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If you're hazy on faze, let us filter out the fuzz. Faze (not to be confused with phase) first appeared in English in the early 1800s with the same meaning we give it today: to disturb the composure of. Its appearance came centuries after the works of Shakespeare and Chaucer were penned, but both of those authors were familiar with the word's ancient parent, the now-rare verb feeze, which has been in use since the days of Old English (in the form fēsian), when it meant "to drive away" or "to put to flight." By the 1400s, it was also being used with the meaning "to frighten or put into a state of alarm," a sense close to that of the modern faze. While it is possible to use faze in constructions like "I felt fazed by the prospect of starting at a new school," it more often appears with negation, as in "it didn’t faze her a bit” or “nothing fazes him."
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Phase and Faze
Phase and faze are homophones (words pronounced alike but different in meaning, derivation, or spelling) that may easily be confused. Despite the similarity in pronunciation, these words bear little semantic resemblance to one another.
Although phase can function as a verb – it is found especially in combinations such as phase out, phase in, and phase into, meaning “to end, begin, etc. in phases” – the word is most commonly encountered as a noun, in which it typically carries a meaning related to steps in a process, cycles, or stages of development (as in “phases of the moon”).
Faze is generally used only as a verb, and means “to daunt or disconcert.” It often appears in negative expressions such as “it didn’t faze her a bit” or “nothing fazes him.”
Synonyms
Examples of faze in a Sentence
David Faris, Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2024
And yet, looking back on her career with a fiery warmth as red as her ballet flats, the powerhouse producer and publisher isn’t fazed by much… and maybe never was.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 31 Oct. 2024
The Dodgers are finishing October with a team of Supermen, and even the hallowed home of the hallowed pinstripes couldn’t faze them.
—Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 29 Oct. 2024
Bernadette, however, isn’t fazed by the situation, and, with some help from Santa Claus, even gives the kids the best non-traditional Christmas ever.
—Damon Wise, Deadline, 19 Oct. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Faze.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/faze. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
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