fast
Pronunciation: (fast, fäst), [key]
— adj., adv., n. -er, -est, -er, -est,
—adj.
- moving or able to move, operate, function, or take effect quickly; quick; swift; rapid: a fast horse; a fast pain reliever; a fast thinker.
- done in comparatively little time; taking a comparatively short time: a fast race; fast work.
- (of time)
- indicating a time in advance of the correct time, as of a clock.
- noting or according to daylight-saving time.
- adapted to, allowing, productive of, or imparting rapid movement: a hull with fast lines; one of the fastest pitchers in baseball.
- characterized by unrestrained conduct or lack of moral conventions, esp. in sexual relations; wanton; loose: Some young people in that era were considered fast, if not downright promiscuous.
- characterized by hectic activity: leading a fast life.
- resistant: acid-fast.
- firmly fixed in place; not easily moved; securely attached.
- held or caught firmly, so as to be unable to escape or be extricated: an animal fast in a trap.
- firmly tied, as a knot.
- closed and made secure, as a door, gate, or shutter.
- such as to hold securely: to lay fast hold on a thing.
- firm in adherence; loyal; devoted: fast friends.
- permanent, lasting, or unchangeable: a fast color; a hard and fast rule.
- He earned some fast change helping the woman with her luggage.
- (of money, profits, etc.) made quickly or easily and sometimes deviously:He earned some fast change helping the woman with her luggage.
- cleverly quick and manipulative in making money:a fast operator when it comes to closing a business deal.
-
- (of a lens) able to transmit a relatively large amount of light in a relatively short time.
- (of a film) requiring a relatively short exposure time to attain a given density.
-
- (of a track condition) completely dry.
- (of a track surface) very hard.
- to play an unfair trick; practice deceit: He tried to pull a fast one on us by switching the cards.
—adv.
- quickly, swiftly, or rapidly.
- in quick succession: Events followed fast upon one another to the crisis.
- tightly; firmly: to hold fast.
- soundly: fast asleep.
- in a wild or dissipated way.
- ahead of the correct or announced time.
- close; near: fast by.
- See(def. 76).
—n.
- a fastening for a door, window, or the like.
fast
Pronunciation: (fast, fäst), [key]
— v.i.
- to abstain from all food.
- to eat only sparingly or of certain kinds of food, esp. as a religious observance.
—v.t.
- to cause to abstain entirely from or limit food; put on a fast: to fast a patient for a day before surgery.
—n.
- an abstinence from food, or a limiting of one's food, esp. when voluntary and as a religious observance; fasting.
- a day or period of fasting.
fast
Pronunciation: (fast, fäst), [key]
— n.
- a chain or rope for mooring a vessel.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.