fizzle

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈfɪzəl/^[1]

Etymology

It is probably an alteration of obsolete fist “to break wind”,^[2][3][4][5] from Middle English fisten (“to break wind”),^[2][3][4] with the frequentative suffix -le.^[3][4] Random House instead takes it from earlier fysel, a frequentative of a form akin to Old Norse fīsa (“to break wind”), and relates it to feist.^[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

To break wind without noise (about 1532).^[3][4][7]

Semantic evolution

In 19th-century American college slang the word meant to fail, especially in a recitation or examination (by 1847), and the noun meant such a failure (1846);^[3][4][7] Barnhart notes that these senses are not considered derived from the old verb.^[3][4] The sense to make a hissing or sputtering sound, as a damp firework does, is recorded from 1859,^[3][4][7] and the image of a sound that dies away weakly supports the figurative sense of failing after a promising start.^[4]

Timeline

• about 1532 – to break wind quietly.^[3][7]
• 1598 – noun, the act of breaking wind quietly.^[3][7]
• 1842 – noun, a hissing or sputtering.^[3][7]
• 1846 – noun, a failure, in U.S. college slang.^[3][7][5]
• 1847 – verb, to fail.^[3][4][7]
• 1859 – verb, to hiss or sputter.^[3][4][7]

Modern meaning

Verb

1. To make a hissing or sputtering sound, especially one that dies out weakly; to fizz.
2. To fail or end feebly after a hopeful start, often with out.

Noun

1. A failure or fiasco; an abortive effort.
2. A hissing or sputtering sound.
3. A nuclear explosion that falls short of its expected yield.

Related words

• fizz
• fizzy
• feisty
• fiasco

Usage notes

Random House lists miscarry, collapse and founder as synonyms of the verb in its sense of failing.^[6] Wiktionary notes that in nuclear testing a fizzle, an explosion with too little yield, is distinguished from a dud, which does not explode at all.^[1]

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
7. ^ a b c d e f g h i Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press