The sixth letter of the Roman alphabet, represents historically the 6th letter (waw) of the Semitic alphabet, which expressed the sounds of w (approximately) and the related vowel u. In early Greek writing the letter had at first the same twofold power; but subsequently its accidental varieties of form came to be differentiated in function, the form Ｆ (retaining the 6th place in the alphabet) being appropriated to the consonantal use, while Ｖ or Ｙ served for the vowel, and is the source of the Roman U, V, Y, as explained under those letters. As the sound w was lost in the chief literary Greek dialects of the classical period, its sign 𝘍 (called by the grammarians from its form the DIGAMMA, is not included in the later Gr. alphabet. In the Roman adoption of the Gr. alphabet the sound given to the 6th letter was the voiceless labiodental spirant (f). In OE. the letter retained the sound (f) unless it stood between two vowels, when it was pronounced as the corresponding voiced spirant (v). In the S.W., according to some scholars, the voiced sound was used also initially. In mod. Eng. F is always sounded (f), exc. in the word of, where it is voiced to (v) through absence of stress.
In MSS. a capital F was often written as ff. A misunderstanding of this practice has caused the writing of Ff or ff at the beginning of certain family names, e.g., Ffiennes, Ffoulkes.
c. 1000. Ælfric, Gram., iii. (Z.), 6. Semivocales syndon seofan: f, l, m, n, r, s, x.
1580. Baret, Alv., F. If ye drawe in length and therewithall put your under lippe to your ouer teeth, ye shall heare the verie sound of EF.
b. attrib. (see quots.).
1836. Dubourg, Violin (1878), 274–5. The parallel holes on each side, which were made to approximate as closely as possible to the curvatures, and were therefore straighter than what are called the f holes.
1880. Grove, Dict. Mus., I. 500. The holes in the belly of the violin are called the f holes from their shape.
II. Used as a symbol, with reference to its place (6th) in the alphabet.
1. F, f, f is used to denote anything occupying the sixth place in a series. (Cf. A, B, C, etc.)
2. In Music F is the name of the 4th note of the diatonic scale of C major; called F in Germany, fa in France and Italy. Also the scale or key which has that note for its tonic. F clef: the bass clef (see CLEF1), placed on the line in the stave appropriated to the note F; its form 𝄢 is said to be a corruption of that of the letter.
1848. Rimbault, First Bk. Piano, 53. Place the first finger on every black key except F-sharp.
1856. Mrs. Browning, Aur. Leigh, V. 214.
| Or Baldinacci, when her F in alt | |
| Had touched the silver tops of Heaven itself | |
| With such a pungent spirit-dart. |
1880. Grove, Dict. Mus., I. 184. The Sonata in C, just mentioned, contained when completed a long Andante in F.
III. Abbreviations.
1. F. = various proper names, as Frederick, Fanny; = Fellow in F.G.S., F.R.S., etc. Also a. = FATHER as a title of Roman Catholic priests. b. Physics. F. = Fahrenheit (thermometer). c. Comm. F. A. A. or f. a. a. = free of all average; f. o. b. = free on board. d. In a ship’s log F stands for fog; FF for thick fog. e. In Music f stands for forte (loud), ff for fortissimo (very loud), but sometimes ff stands for piu forte (louder), and fortissimo is indicated by fff. f. F formerly used in criminal procedure (see quots.), g. F (orig. standing for ‘fine’) is the distinctive mark of a particular description of black-lead pencil; also attrib. h. As a chemical symbol, F = Fluorine.
1551. Act 5–6 Edw. VI., c. 4 To be … burned in the cheeke with an hot yron, hauing the letter F. whereby … they may be knowne … for fraymakers and fighters.
1809. Tomlins, Law Dict., F, Is a letter wherewith felons, &c. are branded and marked with a hot iron, on their being admitted to the benefit of clergy.
2. The three F’s (see quot.).
1881. Daily News, 19 Jan., 5/4. They say that fair rents, fixity of tenure, and free sale, popularly known as the three F’s, have been strongly recommended by many. Ibid. (1891), 8 Sept., 3/3. Instead of starving the land and grinding the labourer, why not go in at once for the three F’s—fair rent, fixity of tenure, and free sale.
