🚫 An offensive slur 🚬 A cigarette 💪 To work hard 🧑‍🎓 To serve students

to fag

9.9

To do small jobs for an older boy at school

verb
/fæɡ/

Archaic

: hacer de lacayo

At his new school, every first-year boy had to fag for an older student.

Examples

He resented having to fag in the evenings, polishing boots and running errands.
The tradition of fagging was eventually abolished due to changing attitudes toward hierarchy in schools.
He used to fag for the older boys at school.
During his time at Eton, he fagged for the head boy.
At his new school, every first-year boy had to fag for an older student.
He resented having to fag for hours, running errands and carrying books for the senior boys.
During his time at Eton, he had to fag for the head boy, completing various tasks each day.

Phrasal Verbs

to fag out

1 9.7

To become very tired after hard work or stress

Compounds

fag hag

Slur

5 9.9

A woman who has close friendships with gay men, a slang term that can be offensive

brain-fag

NSFW

9.9

A feeling of mental tiredness that makes it hard to think

fag end

Archaic

9.9

A frayed end of a piece of cloth or rope

fag end

9.9

The last small part of something often thought less important

fag mag

Slur

9.9

An insulting name for a magazine about LGBTQ+ people and their culture

fag marriage

Slur

9.9

A rude, insulting word for marriage between two people of the same sex

fag rag

Slur

9.9

An insulting name for a magazine about gay or lesbian culture

Surface Forms

fag infinitive

fagged past

fagged past participle

fagging present participle

fags third person singular

Etymology

In old British schools to fag meant to do chores for older boys. That use links to the idea of tiring work, so a boy who had to fag was doing hard, tiring jobs for someone else.