correct time or schedule.
There must be something wrong with the hall clock. It is always fast.
15
Of photographic film More sensitive to light than average.
Etymology From Middle English faste, fasten, from Old English fæsten (“fast, fasting”), from Proto-West Germanic *fastuni, from Proto-Germanic *fastu(b)nją (“fast, fasting”). Cognate with Old Frisian festene, feste (Modern West Frisian fêsten, fêste), Middle Dutch vastene (Modern Dutch vasten), Middle Low German vastene (Modern German Low German Fasten), German Faste, Fasten (“fast, fasting”), Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐍃𐍄𐌿𐌱𐌽𐌹 (fastubni, “fasting”). Possibly merged with Old Norse fasta (“fast, fasting”), whence also Danish faste (“fast, fasting”), Swedish fasta (“fast, fasting”).
1
The act or practice of fasting, religious abstinence from food.
1677 George Fox, The Hypocrites Fast and Feast Not God's Holy Day, p. 8 (paraphrasing Matthew 6:16-18). And is it not the Command of Christ, that in their Fast they should not appear unto men to fast?
anciently a change of diet was not reckoned a fast; but it consisted in a perfect abstinence from all sustenance for the whole day till evening.1878, Joseph Bingham, The Antiquities of the Christian Church, volume 2, page 1182:
2
Any of the fasting periods in the liturgical year.
1662 Peter Gunning, The Holy Fast of Lent Defended Against All Its Prophaners: Or, a Discourse, Shewing that Lent-Fast was First Taught the World by the Apostles (1677 [1662]), p. 13 (translation of the Paschal Epistle of Theophilus of Alexandria). And so may we enter the Fasts at hand, beginning Lent the 30th. day of the Month Mechir