Word
eff
UK/ˌiːˌɛfˈɛf/
Definitions
01euphemism for 'fuck'
v. to use a softer word instead of the 'F-word' when you are angry or want to swear politely.
v. to serve as a euphemistic substitute for the expletive 'fuck', often used to maintain a degree of decorum while expressing frustration.
“I am so tired of this job, I just want to eff off and never come back.”
“He was so frustrated with the bureaucratic delays that he told the clerk to eff off, though he immediately regretted the outburst.”
Informal · Slang · Humorous
Usage
Often used in the phrasal verbs 'eff off' or 'eff up'.
Synonyms
02the letter F
n. the name of the letter 'F' when you write it out as a word.
n. the phonetic representation or name of the Latin script letter 'F'.
“The word 'fish' starts with an eff.”
“The typographer noted that the descender on the lowercase eff was slightly too long for the chosen line spacing.”
Usage
Usually spelled 'ef' or 'eff'.
03to express in words
v. to put a feeling or idea into words.
v. to express or articulate something in words; the verbal counterpart to 'ineffable'.
“It is hard to eff the beauty of the mountains in a simple poem.”
“The philosopher struggled to eff the transcendental experience, eventually concluding that some truths remain beyond the reach of language.”
Literary · Formal
Usage
Rare in modern English; most commonly encountered in its negated adjective form 'ineffable'.
Synonyms
Real-World Examples
“Vincent has caring parents, but the film’s central message is that at some point every generation has to tell the previous one to eff off, as well-meaning as they may be.” Etymology
A variant spelling of the letter f, the initial letter of fuck. Compare pee.
Back-formation from ineffable, ultimately from Latin effor (“utter”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.