fee
nounverbcommon in dialogue
- //fiː//
An amount charged for a privilege.
noun
- 1
An amount charged for a privilege.
late fee
license fee
admission fee
activation fee
- 2
An amount charged for professional services.
legal fees
consulting fees
Imagine a country where children do nothing but play until they start compulsory schooling at age seven. Then, without exception, they attend comprehensives until the age of 16. Charging school fees is illegal, and so is sorting pupils into ability groups by streaming or setting.
- 3
An additional monetary payment charged for a service or good, especially one that is minor compared to the underlying cost.
- 4
An inheritable estate in land, whether absolute and without limitation to potential heirs (fee simple) or with limitations to particular kinds of heirs (fee tail).
- 5
historicalA right to the use of a superior's land as a stipend for certain services to be performed, typically military service.
- 6
historicalSynonym of fief: the land so held.
- 7
historicalAn inheritable estate in land held of a feudal lord on condition of performance of certain services, typically military service.
- 8
figurativeSynonym of possession.
Once did she hold the gorgeous East in fee; And was the safeguard of the west: the worth Of Venice did not fall below her birth, Venice, the eldest Child of Liberty.
What doth the poor man's son inherit? Stout muscles and a sinewy heart, A hardy frame, a hardier spirit; King of two hands, he does his part In every useful toil and art; A heritage, it seems to me, A king might wish to hold in fee.
This England, this sea-lion of the sea, By ignorant demagogues is held in fee, Who love her not: Dear God! is this the land Which bare a triple empire in her hand When Cromwell spake the word Democracy!
Cronshaw had told him that the facts of life mattered nothing to him who by the power of fancy held in fee the twin realms of space and time.
- 9
obsoleteMoney paid or bestowed; payment; emolument.
- 10
obsoleteA prize or reward. Only used in the set phrase "A finder's fee" in Modern English.
For though sweet love to conquer glorious bee, / Yet is the paine thereof much greater than the fee.
Etymology
From Middle English fee, fe, feh, feoh, from Old English feoh (“cattle, property, wealth, money, payment, tribute, fee”) with contamination from Old French fieu, fief (from Medieval Latin fevum, a variant of feudum (see feud), from Frankish *fehu (“cattle, livestock”); whence fief), both from Proto-Germanic *fehu (“cattle, sheep, livestock, owndom”), from Proto-Indo-European *péḱu (“livestock”). Cognates Cognate with Saterland Frisian Fäi (“cattle, livestock”), West Frisian fee (“livestock”), Cimbrian biighe, viighe (“animal, beast”), Dutch vee (“cattle, livestock”), German Viech (“animal, beast”), Vieh (“livestock”), German Low German Veeh (“cattle, livestock, property”), Luxembourgish Véi (“cattle”), Vilamovian fi, fī, fii, fiih (“cattle, livestock”), Yiddish פֿי (fi), פֿיך (fikh, “cattle, livestock”), Danish and Faroese fæ (“cattle, livestock”), Icelandic fé (“assets, livestock, money”), Norwegian Bokmål and Norwegian Nynorsk fe (“cattle, livestock”), Swedish fä (“beast, cattle, dolt”), Gothic 𐍆𐌰𐌹𐌷𐍉 (faihō), 𐍆𐌰𐌹𐌷𐌿 (faihu, “possessions, property; riches, wealth; money”); also Latin pecū (“cattle”), Old Prussian pecku (“cattle”), Armenian ասր (asr, “fleece, wool”), Avestan 𐬞𐬀𐬯𐬎 (pasu, “livestock”), Bactrian ποσο (poso, “sheep”), Central Kurdish پەز (pez, “sheep”), Northern Kurdish pez (“sheep”), Ossetian фыс (fys, “sheep”), Talysh pəs, пәс (“sheep”), Sanskrit पशु (paśu, “cattle”).
verb
- 1
To reward for services performed, or to be performed; to recompense; to hire or keep in hire; hence, to bribe.
In vain for Hellebore the patient cries / And fees the doctor; but too late is wise
There's not a one of them but in his house I keep a servant feed.
We departed the grounds without seeing Marbonna; and previous to vaulting over the picket, feed our pretty guide, after a fashion of our own.
It was at a much earlier hour than that which Mrs. Santon had named, that Delwood presented himself, and handsomely feeing the porter who answered his summons, he asked to see Miss Santon […]
Forms
- plural
- fees
- past tense
- feed
- past participle
- feed
- present participle
- feeing
- third person singular
- fees
fee · An amount charged for a privilege.
Fee · A surname.feeble · Deficient in physical strength.feed · To give (someone or something) food to eat.