fist

1 of 2

noun

ˈfist 

1

: the hand clenched with the fingers doubled into the palm and the thumb doubled inward across the fingers

2

: the hand closed as in grasping : clutch

3

: index sense 5

fist

2 of 2

verb

fisted; fisting; fists

transitive verb

1

: to grip with the fist : handle

2

: to clench into a fist

Examples of fist in a Sentence

Noun

He pounded his fist on the table in anger.

She pounded on the door with both fists.

He defiantly shook his fist at the policeman.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The boy on top pummels him repeatedly with both fists. —Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Mar. 2025

More than 30 years later, John Carlos and Tommie Smith threw up the Black Power fists seen all over the world. —Ken Makin, Christian Science Monitor, 27 Mar. 2025

Verb

The script is often the same: the crowd swells, accusations fly, fists land, and the spectacle is sometimes even filmed. —Ismat Ara, TIME, 15 Mar. 2025

No wonder Nathan gets creative when facing off against Zeno (Garth Collins), a massive adversary with rhinoceros muscles and fists the size of watermelons. —Peter Debruge, Variety, 8 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Old English fȳst; akin to Old High German fūst fist, Polish pięść, and probably to Old English fīf five

First Known Use

Noun

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

Verb

1607, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing fist

• fist bump
• fist pump
• hand over fist
• mailed fist
• make a good fist of
• make a poor fist of
• rule with an iron fist/hand

Rhymes for fist

• cist
• cyst
• gist
• grist
• hissed
• kissed
• kist
• list
• missed
• mist
• schist
• tryst

Kids Definition

fist

noun

ˈfist

1

: the hand clenched with fingers doubled into the palm

2

: index entry 1 sense 4

Medical Definition

fist

noun

ˈfist 

: the hand clenched with the fingers doubled into the palm and the thumb doubled inward across the fingers