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fatty

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Etymology and origin of the English word fatty

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
a1398, John Trevisa's translation of Bartholomaeus Anglicus
Ultimate origins
Old English fǣttEnglish -y
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English fat
English fatty

Pronunciation

  • UK: /ˈfæt.i/[1]
  • US: /ˈfæt.i/[1]

Etymology

The adjective is from English fat + -y, with the suffix that forms adjectives from nouns.[2][3][4][5] The noun, a fat person, adds the diminutive suffix of pet names and nicknames to the adjective.[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Like fat, of the nature of fat; oily, greasy: a1398, in John Trevisa's translation of Bartholomaeus Anglicus.[4] Etymonline dates the adjective to the late 14th century and Merriam-Webster to the 14th century.[2][3]

Semantic evolution

In the 16th century fatty could also mean plump or well-fed, of animals, or full of sap, of a leaf (1552–1601), and of soil, rich and fertile (1590, Spenser).[4] The sense "consisting of or containing fat" is recorded from 1615, in Crooke's anatomy.[4] Johnson (1755) defined it as "unctuous; oleaginous; greasy".[6] Chemists spoke of fatty oil and fatty acid from 1829, and medicine of fatty degeneration and a fatty heart or fatty liver, marked by a morbid deposit of fat, from 1877.[4] The noun "a fat person", chiefly as a nickname, is recorded in 1797;[4][3][2] the OED labels it chiefly disparaging and potentially offensive.[4] Green's Dictionary of Slang dates it as a nickname from 1825 and records an American campus slang sense "drug dealer" in 1996.[7]

Timeline

  • a1398 – like fat, greasy (Trevisa).[4]
  • 1552 – plump, of animals (obsolete by 1601).[4]
  • 1590 – of soil, rich (Spenser).[4]
  • 1615 – consisting of or containing fat.[4]
  • 1797 – the noun, a fat person.[4][3][2]
  • 1829 – fatty oil, fatty acid.[4]
  • 1877 – marked by a morbid deposit of fat.[4]
  • 1996 – (US slang) a drug dealer.[7]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Containing a lot of fat, or made of fat: a fatty cut of lamb.
  2. Like fat; greasy or oily.
  3. (medicine) Of tissues or organs: marked by an abnormal build-up of fat.

Noun

  1. (informal, offensive) A fat person, especially as a nickname.

Word family

  • fattily
  • fattiness
  • fatty acid
  • fatty liver
  • fattish

Usage notes

The noun is chiefly disparaging and potentially offensive.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  7. ^ a b Green, Jonathon (2010), Green's Dictionary of Slang, London: Chambers; digital ed. 2016–, https://greensdictofslang.com
Cite this entry

“Fatty.” Etymologically, 22 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/fatty. Accessed 23 Oct. 2026.

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