Emily Dickinson Lexicon

FEUD, n. [Sax. fæhth, or fægth, from figan, feon, to hate. Hence also fah, a foe, and from the participle, feond, a fiend; D. vyand, G. feind, an enemy; G. fehd, war, quarrel; Sw. fegd; Dan. fejde. In Irish, fuath is hatred, abhorrence. Class Bg.]

1. Primarily, a deadly quarrel; hatred and contention that was to be terminated only by death. Among our rude ancestors, these quarrels, though originating in the murder of an individual, involved the whole tribe or family of the injured and of the aggressing parties. Hence in modern usage,
2. A contention or quarrel; particularly, an inveterate quarrel between families or parties in a state; the discord and animosities which prevail among the citizens of a state or city, sometimes accompanied with civil war. In the north of Great Britain, the word is still used in its original sense; denoting a combination of kindred to revenge the death of any of their blood, on the offender and all his race, or any other great enemy. We say, it is the policy of our enemies to raise and cherish intestine feuds. The word is not strictly applicable to wars between different nations, but to intestine wars, and to quarrels and animosities between families or small tribes.