Definition of "fade"

fade¹

/feɪd/

adjective
comparative fader, superlative fadest
1. (archaic) Weak; insipid; tasteless.
  Quotations
  Passages that are somewhat fade.
  1825, Francis Jeffrey, Lord Jeffrey, review of Theodric by Thomas Campbell
  His masculine taste gave him a sense of something fade and ludicrous.
  1827, Thomas De Quincey, “The Last Days of Kant”, in Blackwood's Magazine
noun
plural fades
1. (golf) A golf shot that curves intentionally to the player's right (if they are right-handed) or to the left (if left-handed).
  Quotations
  If you confine yourself to hitting straight shots while you are developing your golf swing, you are less likely to develop a preference for hitting a fade or a draw.
  2011, James Lythgoe, The Golf Swing: It's all in the hands, page 88
2. A haircut where the hair is short or shaved on the sides of the head and longer on top. See also high-top fade and low fade.
3. (slang) A fight.
4. (music, cinematography) A gradual decrease in the brightness of a shot or the volume of sound or music (as a means of cutting to a new scene or starting a new song).
5. (slang) The act of disappearing from a place so as not to be found; covert departure.
  Quotations
  Ace could have done a fade. Instead, he gathered all his courage — which was not inconsiderable, even in his middle age — and went to see the Flying Corson Brothers.
  1991, Stephen King, Needful Things
verb
third-person singular simple present fades, present participle fading, simple past and past participle faded
1. (transitive, golf) To hit the ball with the shot called a fade.
  Quotations
  The Golden Bear faded the ball from left to right with great consistency, so he seldom had to worry about trouble on the left.
  2011, Gary McCord, Golf For Dummies, page 284
2. (intransitive) To grow weak; to lose strength; to decay; to perish gradually; to wither, as a plant.
  Quotations
  The earth mourneth and fadeth away.
  1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], Isaiah 24:4
3. (intransitive) To lose freshness, color, or brightness; to become faint in hue or tint; hence, to be wanting in color.
  Quotations
  [flowers] that never fade
  1667, John Milton, “Book III”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], […]; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873,
  The half-dozen pieces […] were painted white and carved with festoons of flowers, birds and cupids. To display them the walls had been tinted a vivid blue which had now faded, but the carpet, which had evidently been stored and recently relaid, retained its original turquoise.
  1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 1, in The China Governess‎
4. (intransitive) To sink away; to disappear gradually; to grow dim; to vanish.
  Quotations
  He makes a swanlike end, / Fading in music.
  c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, [Act III, scene ii]
  A strange thing was that Bovary, while continually thinking of Emma, was forgetting her. He grew desperate as he felt this image fading from his memory in spite of all efforts to retain it. Yet every night he dreamt of her; it was always the same dream. He drew near her, but when he was about to clasp her she fell into decay in his arms.
  1856, Eleanor Marx-Aveling (translator), Gustave Flaubert, Madame Bovary, Part III Chapter XI
  They say your love will surely fade girlWhen things go wrong and trouble calls
  1968 December 8, Henry Cosby, Sylvia Moy, Stevie Wonder (lyrics and music), “I’d Be a Fool Right Now”, in For Once in My Life, performed by Stevie Wonder
  And with that, I think we'll leave 2021's tail lamp to fade into the distance.
  2021 December 29, Nigel Harris, “Comment: Problems galore in 2021...”, in RAIL, number 947, page 3
5. (transitive) To cause to fade.
6. (transitive, gambling) To bet against (someone).
  Quotations
  I tried to get some bets that y'all were fixin' to get married but nobody would fade me.
  2016, Johnny Hughes, A Texas Beauty, Smart and Strong

fade²

/feɪd/

adjective
comparative fader or more fade, superlative fadest or most fade
1. (archaic) Strong; bold; doughty.

Definition of "fade"

fade1

adjective

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verb

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fade2

adjective

fade¹

fade²