Catherine D. Bowen
Did you know?
Fete is a word worth celebrating. It's been around since Middle English, when it was used in a manuscript to refer to "fetes, spectacles and other worldly vanytees." Since the 19th century, fete has been doing double duty, also serving as a verb meaning "to honor or commemorate with a fete." You can honor fete by remembering that it entered English from Middle French, and that it derives ultimately from the Old French feste, meaning "festival"—a root that, not surprisingly, also gave English the word feast. Because of its French ties, you will sometimes see fete spelled with a circumflex above the first e (fête), as that's how it appears in that language.
Examples of fete in a Sentence
Brittany Shepherd, ABC News, 31 May 2025
Monday night’s fete stirs even more excitement for September when the designer is next expected to host a runway show and, accordingly, another after-party filled with celebrities and guests wearing his party-perfect clothes.
—Andrea Bossi, Essence, 6 May 2025
Alex Ritman, Variety, 18 July 2025
The 2025 Radio Day by the Bay Festival, taking place July 19 at the headquarters of the California Historical Radio Society, fetes radio broadcasting’s golden age and its hopefully bright future.
—Randy McMullen, Mercury News, 17 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for fete
Cite this Entry
“Fete.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fete. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
fete
2 of 2 verb
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