feyer

feyer — 形容詞

  • feyerpositive
  • feyerercomparative
  • feyerestsuperlative

1. so marked by fate that death seems certain and near, as if carrying an inescapab

1.形容詞C2
釋義

註定死亡

命中注定即將死亡的

so marked by fate that death seems certain and near, as if carrying an inescapable curse.

例句

The old captain felt fey on the morning of his final voyage.

老船長在最後一次出航的早晨，感覺自己命中注定要死了。

Rafael had a fey look that worried the nurses watching over him.

Rafael 臉上那種註定要死的表情，讓照顧他的護士們很擔心。

fey look (collocation for deathly appearance)

同義詞
  • doomed

    more common and less poetic; lacks the supernatural overtone

  • cursed

    implies active supernatural punishment rather than passive fate

反義詞
  • living

    straightforward opposite; plain and unmarked

  • vigorous

    emphasises life energy rather than mere avoidance of death

文法句型

be + fey (predicative)

fey + noun (attributive)

用法筆記

This sense is almost exclusively found in literary or poetic writing. In modern conversation the word is essentially unknown, so learners should recognise it in reading rather than attempt to produce it.

常見錯誤

❌The doctor said the patient was feyer.' (trying to use comparative).
✅The doctor said the patient looked fey.
💡'feyer' is an alternate spelling of 'fey', not the comparative form; the word is not gradable in this sense.

2. filled with a dark certainty that a terrible event, especially a death or a disa

2.形容詞C2
釋義

死亡預兆

預示死亡或災難的

filled with a dark certainty that a terrible event, especially a death or a disaster, will happen soon.

例句

A fey silence fell over the village just before the earthquake struck.

地震來臨前，村子裡籠罩著一股不祥的寂靜。

fey silence (collocation for ominous calm)

Inês felt a fey chill as she walked past the abandoned hospital wing.

Inês 走過廢棄的醫院大樓時，感到一股毛骨悚然的寒意。

同義詞
  • ominous

    more common in everyday English; lacks the specific flavour of death-related fate

  • sinister

    suggests active evil intent rather than passive fate

反義詞
  • cheerful

    ordinary opposite; no ominous quality

  • auspicious

    formal opposite suggesting favourable signs

文法句型

fey + noun (atmosphere, silence, mood)

be/felt + fey (of a mood or atmosphere)

用法筆記

Distinguish from sense 1: sense 1 describes a person who is doomed, whereas sense 2 describes an atmosphere or phenomenon that carries an ominous message. The object of the foreboding is usually death or large-scale disaster, not mundane misfortune.

常見錯誤

❌The weather forecast felt fey' (trivial context).
✅The weather felt fey, as though a storm was about to destroy the town.
💡this sense requires stakes that involve death or serious calamity.

3. having the supernatural ability to perceive or predict future events before they

3.形容詞C2
釋義

預知未來

有超自然預知能力的

having the supernatural ability to perceive or predict future events before they happen.

例句

The village elder was considered fey because she foretold the drought weeks ahead.

那位村中長輩被認為有預知能力，因為她早在幾週前就預言了乾旱。

be + fey (predicative, describing a visionary person)

Joon's fey grandmother told him exactly when the monsoon rains would break.

Joon 的祖母有預知能力，她準確告訴他季風雨什麼時候會來。

同義詞
  • visionary

    can also mean 'imaginative' without implying real foresight

  • prophetic

    broader; can refer to religious prophecy or bold predictions

  • clairvoyant

    more technical; used in paranormal contexts

反義詞
  • blind

    metaphorical opposite; unable to see what is coming

文法句型

be + fey (of a person with foresight)

fey + noun (prophet, vision, warning)

用法筆記

The prediction in this sense is always presented as genuine supernatural insight, not mere strong intuition. In older texts the word could imply the person was cursed to see the future without being able to change it.

常見錯誤

❌The economist made a fey prediction about next quarter's growth.' (inappropriate register).
✅The oracle made a fey prophecy about the fall of the city.
💡this sense belongs to myth, legend, and folklore, not modern analytical contexts.

4. having an eerie, elfin quality that makes a person, place, or thing seem to belo

4.形容詞C2
釋義

超凡脫俗

像精靈般充滿魔幻感的

having an eerie, elfin quality that makes a person, place, or thing seem to belong to a magical realm rather than the real world.

例句

Brian stumbled into a fey grove where tiny blue flowers gave off a soft light.

Brian 無意間走進一片精靈般的樹林，裡面藍色小花散發著微光。

Talia's garden had a fey quality, with mushrooms in a perfect ring near the pond.

Talia 的花園有種夢幻的氣息，池塘邊的蘑菇長成了一個完美的圓圈。

fey quality (collocation for magical atmosphere)

同義詞
  • elfin

    more specific to the appearance of a person; less atmospheric

  • otherworldly

    more general; can describe anything foreign or alien, not just magical

  • ethereal

    emphasises delicacy and lightness over strangeness

反義詞
  • mundane

    plain, ordinary, of this world

  • earthly

    grounded in everyday reality

文法句型

fey + noun (beauty, landscape, charm, atmosphere)

look/feel + fey (of a place or thing)

用法筆記

This sense carries a positive or at least fascinated tone — the strangeness is captivating, not frightening. Contrast with sense 2, where the same kind of strangeness signals disaster.

常見錯誤

❌The neon lights gave the city a fey feeling.' (modern urban context).
✅The moonlight gave the forest a fey feeling.
💡this sense requires a natural, folkloric, or at least pre-modern setting to sound natural.

5. showing signs of mild mental disturbance in a harmless, often endearing way.

5.形容詞C2
釋義

有點古怪

有點古怪但無傷大雅的

showing signs of mild mental disturbance in a harmless, often endearing way.

例句

The fey old gentleman fed the pigeons from his hat every morning at eight.

那位有點古怪的老先生每天早上八點都用帽子餵鴿子。

fey + noun (attributive, describing an eccentric person)

Kian smiled in a fey way that made people wonder what he was thinking.

Kian 露出一個怪異的笑容，讓人猜不透他在想什麼。

同義詞
  • touched

    archaic; carries the same gentle understatement

  • eccentric

    more neutral and widely used; implies deliberate choice rather than mental state

  • mad

    much stronger and potentially offensive; lacks the affectionate tone

反義詞
  • sane

    straightforward opposite

  • sensible

    emphasises practical good judgment

文法句型

be + fey (of a person's mental state)

fey + noun (look, smile, habit, uncle)

用法筆記

Unlike clinical terms for mental illness, this sense carries a patient, often affectionate tone — the person is odd but not dangerous. The behaviour is striking enough to be noticed but not severe enough to require intervention.

常見錯誤

❌The patient was diagnosed as fey.' (wrong register — clinical context).
✅The eccentric old lady was a little fey, but everyone loved her.
💡this word belongs to everyday observation of harmless oddness, not medical diagnosis.

6. carried to an extreme of delicacy and elegance in taste or behaviour, to the poi

6.形容詞C2
釋義

矯揉造作

過度精緻優雅到不自然的

carried to an extreme of delicacy and elegance in taste or behaviour, to the point of seeming unnatural or affected.

例句

The art critic described the singer's fey manner as charming but insufferably refined.

那位藝術評論家說這位歌手矯揉造作的姿態雖然迷人，但精緻過了頭。

fey manner (collocation for affected refinement)

Kemi found the poet's fey performance a little too precious for her taste.

Kemi 覺得那位詩人過於矯情的表演不太對她的胃口。

同義詞
  • precious

    the closest synonym; also suggests affected refinement

  • affected

    more direct about the artificiality; less delicate in tone

  • dainty

    can be neutral or positive; lacks the critical edge

反義詞
  • natural

    unpretentious, without affectation

  • rough

    deliberately unrefined; the opposite extreme

文法句型

fey + noun (manner, style, taste, performance)

be + fey (of a person's style)

用法筆記

This sense is mildly critical — it describes someone who tries too hard to appear refined. It is not a compliment, though the disapproval is usually gentle and amused rather than harsh.

常見錯誤

❌She has a fey taste for expensive wine.' (confusing with genuine sophistication).
✅His fey taste in furniture
💡all velvet and gilded mirrors — seemed more about showing off than real preference.' — the word implies excess and affectation.

7. pleasantly odd in a stylish, playful, and self-aware way that does not take itse

7.形容詞C2
釋義

搞怪時尚

古怪有趣且自我感覺時髦的

pleasantly odd in a stylish, playful, and self-aware way that does not take itself seriously.

例句

The shop window displayed vintage feather boas and fey hats covered in plastic fruit.

櫥窗裡展示著復古羽毛圍巾和蓋滿塑膠水果的搞怪帽子。

Christopher decorated his apartment in a delightfully fey Victorian carnival style.

Christopher 把他的公寓裝飾成維多利亞嘉年華風格，古怪又可愛。

同義詞
  • campy

    the closest synonym; highlights theatrical exaggeration and humour

  • quirky

    more general and widely used; less tied to fashion and performance

  • kitsch

    focuses on the object rather than the person's attitude; can be derogatory

反義詞
  • conventional

    following accepted norms; the opposite of playful eccentricity

  • serious

    marks the absence of playful self-awareness

文法句型

fey + noun (style, humour, costume, party)

be + fey (of fashion or culture)

用法筆記

This is the most modern-feeling sense of the word. It describes deliberate, playful eccentricity in fashion, art, or entertainment — the kind of oddness that is cultivated for effect rather than arising from innocence or madness.

常見錯誤

❌He wore a fey costume to the funeral.' (mismatched register — the context requires sincerity).
✅He wore a fey costume to the carnival parade and won first prize.
💡this sense belongs to playful, celebratory contexts.