fettle

1 of 2

noun

fet·​tle ˈfe-tᵊl 

: state or condition of health, fitness, wholeness, spirit, or form

—often used in the phrase in fine fettle

I proved to her I was in fine fettle by consuming a herculean portion of eggs scrambled with onions and smoked salmon.

—Lawrence Sanders

He stopped practicing or even warming up before tournament rounds in order to spare strain on the risky hip. His golf game was nonetheless in fine fettle—provided he could keep swinging.

—Alfred Wright

fettle

2 of 2

verb

fettled; fettling ˈfe-tᵊl-iŋ 

ˈfet-liŋ

transitive verb

: to cover or line the hearth of (something, such as a reverberatory furnace) with loose material (such as sand or gravel)

Synonyms

Noun

• condition
• estate
• form
• health
• keeping
• kilter
• nick [British]
• order
• repair
• shape
• trim

Examples of fettle in a Sentence

Noun

a visit to the relatives on the other side of the state revealed them all to be in fine fettle

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

That level of hostility put her in fine fettle to deal with Kevin James’ gang of escaped cons, who arrived seeking a mysterious item at the family’s summer house. —Dennis Harvey, Variety, 26 May 2023

The three women are in fine fettle, with dog-walking grandmother Suzie finding local fame (if not fortune) on the radio and septuagenarian Judith still crafting fiendishly clever crosswords and scandalizing local birdwatchers by skinny-dipping even in winter. —Yvonne Zipp, The Christian Science Monitor, 16 May 2023

Verb

Half a century on, the majority of these early supercars have been fussed with and fettled within an inch of their lives, some impeccably restored, some surviving in near-original condition, and most in various states of functionality. —Robert Ross, Robb Report, 1 July 2024

Audi engineers have had some fun fettling the underpinnings of the GT, which, with all the ministrations of carbon fiber, carbon-ceramic brakes, and whatnot, loses a mere 33 pounds and weighs in at a still substantial 4,565 pounds. —Robert Ross, Robb Report, 6 Feb. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb and Noun

British dialect, to set in order, get ready, from Middle English fetlen to shape, prepare; perhaps akin to Old English fetian to fetch — more at fetch

First Known Use

Noun

1740, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1881, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing fettle

• in fine fettle

Kids Definition

fettle

noun

fet·​tle

ˈfet-ᵊl

: a state of fitness or order : condition

in fine fettle