fother

1 of 3

noun

foth·​er

ˈfät͟hə(r)

variants or fodder

-ädə- 

plural -s

1

now dialectal, England : load

especially : wagonload

2

: any of various units of weight for lead

especially : a modern unit equal to 19¹/₂ hundredweights

fother

2 of 3

"

dialectal variant of fodder

fother

3 of 3

transitive verb

"

-ed/-ing/-s

: to cover (a sail or piece of canvas) especially with oakum or rope yarn for use in temporarily stopping a leak in the hull of a ship

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Old English fōther; akin to Old High German fuodar cartload, Old English fæthm embracing or outstretched arms

Transitive verb

probably modification of Low German fodern to line, from Middle Low German vōderen, from vōder lining; akin to Gothic fodr sheath

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