foss

See also: FOSS, Foss, Foß, and fos

English

Etymology 1

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /fɑs/, /fɔs/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /fɒs/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Noun

foss (plural fosses)

1. Alternative spelling of fosse.

Etymology 2

From Icelandic or Norwegian foss, both from Old Norse fors (“waterfall”). Doublet of force (“waterfall”).

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /fɔs/

Noun

foss (plural fosses)

1. (Northern England) A waterfall.
   • 2017, Benjamin Myers, The Gallows Pole, Bloomsbury, published 2019, page 101:

     Another of his flock was spotted garrotted, one found twisted and drowned at the bottom of a foss and a third split cleanly from scut to teeth.

Faroese

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɔsː/
• Rhymes: -ɔsː

Noun

foss

1. indefinite accusative singular of fossur
2. indefinite genitive singular of fossur

Hungarian

Alternative forms

• fossál

Etymology

fosik +‎ -j

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ˈfoʃː]
• Hyphenation: foss
• Rhymes: -oʃː

Verb

foss

1. second-person singular subjunctive present indefinite of fosik

Icelandic

Alternative forms

• fors

Etymology

Inherited from Old Norse fors.

Cognates: Faroese fossur, Norwegian fors, Danish fors, Swedish fors, English force (in the sense of a waterfall), Middle Low German vorsch and Norn fors.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fɔsː/
• (Northern Iceland, Southern Iceland) IPA^(key): [fɔs̠ː]
• Rhymes: -ɔsː

Noun

foss m (genitive singular foss, nominative plural fossar)

1. a waterfall (permanent flow of water over the edge of a cliff)

Declension

Declension of foss (masculine)

	singular		plural
	indefinite	definite	indefinite	definite
nominative	foss	fossinn	fossar	fossarnir
accusative	foss	fossinn	fossa	fossana
dative	fossi	fossinum	fossum	fossunum
genitive	foss	fossins	fossa	fossanna

Descendants

• → English: foss

Norwegian Bokmål

foss

Etymology

From Danish fos, revived through Norwegian foss, from Old Norse foss, fors, from Proto-Germanic *fursaz.

Noun

foss m (definite singular fossen, indefinite plural fosser, definite plural fossene)

1. a waterfall

Synonyms

• fossefall
• vannfall, vassfall

Derived terms

• fosse (verb)

Descendants

• → English: foss

References

• “foss” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Alternative forms

• fors
• førs, føss (dialectal)

Etymology

From Old Norse fors, foss, from Proto-Germanic *fursaz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /fosː/, [fɞ̞sː]

Noun

foss m (definite singular fossen, indefinite plural fossar, definite plural fossane)

1. a waterfall

   Synonyms: fossefall, vassfall

Derived terms

• fossa (verb)

• fossebrus
• fossedrev
• fossedur
• fossefall
• fossegrim
• fossekall
• fossekraft
• fosseskum
• fossestryk
• fossestup
• fosskoka
• fossregna
• fossro
• Ulefoss
• åfoss

Descendants

• → English: foss

References

• “foss” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.
• “foss” in Ivar Aasen (1873) Norsk Ordbog med dansk Forklaring

Old Irish

Etymology 1

From Proto-Celtic *uɸostos, from Proto-Indo-European *upo-sth₂-ós, from *upó (“under”) +‎ *steh₂- (“to stand”) +‎ *-ós (“agent suffix”). Cognate to Welsh gwas (“servant”).

Noun

foss m (genitive foiss)

1. servant

Inflection

Masculine o-stem

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	foss	fossL	foissL
vocative	foiss	fossL	fossuH
accusative	fossN	fossL	fossuH
genitive	foissL	foss	fossN
dative	fossL	fossaib	fossaib

Initial mutations of a following adjective:

• ^H = triggers aspiration
• ^L = triggers lenition
• ^N = triggers nasalization

Etymology 2

From Proto-Celtic *wostos, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂wes- (“to stay”). Cognate to Middle Welsh gwas (“abode”).

Noun

foss m (genitive foiss)

1. rest, halt, the state of not being in motion
2. perseverance

Inflection

Masculine o-stem

	singular	dual	plural
nominative	foss	fossL	foissL
vocative	foiss	fossL	fossuH
accusative	fossN	fossL	fossuH
genitive	foissL	foss	fossN
dative	fossL	fossaib	fossaib

Initial mutations of a following adjective:

• ^H = triggers aspiration
• ^L = triggers lenition
• ^N = triggers nasalization

Descendants

• Irish: fos

Mutation

Mutation of foss

radical	lenition	nasalization
foss	ḟoss	foss pronounced with /β̃-/

Note: Certain mutated forms of some words can never occur in Old Irish.
All possible mutated forms are displayed for convenience.

Further reading

• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “1 foss, fos 'man-servant'”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language
• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “2 foss 'rest'”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language