fetch
noun
Fetch — the simple act of going to retrieve something and bring it back
Definition
The action of fetching
In depth
Fetch, used as a noun, names the action of fetching itself, the act of going to a place to retrieve something and bring it back. The word is plain and physical, evoking errands, chores, and the small, repeated tasks of daily life and, famously, of a dog obeying its favorite command.
Origin
The word descends from Old English feccan, to fetch or bring, related to facian, to obtain. Its long, stable history in the language — relatively unchanged in form and meaning for over a thousand years — reflects just how fundamental the simple act of going and bringing back has always been to daily human life.
Usage examples
"The fetch of water from the distant well had once consumed nearly an hour of every morning."
"She sent the youngest child on the fetch, knowing he would treat the small errand like an adventure."
"The dog's eager fetch of the stick never once seemed to lose its novelty, no matter how many hundred times it had been thrown."
How to use it
As a noun, fetch is somewhat archaic or regional outside its famous association with dogs retrieving a thrown object; in most contemporary prose, the verb 'to fetch' is more natural, with the noun reserved for deliberately plain, old-fashioned, or playful tone.
Related concepts
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