DictionaryAI

fellow

SayFEL-oh/ˈfɛloʊ/UK/ˈfɛləʊ/

Pluralfellows

27 meanings of fellow

Practice

  1. 1
    nouncolloquialcountable
    Informal: a man or boy, or more loosely any person, often with a describing word, as in 'a decent fellow' or 'poor fellow'.

    He seemed a decent fellow, always quick to lend a hand.

    My dear fellow, you really mustn't worry so much about it.

    Similarguy, chap, man, bloke

    Note

    The adjective sets the tone. It is warm in Joseph Hall's "my dear fellows" and dismissive in Bunyan's "he is but a sorry fellow". As a term of address with a reproving adjective, it scolds gently rather than insults.

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

    • Joseph Hall used “my dear fellows” as a warm address; the quotation modernizes the spelling. en.wiktionary.org
    • “he is but a sorry fellow” occurs dismissively in Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress, spoken by Christian about Talkative. gutenberg.org
  2. 2
    nouncountablebefore a noun
    A person, animal, or thing of the same kind or group as another, or one of a matching set or pair.

    This species, like its fellow in the next valley, thrives in dry soil.

    In the museum's crowded hall, one small portrait stands out clearly from its fellows.

    UsageMostly before another noun, as a separate word: fellow workers, my fellow Americans.

    Note

    Standing alone it keeps the idea of a match. In The Revengers Tragædie (1607), a gentleman's estate was not "fellow to his mind," meaning his fortune never equaled his worth.

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

    • The Revengers Tragædie was first published in 1607. gutenberg.org
    • The play describes a gentleman’s estate as failing to match his mind or worth; Gratiana speaks the quoted words about her deceased husband. gutenberg.org

    My fellow Americans, the hour has come.

    She went on strike with her fellow workers.

  3. 3
    nounfigurativelycountableplural
    A companion or comrade; someone who shares another's activities, situation, or fortunes.

    After the mine collapsed, he refused to leave until every one of his fellows was brought up safely.

    The sailors looked out for their fellows during the long voyage.

    Note

    Behind the companion stands a business partner. Old English fēolaga came from Old Norse félagi, one who shares in a félag, "a laying together of property", where fé meant livestock or property. The companion sense is chiefly plural: the King James Bible of 1611 has Jephthah's daughter mourn with "my fellowes". It also stretches to abstractions, as in Joshua Sylvester's translation of Du Bartas: "Riches and Fear are fellows evermore."

  4. 4
    nouncountable
    A person holding a fellowship: a paid post for a fixed term, devoted to research or advanced study. In North America it also means a doctor doing supervised specialist training after residency.

    He spent two years as a fellow studying medieval manuscripts.

    The college funds several fellows to pursue independent research.

    Note

    Where the research use pictures a scholar on a paid, fixed-term research appointment, Canadian and American usage also applies the same word to a physician in subspecialty training. Both are named for the fellowship they hold, and in both the post is temporary. Context, or a named field such as oncology, tells the reader which is meant.

  5. 5
    society membernouncountable
    A member, often a senior one, of a learned or professional society.

    She was named a fellow of the Royal Society for her work in genetics.

    After decades of research, he was elected a fellow of the national academy of engineers.

    UsageSay someone is elected or named a fellow of a society.

    Note

    Election by one's peers is traditionally how this title is won. John Evelyn's diary for January 1661 records that he was chosen, "by suffrage of the rest of the Members", a Fellow of the Philosophic Society meeting at Gresham College.

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

    • John Evelyn's diary records this in January 1661. gutenberg.org
    • Evelyn records election by the other members as a Fellow of the Philosophic Society meeting at Gresham College. gutenberg.org
  6. 6
    nouncountable
    A member of the governing or teaching body of a college or similar institution, or a distinguished person given this title as an honor.

    She was elected a fellow of the college after years of research.

    The fellows voted on the new appointments that fall.

    UsageUsually a fellow of a named college; as a title it is often written Fellow.

    Note

    The college sense starts from a literal truth: the fellows were the college. Thomas Fuller in 1655 writes of the Provost and Fellows of Chelsey-College as a body Parliament could empower. Macaulay records that the fellows of Magdalen College, Oxford, chose their own president.

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of fellow apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origins

Meanings 1–18, 20

Old Norse félagi was borrowed into Old English as fēolaga, which became Middle English felowe. The Norse word came from félag, which meant "joint venture, partnership" and literally "a laying together of property." It was made of fé ("livestock, property, money") and lag ("something laid down, companionship, partnership").

Meaning 19

This verb was formed from the Middle English noun felowe (see the noun fellow). In Middle English it was felauen or felow, meaning "to join someone in companionship, friendship, or partnership."