fierce
part of speech
adjective (fierce, fiercer, fiercest)
meaning for a pupil
1) Angry, wild and likely to attack: «a fierce dog». tree →
2) Very strong or powerful: «a fierce storm», «fierce heat». tree →
3) Full of strong feeling or effort: «fierce competition». tree →
4) (slang) Bold and confident in a cool way. tree →
sense in the lessons
In the Tanakh and Jewish tradition: It describes anger or wrath, as in God's "fierce wrath" or a nation of "fierce countenance." Interpretation: Moses asks God to turn from fierce wrath, and tradition sees his prayer as a model of speaking up for others. Jacob rebukes the fierce anger of Simeon and Levi, teaching that anger should be controlled. In the primary lessons: In stories, fierce animals and monsters scare the characters. In science and geography: fierce winds, fierce fires. In sports: «fierce rivals», «fierce match». Young people sometimes say «You look fierce!» meaning confident and stylish.
examples
- Turn from Thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against Thy people. (Torah EXO.32.12, JPS 1917) tree →
- a nation of fierce countenance, that shall not regard the person of the old, nor show favour to the young. (Torah DEU.28.50, JPS 1917) tree →
- Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce, and their wrath, for it was cruel; I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them in Israel. (Torah GEN.49.7, JPS 1917) tree →
- Thy fierce wrath is gone over me; Thy terrors have cut me off. (Writings PSA.88.17, JPS 1917) tree →
- And the peaceable folds are brought to silence because of the fierce anger of the LORD. (Prophets JER.25.37, JPS 1917) tree →
- None is so fierce that dare stir him up; who then is able to stand before Me? (Writings JOB.41.2, JPS 1917) tree →
- The fierce dog barked at the gate. tree →
- A fierce storm blew down the tree. tree →
- The two teams are fierce rivals. tree →
- The tiger gave a fierce roar. tree →
- There was fierce competition for the prize. tree →
- The fire was fierce and spread fast. tree →
- (slang) Love your new outfit — you look fierce! tree →
- They had long legs and fierce eyes and sharp teeth. tree →
note
Spelling: «i before e» — fierce. Adverb: fiercely. Noun: fierceness. The slang sense is praise, not an insult.
In the corpora
- Turn from Thy fierce wrath, and repent of this evil against Thy people.
- a nation of fierce countenance, that shall not regard the person of the old, nor show favour to the young.
- For this gird you with sackcloth, lament and wail; for the fierce anger of the LORD is not turned back from us.
- And the peaceable folds are brought to silence because of the fierce anger of the LORD.
- My people, go ye out of the midst of her, and save yourselves every man from the fierce anger of the LORD.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «fierce» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.