Fairy

n. [Written also faëry, from O. Fr. faerie, N. Fr. féerie, enchantment, from O. Fr. faer, now féer, to enchant, charm, from fae, feie, now fée, It. fata, Pr. & Sp. fada, O. Ger. fei, feie, from Late Lat. Fata, for Parca, one of the goddesses of fate, from fatum, fate, or from fatua, a prophesying female, a fortune-teller.]

1Sense 1. Enchantment; illusion.

The God of her has made an end, And fro this world's fairy Hath taken her into company. Gower.

2Sense 2. The land of illusions; the abode or country of the Fays. [Obs.]

He [Arthur] is a king y-crowned in Fairy. Lydgate.

3Sense 3. The inhabitants or people of Fairy-land. [Obs.]

The fourth kind of spirits [is] called the Fairy. K. James.

4Sense 4. An imaginary supernatural being or spirit, supposed to assume a human form, either male or female, and to meddle for good or evil in the affairs of mankind. See ELF and DEMON.

Round about the caldron sing, Like elves or fairies in a ring. Shak.

5Sense 5. An enchantress. [Obs.] Shak.

Fairy of the mine, an imaginary being supposed to inhabit mines, wandering about in the drifts and chambers, always employed in cutting ore, turning the windlass, &c., yet effecting nothing. The Germans believe in two species; one fierce and malevolent, the other gentle. See COBALT.

No goblin or swart fairy of the mine Hath hurtful power over true virginity. Milton.

— Fairies of romance, beings of the human race, endowed with powers beyond those allotted to men.

a. 1. Pertaining or relating to fairies. 2. Given by fairies; as, fairy money. Dryden.

Fairy ring, or circle, a bare circular path, or a ring of grass higher, greener, softer, than the surrounding grass; a frequent phenomenon in fields and meadows in Great Britain, vulgarly supposed to be caused by fairies in their dances.