Fuss vs Fight - What's the difference?
fuss | fight |
Excessive activity, worry, bother, or talk about something.
* (Thomas Carlyle) (1795-1881)
*{{quote-book, year=1935, author=
, title=Death on the Centre Court, chapter=1
, passage=“Anthea hasn't a notion in her head but to vamp a lot of silly mugwumps. She's set her heart on that tennis bloke
# A complaint or noise.
# An exhibition of affection or admiration.
One who is unduly anxious about trifles.
* (1837-1920)
To be very worried or excited about something, often too much.
To fiddle; fidget; wiggle, or adjust; to worry something
(especially of babies) To cry or be ill-humoured.
To show affection for, especially animals.
To pet.
(label) To contend in physical conflict, either singly or in war, battle etc.
(label) To strive for; to campaign or contend for success.
* , chapter=7
, title= *{{quote-magazine, date=2014-07-05, volume=412, issue=8894, magazine=(The Economist)
, title= (label) To conduct or engage in (battle, warfare etc.).
* (1800-1859)
* Bible, iv. 7
(label) To engage in combat with; to oppose physically, to contest with.
(label) To try to overpower; to fiercely counteract.
To cause to fight; to manage or manoeuvre in a fight.
An occasion of fighting.
(archaic) A battle between opposing armies.
A physical confrontation or combat between two or more people or groups.
(sports) A boxing or martial arts match.
A conflict, possibly nonphysical, with opposing ideas or forces; strife.
* {{quote-book, year=1963, author=(Margery Allingham), title=(The China Governess)
, chapter=18 * {{quote-magazine, date=2013-08-10, volume=408, issue=8848, magazine=(The Economist)
, title= The will or ability to fight.
(obsolete) A screen for the combatants in ships.
* Dryden
In intransitive terms the difference between fuss and fight
is that fuss is to fiddle; fidget; wiggle, or adjust; to worry something while fight is to strive for; to campaign or contend for success.In transitive terms the difference between fuss and fight
is that fuss is to pet while fight is to try to overpower; to fiercely counteract.fuss
English
Noun
(es)- zealously, assiduously, and with a minimum of fuss or noise
George Goodchild
- I am a fuss and I don't deny it.
Verb
(es)- His grandmother will never quit fussing over his vegetarianism.
- Quit fussing with your hair. It looks fine.
Usage notes
* Generally used with with, over, or about.Verb
(head)- He fussed the cat.
Derived terms
* fussy * fuss and bother * no muss no fussReferences
fight
English
Verb
Mr. Pratt's Patients, passage=Old Applegate, in the stern, just set and looked at me, and Lord James, amidship, waved both arms and kept hollering for help. I took a couple of everlasting big strokes and managed to grab hold of the skiff's rail, close to the stern. Then, for a jiffy, I hung on and fought for breath.}}
Freedom fighter, passage=[Edmund] Burke continued to fight for liberty later on in life. He backed Americans in their campaign for freedom from British taxation. He supported Catholic freedoms and freer trade with Ireland, in spite of his constituents’ ire. He wanted more liberal laws on the punishment of debtors.}}
- He had to fight his way through the world.
- I have fought a good fight.
Synonyms
* See alsoDerived terms
* fight a losing battle * fight back * fight fire with fire * fightest * fight shy of * fight the good fight * fight tooth and nailNoun
(en noun)citation, passage=‘Then the father has a great fight with his terrible conscience,’ said Munday with granite seriousness. ‘Should he make a row with the police […]? Or should he say nothing about it and condone brutality for fear of appearing in the newspapers?}}
A new prescription, passage=As the world's drug habit shows, governments are failing in their quest to monitor every London window-box and Andean hillside for banned plants. But even that Sisyphean task looks easy next to the fight against synthetic drugs.}}
- Up with your fights , and your nettings prepare.
