fuzz
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.a mass of very fine, soft hair or fibers, like the surface of a peach.
n.a frizzy or fine mass of hair, down, or fiber. Uncountable in its general sense.
Simple“The new sweater left little bits of white fuzz all over my black trousers.”
In context“A fine layer of golden fuzz covered the surface of the ripening fruit, catching the afternoon light.”
- 02 C1 Advanced
n.a slang word for the police.
n.a collective slang term for law enforcement officers or agencies. Usually used with the definite article.
Simple“We had to leave the party quickly before the fuzz showed up.”
In context“The protagonist spent the first half of the novel trying to stay one step ahead of the fuzz.”
Synonyms - 03 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.a blurry quality in a picture or a distorted sound from a guitar.
n.visual blurring or acoustic distortion, particularly the saturated sound produced by an electric guitar.
Simple“The old television had so much fuzz on the screen that I couldn't see the players.”
In context“The guitarist used a vintage pedal to add a heavy layer of fuzz to the opening riff of the song.”
SynonymsAntonyms - 04 C1 Advanced
n.random or messy data used to test if a computer program crashes.
n.randomly generated data used as input for fuzz testing to identify software vulnerabilities.
Simple“The developer used fuzz to see if the new app could handle unexpected inputs.”
In context“After injecting several gigabytes of fuzz into the interface, the security team identified a critical memory leak.”
Synonymsrandom data - 05 B2 Upper Intermediate
v.to make something look less clear or sharp.
v.to make a visual image or a conceptual boundary blurred or indistinct.
Simple“The steam from the shower started to fuzz the reflection in the mirror.”
In context“The author deliberately chose to fuzz the line between reality and dreams throughout the final chapter.”
- 06 C1 Advanced
v.to test a computer program by giving it lots of random information.
v.to perform fuzz testing on a software component by providing it with semi-random data.
Simple“We need to fuzz the new login system to make sure it is secure.”
In context“The QA engineers decided to fuzz the API endpoints for forty-eight hours to ensure maximum coverage of potential edge cases.”
Synonymsstress test
“Quince is a hard, gold-coloured fruit that looks a bit like a mini apple or a pear and is covered in peach-like fuzz.”
Uncertain. Some dictionaries suggest a Germanic source; compare Low German fussig (“loose; spongy”), Dutch voos (“unsound; rotten”). Others, such as Webster's New College Dictionary, suggest a back-formation from fuzzy. The Oxford English Dictionary suggests, “Perhaps imitative of the action of blowing away light particles.”
Unknown. Godfrey Irwin (1930) suggests a possible connection to fuss, "over-particular", excessive bother.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.