F. Scott Fitzgerald

6 5.5

An American writer who wrote The Great Gatsby and wrote about the Jazz Age

proper noun
/ɛf skɑt fɪtʃˈdʒɛrəld/

: F. Scott Fitzgerald

Many consider F. Scott Fitzgerald to be one of the greatest American authors of the 20th century.

Examples

"F. Scott Fitzgerald would never have taken a TV job."

Fiction book (1999)
F. Scott Fitzgerald captured the spirit of the Jazz Age in his novel, The Great Gatsby.
In her lecture, she discussed how F. Scott Fitzgerald's writing reflects the social dynamics of his time.

Surface Forms

F. Scott Fitzgerald main

Morphology

F. + Scott + Fitzgerald

This is a proper name referring to a specific individual; the meaning (an American novelist of the Jazz Age) is not derivable from the constituent parts 'F.', 'Scott', or 'Fitzgerald'. Proper names are arbitrary labels rather than compositional expressions, so a B1 learner who only knows the surface words would not be able to infer the referent or profession.

Etymology

F. Scott Fitzgerald was an American author who wrote 'The Great Gatsby' and often described bright parties, jazz music, and people chasing dreams. That's why his name now stands for stories about the 'Jazz Age' and its hopes and problems.