font

1 of 2

noun (1)

ˈfänt 

1

a

: a receptacle for baptismal water

b

: a receptacle for holy water

c

: a receptacle for various liquids

2

: source, fountain

a font of information

fontal

ˈfän-tᵊl 

adjective

font

2 of 2

noun (2)

: an assortment or set of type or characters all of one style and sometimes one size

Synonyms

Noun (1)

• cradle
• fountain
• fountainhead
• origin
• root
• seedbed
• source
• spring
• well
• wellspring

Examples of font in a Sentence

Noun (1)

a domestic diva who is a seemingly endless font of new ideas

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The legislation's text also calls for it to be printed in large, easily readable font. —Ivan Pereira, ABC News, 19 June 2024

Interestingly, there’s only one font choice: Apple’s San Francisco, which can be modified in various ways but can’t be swapped out. —Nilay Patel, The Verge, 17 June 2024

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued multiple recalls last week including Tesla's recall of approximately 2.2 million vehicles due to a potential hazard with safety warning signals appearing in a smaller font size. —Ahjané Forbes, The Courier-Journal, 12 June 2024

For older kids, Shaun is a font of humor, often playing on small-scale dramatic ironies and big broad payoffs — there’s a lot of generous slapstick, and the stakes stay pretty low. —Vulture Editors, Vulture, 11 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English, from Old English, from Late Latin font-, fons, from Latin, fountain

Noun (2)

French fonte, from Middle French, act of founding, from Vulgar Latin *fundita, feminine of funditus, past participle of Latin fundere to found, pour — more at found

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun (2)

circa 1688, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing font

• proportional font/typeface

Kids Definition

font

1 of 2 noun

ˈfänt 

1

: a basin for baptismal or holy water

2

: fountain sense 2

font

2 of 2 noun

: an assortment of type or characters all of one size and style

Etymology

Noun

Old English font "basin for holy water," derived from Latin font-, fons "fountain, spring" — related to fountain

Noun

from early French fonte "act of casting metal," derived from Latin fundere "to pour melted metal into a mold" — related to found entry 3, founder entry 2