# fit

Pronunciation: say "FIT" /fɪt/

## Verb

1. To be the right size and shape for someone or something, or to have enough room to go in a place.
   - Simple: To be the right size and shape, or to have enough space to go somewhere.
   - _The shoes I ordered online didn't fit, so I sent them back._
   - _These replacement parts fit without any adjustment._
2. To be suitable for something, or to match or agree with it.
   - Simple: To be right for something, or to match it.
   - _Her skills fit the demands of the new role perfectly._
   - _Let the punishment fit the offense._
5. To exist together in harmony, blending or working together without any part clashing against another.
   - Simple: To go well together without clashing.
   - _His humor fits well within the team's easygoing culture._
   - _The two melodies fit beautifully when played at once._
9. To attach something in place, especially when exact positioning or sizing is needed.
   - Simple: To put a part in place carefully so it sits exactly right.
   - _The plumber will fit a new valve to the pipe._
   - _Carpenters fit the shelves snugly against the wall._
10. To equip or prepare someone or something with what is needed for a purpose.
   - Simple: To give someone or something the things they need for a job.
   - _Before the voyage, the company fitted the ship with fresh supplies, charts, and spare sails._
   - _Engineers fit each vehicle with a tracking device._
11. To shape, adjust, or alter something so that it matches or suits something else.
   - Simple: To change something so that it suits or matches something else, such as a need or a plan.
   - _She fits each lesson to the needs of the students in front of her._
   - _The company will fit the software to your team's existing workflow._
14. To experience a seizure or sudden convulsive episode.
   - Simple: To suddenly have a seizure or attack of illness.
   - _Doctors worried the child might fit again before the medication took effect._
   - _She fitted on the ward, and the nurses responded at once._

## Adjective

3. In good physical condition, with a strong and healthy body.
   - Simple: Healthy and strong, with a body in good condition.
   - _Regular swimming kept him remarkably fit well into his seventies._
   - _Soldiers must stay fit enough to march for miles under heavy loads._
4. Suitable, good enough, or well adapted for a particular purpose or situation.
   - Simple: Good enough or right for a certain job or situation.
   - _The committee judged the candidate fit for the role._
   - _Only materials fit for purpose were used in the bridge._
17. Of a person, good-looking and sexually attractive. *(slang, British)*
   - Simple: Of a person, good-looking and physically attractive.
   - _She reckons the lead singer is dead fit._
   - _All her mates fancy that fit bloke from the gym._

## Noun

6. The degree to which something matches the required size or shape.
   - Simple: How well something matches the size or shape it needs.
   - _Tailors check the fit across the shoulders before finishing a jacket._
   - _The fit of the prosthetic was adjusted until it felt comfortable._
7. How well two or more things, people, or ideas suit or match each other.
   - Simple: How well people or things go together or suit each other.
   - _Recruiters look for a strong fit between a candidate and the company culture._
   - _There's a poor fit between what the course promises and what it actually teaches._
8. A sudden, short burst of a strong feeling or of some activity.
   - Simple: A sudden short time when you feel something strongly or do something a lot.
   - _A fit of jealousy made him say things he later regretted._
   - _The toddler collapsed into a fit of giggles._
12. A seizure or convulsion, marked by sudden uncontrolled muscle movements.
   - Simple: A sudden attack where the body shakes without control.
   - _He suffered a fit shortly after the accident._
   - _Repeated fits can be a warning sign of epilepsy._
13. A sudden, intense onset of a symptom lasting only a short while.
   - Simple: A sudden, strong burst of a symptom that lasts only a short time.
   - _A violent coughing fit left him gasping for breath._
   - _She was seized by a fit of dizziness and had to sit down._
15. The degree to which a statistical model agrees with the observed data.
   - Simple: How well a math model matches real results.
   - _A close fit suggests the curve follows the recorded data points well._
   - _Researchers compared the fit of two competing models before choosing one._
16. An outfit; a coordinated set of clothing worn together. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A full set of clothes worn together as one look.
   - _He showed off his fit before heading out for the night._
   - _That fit is incredible. Where did you get the jacket?_
18. In the card game bridge, the strength of a partnership's combined holding in a suit, especially the trump suit.
   - Simple: In card games, how well two partners' cards in one suit work together.
   - _Once they found an eight-card fit in hearts, they pushed toward game._
   - _A solid fit in trumps let declarer ruff losers in the short hand._

## Verb

19. Simple past and past participle of fight. Dated and dialectal (Southern US, Ireland). *(dated, Ireland, Southern US)* — simple past and past participle of fight; fought.
   - Simple: Simple past and past participle of fight. This older dialect form means the same as "fought."
   - _'My daddy and his cousin fit over a mule once, and they didn't speak for ten years,' she said with a laugh._
   - _'I've fit worse storms than this one,' the old fisherman said, pulling his collar up against the wind._

## Other meanings

- (noun) The part of an object onto which another part seats tightly.
- (adjective) Ready and in a state to act.
- (verb) To be appropriate or in good taste.
- (noun) A canto or division of a long narrative verse or song.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–7, 9–11, 15, 17–18** — This may come from Middle English fit, which meant "an adversary of equal power," but beyond that its origin is uncertain. It seems to have first meant "to marshal or deploy troops," a sense that moved toward "to suit" and later "suitable." A link to Icelandic fitja, which means "to web, knit, cast on," is also possible.
**Meanings 8, 12–14** — From Middle English fit ("hardship, danger"), of unknown earlier origin, possibly from Old English fitt ("conflict"). Some compare Cornish fit ("bout") or Italian fitta ("sudden stabbing pain").
**Meaning 19** — This past form of fight was created by analogy with pairs like bite and bit or light and lit.
**Meaning 16** — A clipping of outfit.

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