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fairing

9.0

A small spiced biscuit from Cornwall often sold at fairs

noun
/ˈfɛərɪŋ/

Archaic

: galleta de jengibre

With her tea, she enjoyed a traditional Cornish fairing spiced with ginger and cinnamon.

Examples

He bought a pack of fairings from the bakery while visiting Cornwall.
The market stall was famous for its homemade fairings during the village fair.
I bought a fairing at the local fair.
These fairings are delicious and full of spices.
With her cup of tea, she savored a traditional Cornish fairing, which was perfectly spiced with ginger and cinnamon.
At the local fair, the candy shop's stall offered warm, freshly baked fairings that were a sweet favorite among visitors.
During the village celebration, he eagerly tasted a classic fairing, enjoying its rich flavor and spiced aroma.

Synonyms

biscuit

vsfairing

74 1.0

A small sweet flat cake that you eat as a snack

is the specific Cornish spiced variety often sold at fairs rather than any general snack

gingerbread

vsfairing

27 1.0

A sweet spiced cake or cookie flavored with ginger and honey

is a small Cornish fair snack rather than a larger cake version

ginger nut

vsfairing

5.7

A small hard biscuit flavored with ginger often eaten with tea

is smaller and traditional, sold at fairs rather than being mass-produced

Surface Forms

fairing singular

fairings plural

Morphology

fairing = fair (semi-transparent) = fair + ing

The biscuit sense is historically related to fairs, but the specific food meaning is lexicalized and not fully predictable from the parts alone.

Etymology

Fairing for the biscuit gets its name from fairs, where bakers sold small spiced cakes; in Cornwall these became a traditional ginger treat called a fairing. So a fairing is a small spiced cookie often sold at a village fair.