# faze

Pronunciation: say "FAYZ" US/UK /feɪz/, AUS /fæɪz/

## Verb

1. To disconcert or unsettle someone, causing hesitation or worry; most often used in the negative to stress that a person stayed calm. *(colloquial)*
   - Simple: To make someone feel worried or upset. It is most often used to say something did not bother a person.
   - _Tough questions from reporters never seemed to faze the senator._
   - _The sudden change in plans fazed the new employee more than she let on._

## Origin

"Faze" comes from the English dialectal (Kentish) word "feeze," meaning to alarm or frighten, which traces back through Middle English "fēsen" (to chase, drive away, or frighten) and Old English "fēsan/fȳsan" (to drive away or put to flight), and ultimately to Proto-Germanic and Proto-Indo-European roots meaning to make ready or to go. It is related to Old Saxon "fūsian" (to strive) and Old Norse "fýsa" (to drive or goad), with records in the Oxford English Dictionary starting in 1830.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/faze (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).