Emily Dickinson Lexicon

FRIZ'ZLING, ppr.

Curling; crisping.

FRO, adv. [Sax. fra; Scot. fra, frae; Dan. fra. It denotes departure and distance, like from, of which it may be a contraction. In some languages it is a prefix, having the force of a negative. Thus in Danish, frabringer, to bring from, is to avert, to dispel; frakalder, to recall. In Goth. bugyan is to buy; frabugyan is to sell, that is, in literal English, frombuy.]

From; away; back or backward; as in the phrase, to and fro, that is, to and from, forward or toward and backward, hither and thither.

FROCK, n. [Fr. froc; Arm. frocq; G. frack; Scot. frog.]

An upper coat, or an outer garment. The word is now used for a loose garment or shirt worn by men over their other clothes, and for a kind of gown open behind, worn by females. The frock was formerly a garment worn by monks. Ingulphus. Spelman.

FROCK'LESS, a.

Destitute of a frock.

FROG, n. [Sax. froga, frogga; Dan. fröe. Qu. from the root of break, as L. rana, from the root of rend, from its broken shape, or from leaping, or its fragor or hoarse voice.]

1. An amphibious animal of the genus Rana, with four feet, a naked body, and without a tail. It is remarkable for swimming with rapidity, and for taking large leaps on land. Frogs lie torpid during winter. Encyc.
2. In farriery. [See Frush.]
3. A cloke button, swelled in the middle.

FROG'BIT, n.

A plant, the Hydrocharis.

FROG'FISH, n.

1. An animal of Surinam, which is said to change from a fish to a frog and then to a fish again. It is cartilaginous, and exquisite food. Edwards.
2. The Lophius, or fishing-frog.

FROG'GRASS, n.

A plant.

FROG'GY, a.

Having frogs. Sherwood.

FROG'HOP-PER, n.

An animal that leaps.

FROISE, n. [Fr. froisser, to bruise.]

A kind of food made by frying bacon inclosed in a pancake. Chalmers.

FROL'ICK, a. [G. fröhlich; froh, glad, and lich, like; D. vrolyk; Dan. fro, glad; Sw. frögdelig, from frögd, joy, frögda, to exhilarate; Ar. فَرَحَ faracha, to be glad, to rejoice. Class Brg, No. 6. Probably allied to free.]

Gay; merry full of levity; dancing, playing or frisking about; full of pranks. The frolick wind that breathes the spring. Milton. The gay, the frolick, and the loud. Waller. [This adjective is seldom used except in poetry. As a noun and a verb, its use is common.]

FROL'ICK, n.

1. A wild prank; a flight of levity, or gayety and mirth. He would be at his frolick once again. Roscommon.
2. A scene of gayety and mirth, as in dancing or play. [This is a popular use of the word in America.]

FROL'ICK, v.i.

To play wild pranks; to play tricks of levity, mirth and gayety. The buzzing insects frolick in the air. Anon.

FROL'ICK-FUL, a.

Frolicksome.

FROL'ICK-LY, adv.

With mirth and gayety. [Obs.] Beaum.

FROL'ICK-SOME, a.

Full of gayety and mirth; given to pranks.

FROL'ICK-SOME-LY, adv.

With wild gayety.

FROL'ICK-SOME-NESS, n.

Gayety; wild pranks.

FROM, prep. [Sax. fram, from; Goth. fram. In Swedish, it signifies before or forward, but its sense is, past or gone, for främling is a stranger, and främgå is to go out, to depart. Dan. frem, whence fremmer, to forward, to promote, fremmed, strange, fremkommer, to come forth or out; G. fremd, strange, foreign; D. vreemd, id. If m is radical, this word is probably from the root of roam, rumble, primarily, to pass, to go.]

The sense of from may be expressed by the noun distance, or by the adjective distant, or by the participles, departing, removing to a distance. Thus it is one hundred miles from Boston to Hartford. He took his sword from his side. Light proceeds from the sun. Water issues from the earth in springs. Separate the coarse wool from the fine. Men have all sprung from Adam. Men often go from good to bad, and from bad to worse. The merit of an action depends on the principle from which it proceeds. Men judge of facts from personal knowledge, or from testimony. We should aim to judge from undeniable premises. The sense of from is literal or figurative, but it is uniformly the same. In certain phrases, generally or always elliptical, from is followed by certain adverbs, denoting place, region or position, indefinitely, no precise point being expressed; as, From above, from the upper regions. From afar, from a distance. From beneath, from a place or region below. From below, from a lower place. From behind, from a place or position in the rear. From far, from a distant place. From high, from on high, from a high place, from an upper region, or from heaven. From hence, from this place; but from is superfluous before hence. The phrase however is common. From thence, from that place; from being superfluous. From whence, from which place; from being superfluous. From where, from which place. From within, from the interior or inside. From without, from the outside, from abroad. From precedes another preposition, followed by its proper object or case. From amidst; as, from amidst the waves. From among; as, from among the trees. From beneath; as, from beneath my head. From beyond; as, from beyond the river. From forth; as, from forth his bridal bower. But this is an inverted order of the words; forth from his bower. From off; as, from of the mercy seat, that is, from the top or surface. From out; as, from out a window, that is, through an opening or from the inside. From out of, is an ill combination of words and not to be used. From under; as, from under the bed, from under the ashes, that is, from beneath or the lower side. From within; as, from within the house, that is, from the inner part or interior.

FROM'WARD, adv. [Sax. fram and weard.]

Away from; the contrary of toward.

FROND, n. [L. frons, frondis. The sense is a shoot or shooting forward, as in frons, frontis.]

In botany, a term which Linnaeus applies to the peculiar leafing of palms and ferns. He defines it, a kind of stem which has the branch united with the leaf and frequently with the fructification. The term seems to import the union of leaf and a branch. Martyn. Milne.

FRON-DA'TION, n.

A lopping of trees. Evelyn.

FROND-ESCE, v.i. [frondess.]

To unfold leaves, as plants. Staughton.

FRON-DES'CENCE, n. [L. frondesco, from frons.]

In botany, the precise time of the year and month in which each species of plants unfolds its leaves. Milne. Martyn.