fast : Idioms & Phrases


acid-fast

  • adjective satellite not easily decolorized by acid solutions; pertains to micro-organisms (especially the tubercle bacillus that causes tuberculosis)
WordNet

Fast and loose

  • now cohering, now disjoined; inconstant, esp. in the phrases to play at fast and loose, to play fast and loose, to act with giddy or reckless inconstancy or in a tricky manner; to say one thing and do another "Play fast and loose with faith." Shak.
Webster 1913

Fast and loose pulleys

  • (Mach.), two pulleys placed side by side on a revolving shaft, which is driven from another shaft by a band, and arranged to disengage and reëngage the machinery driven thereby. When the machinery is to be stopped, the band is transferred from the pulley fixed to the shaft to the pulley which revolves freely upon it, and vice versa.
Webster 1913

fast asleep

  • adjective satellite sleeping deeply; he's sound asleep"
    sound asleep.
    • lying fast asleep on the sofa
    • it would be cruel to wake him
WordNet

fast break

  • noun (basketball) a rapid dash to get a shot as soon as possible after taking possession of the ball
WordNet

fast buck

  • noun quick or easy earnings, "they are traders out to make a fast buck"
    quick buck.
WordNet

Fast by, ∨ Fast beside

  • close or near to; near at hand.
Webster 1913

Fast day

  • noun a day designated for fasting
WordNet
  • a day appointed for fasting, humiliation, and religious offices as a means of invoking the favor of God.
Webster 1913

fast dye

  • verb dye with fast colors
    • These shirts should be fast-dyed
WordNet

fast food

  • noun inexpensive food (hamburgers or chicken or milkshakes) prepared and served quickly
WordNet

fast lane

  • noun a hectic and pressured lifestyle often characterized by recklessness or dissipation
    • life in fashion's fast lane has taught her a lot
  • noun the traffic lane for vehicles that are moving rapidly
WordNet

fast of ab

  • noun (Judaism) a major fast day on the Jewish calendar commemorating the destruction of the temples in Jerusalem
    Tishah b'Ab; Tisha b'Av; Tishah b'Av; Fast of Ab; Tisha b'Ab; Ninth of Ab; Ninth of Av.
WordNet

fast of av

  • noun (Judaism) a major fast day on the Jewish calendar commemorating the destruction of the temples in Jerusalem
    Tishah b'Ab; Tisha b'Av; Tishah b'Av; Fast of Ab; Tisha b'Ab; Ninth of Ab; Ninth of Av.
WordNet

fast of esther

  • noun (Judaism) a minor fast day on Adar 13 commemorates three days that Esther fasted before approaching the Persian king on behalf of the Jewish people; the fast is connected with Purim
WordNet

fast of gedaliah

  • noun (Judaism) a minor fast day on Tishri 3 that commemorates the killing of the Jewish governor of Judah
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fast of tammuz

  • noun (Judaism) a minor fast day on Tammuz 17 when the walls of Jerusalem were breached
WordNet

fast of tevet

  • noun (Judaism) a minor fast day on Tevet 10 commemorates the beginning of the siege of Jerusalem and has also been proclaimed a memorial day for the six million Jews who died in the Holocaust
WordNet

fast of the firstborn

  • noun (Judaism) a minor fast day on Nissan 14 that is observed only by firstborn males; it is observed on the day before Passover
WordNet

fast one

  • noun a cunning or deceitful action or device
    trick.
    • he played a trick on me
    • he pulled a fast one and got away with it
WordNet

fast reactor

  • noun nuclear reactor in which nuclear fissions are caused by fast neutrons because little or no moderator is used
WordNet

fast time scale

  • noun (simulation) the time scale used in data processing when the time-scale factor is less than one
WordNet

fast track

  • noun a rapid means of achieving a goal
    • they saw independence as the fast track to democracy
    • he took a fast track to the top of the corporate ladder
    • the company went off the fast track when the stock market dropped
WordNet

fast-breaking

  • adjective satellite occurring rapidly as a series of events in rapid succession
    • the broadcast was interrupted by a fast-breaking news story about the invasion
WordNet

fast-flying

  • adjective satellite moving swiftly
    flying.
    • fast-flying planes
    • played the difficult passage with flying fingers
WordNet

fast-footed

  • adjective satellite having rapidly moving feet
    swift-footed.
WordNet

fast-growing

  • adjective satellite tending to spread quickly
    aggressive; strong-growing.
    • an aggressive tumor
WordNet

fast-handed

Fast"-hand`ed adjective
Definitions
  1. Close-handed; close-fisted; covetous; avaricious. Obs. Bacon.
Webster 1913

fast-paced

  • adjective satellite of communication that proceeds rapidly
    • a fast-paced talker
    • fast-paced fiction
WordNet

Fasting day

  • a fast day; a day of fasting.
Webster 1913

Hard and fast

  • (Naut.), so completely aground as to be immovable.
Webster 1913

hard-and-fast

  • adjective satellite (of rules) stringently enforced
    strict.
    • hard-and-fast rules
WordNet

Head fast

  • . (Naut.) See 5th Fast.
Webster 1913

hold fast

  • verb stick to firmly
    bind; stick to; adhere; stick; bond.
    • Will this wallpaper adhere to the wall?
WordNet

major fast day

  • noun one of two major fast days on the Jewish calendar
WordNet

minor fast day

  • noun one of five minor fast days on the Jewish calendar
WordNet

pull a fast one on

  • verb deceive somebody
    play tricks; flim-flam; play a joke on; fox; trick; play a trick on; fob.
    • We tricked the teacher into thinking that class would be cancelled next week
WordNet

stand fast

  • verb refuse to abandon one's opinion or belief
    stand firm; hold firm; stand pat.
WordNet

Stern fast

  • (Naut.), a rope used to confine the stern of a ship or other vessel, as to a wharf or buoy.
Webster 1913

To break fast

  • to partake of food after abstinence. See Breakfast.
Webster 1913

To break one's fast

  • to put an end to a period of abstinence by taking food; especially, to take one's morning meal; to breakfast.
Webster 1913

To make fast

  • (Naut.), to make secure; to fasten firmly, as a vessel, a rope, or a door.
Webster 1913

To stand fast

  • to be fixed; to be unshaken or immovable.
Webster 1913

Tub fast

  • an old mode of treatment for the venereal disease, by sweating in a close place, or tub, and fasting. Obs. Shak.
Webster 1913

very fast

  • adverb in a relatively short time
    in no time.
    • she finished the assignment in no time
WordNet