ELFING

Verb

elfing

present participle of elf

Source: Wiktionary


ELF

Elf, n.; pl. Elves. Etym: [AS. ælf, ylf; akin to MHG. alp, G. alp nightmare, incubus, Icel. elf, Sw. alf, elfva; cf. Skr. rbhu skillful, artful, rabh to grasp. Cf. Auf, Oaf.]

1. An imaginary supernatural being, commonly a little sprite, much like a fairy; a mythological diminutive spirit, supposed to haunt hills and wild places, and generally represented as delighting in mischievous tricks. Every elf, and fairy sprite, Hop as light as bird from brier. Shak.

2. A very diminutive person; a dwarf. Elf arrow, a flint arrowhead; - - so called by the English rural folk who often find these objects of prehistoric make in the fields and formerly attributed them to fairies; -- called also elf bolt, elf dart, and elf shot.

– Elf child, a child supposed to be left by elves, in room of one they had stolen. See Changeling.

– Elf fire, the ignis fatuus. Brewer.

– Elf owl (Zoöl.), a small owl (Micrathene Whitneyi) of Southern California and Arizona.

Elf, v. t.

Definition: To entangle mischievously, as an elf might do. Elf all my hair in knots. Shak.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

7 May 2025

RUNNER

(noun) a person who is employed to deliver messages or documents; “he sent a runner over with the contract”


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Coffee Trivia

Contrary to popular belief, coffee beans are not technically beans. They are referred to as such because of their resemblance to legumes. A coffee bean is a seed of the Coffea plant and the source for coffee. It is the pit inside the red or purple fruit, often referred to as a cherry. Just like ordinary cherries, the coffee fruit is also a so-called stone fruit.

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