What is "fancy"

Fancy \Fan"cy\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Fancied, p. pr. & vb. n. Fancying.]

1. To figure to one's self; to believe or imagine something without proof.

   If our search has reached no farther than simile and metaphor, we rather fancy than know.
   --Locke.

2. To love. [Obs.]
   --Shak.

Fancy \Fan"cy\ (f[a^]n"s[y^]), n.; pl. Fancies. [Contr. fr. fantasy, OF. fantasie, fantaisie, F. fantaisie, L. phantasia, fr. Gr. ???????? appearance, imagination, the power of perception and presentation in the mind, fr. ???????? to make visible, to place before one's mind, fr. ??????? to show; akin to ????, ???, light, Skr. bh[=a]to shine. Cf. Fantasy, Fantasia, Epiphany, Phantom.]

1. The faculty by which the mind forms an image or a representation of anything perceived before; the power of combining and modifying such objects into new pictures or images; the power of readily and happily creating and recalling such objects for the purpose of amusement, wit, or embellishment; imagination.

   In the soul Are many lesser faculties, that serve Reason as chief. Among these fancy next Her office holds.
   --Milton.

2. An image or representation of anything formed in the mind; conception; thought; idea; conceit.

   How now, my lord ! why do you keep alone, Of sorriest fancies your companoins making ?
   --Shak.

3. An opinion or notion formed without much reflection; caprice; whim; impression.

   I have always had a fancy that learning might be made a play and recreation to children.
   --Locke.

4. Inclination; liking, formed by caprice rather than reason; as, to strike one's fancy; hence, the object of inclination or liking.

   To fit your fancies to your father's will.
   --Shak.

5. That which pleases or entertains the taste or caprice without much use or value.

   London pride is a pretty fancy for borders.
   --Mortimer.

6. A sort of love song or light impromptu ballad. [Obs.]
   --Shak.

   The fancy, all of a class who exhibit and cultivate any peculiar taste or fancy; hence, especially, sporting characters taken collectively, or any specific class of them, as jockeys, gamblers, prize fighters, etc.

   At a great book sale in London, which had congregated all the fancy.
   --De Quincey.

   Syn: Imagination; conceit; taste; humor; inclination; whim; liking. See Imagination.

Fancy \Fan"cy\, v. t.

1. To form a conception of; to portray in the mind; to imagine.

   He whom I fancy, but can ne'er express.
   --Dryden.

2. To have a fancy for; to like; to be pleased with, particularly on account of external appearance or manners. ``We fancy not the cardinal.''
   --Shak.

3. To believe without sufficient evidence; to imagine (something which is unreal).

   He fancied he was welcome, because those arounde him were his kinsmen.
   --Thackeray.

Fancy \Fan"cy\, a.

1. Adapted to please the fancy or taste, especially when of high quality or unusually appealing; ornamental; as, fancy goods; fancy clothes.

2. Extravagant; above real value.

   This anxiety never degenerated into a monomania, like that which led his [Frederick the Great's] father to pay fancy prices for giants.
   --Macaulay.

   Fancy ball, a ball in which porsons appear in fanciful dresses in imitation of the costumes of different persons and nations.

   Fancy fair, a fair at which articles of fancy and ornament are sold, generally for some charitable purpose.

   Fancy goods, fabrics of various colors, patterns, etc., as ribbons, silks, laces, etc., in distinction from those of a simple or plain color or make.

   Fancy line (Naut.), a line rove through a block at the jaws of a gaff; -- used to haul it down.

   Fancy roller (Carding Machine), a clothed cylinder (usually having straight teeth) in front of the doffer.

   Fancy stocks, a species of stocks which afford great opportunity for stock gambling, since they have no intrinsic value, and the fluctuations in their prices are artificial.

   Fancy store, one where articles of fancy and ornament are sold.

   Fancy woods, the more rare and expensive furniture woods, as mahogany, satinwood, rosewood, etc.

mid-15c., fantsy "inclination, liking," contraction of fantasy. It took the older and longer word's sense of "inclination, whim, desire." Meaning "the productive imagination" is from 1580s. That of "a fanciful image or conception" is from 1660s. Meaning "fans of an amusement or sport, collectively" is attested by 1735, especially (though not originally) of the prize ring. The adjective is recorded from 1751 in the sense "fine, elegant, ornamental" (opposed to plain); later as "involving fancy, of a fanciful nature" (1800). Fancy man attested by 1811.

"take a liking to," 1540s, a contraction of fantasien "to fantasize (about)," from fantasy (n.). Meaning "imagine" is from 1550s. Related: Fancied; fancies; fancying. Colloquial use in fancy that, etc. is recorded by 1813.

1. 1 decorative. 2 Of a superior grade. 3 execute with skill. 4 (context colloquial English) Unnecessarily complicated. 5 (context obsolete English) Extravagant; above real value. n. 1 The imagination. 2 An image or representation of anything formed in the mind; conception; thought; idea. 3 An opinion or notion formed without much reflection; an impression. 4 A whim. 5 love or amorous attachment. 6 The object of inclination or liking. 7 Any sport or hobby pursued by a group. 8 The enthusiasts of such a pursuit. 9 A diamond with a distinctive colour. 10 That which pleases or entertains the taste or caprice without much use or value. 11 (context obsolete English) A sort of love song or light impromptu ballad. 12 In the game of jacks, a style of play involving additional actions (contrasted with plainsies). v

2. 1 (context formal English) To appreciate without jealousy or greed. 2 (context British English) would like 3 (context British informal English) To be sexually attracted to. 4 (context dated English) To imagine, suppose. 5 To form a conception of; to portray in the mind; to imagine. 6 To have a fancy for; to like; to be pleased with, particularly on account of external appearance or manners.

1. n. something many people believe that is false; "they have the illusion that I am very wealthy" [syn: illusion, fantasy, phantasy]

2. fancy was held by Coleridge to be more casual and superficial than imagination

3. a predisposition to like something; "he had a fondness for whiskey" [syn: fondness, partiality]

4. [also: fancied, fanciest, fancier]

1. v. imagine; conceive of; see in one's mind; "I can't see him on horseback!"; "I can see what will happen"; "I can see a risk in this strategy" [syn: visualize, visualise, envision, project, see, figure, picture, image]

2. have a fancy or particular liking or desire for; "She fancied a necklace that she had seen in the jeweler's window" [syn: go for, take to]

3. [also: fancied, fanciest, fancier]

1. adj. not plain; decorative or ornamented; "fancy handwriting"; "fancy clothes" [ant: plain]

2. [also: fancied, fanciest, fancier]

Fancy may refer to:

"Fancy" is a song written and originally performed by Bobbie Gentry in 1969. The song depicts its heroine overcoming poverty to become a successful courtesan. Gentry's personal view on the song:

Other than Gentry's, the best-known version of the song was recorded in 1990 by country music artist Reba McEntire for her Rumor Has It album. McEntire had a Top Ten country hit with her cover of the song in 1991.

Fancy (as Manfred Alois Segieth) is a German Italo disco singer who was popular in the mid to late 1980s.

Fancy were an early-mid-1970s pop group. The band was made up of session musicians produced by Mike Hurst. They had a surprise U.S. hit single in 1974 with a version of the classic " Wild Thing", peaking at #14 on the Billboard Hot 100. They also a second U.S. hit with "Touch Me", peaking at #19. They were initially fronted by Penthouse Pet Helen Caunt and later Annie Kavanagh. Ray Fenwick, formerly of the Spencer Davis Group, joined Fancy in 1974. Fancy's song "Feel Good" from the album Wild Thing was sampled by the Beastie Boys on the song " 3-Minute Rule" on their album Paul's Boutique.

Fancy is a DVD of live concert footage compiled from the Les Claypool's Fancy Band 2006 tour. Filmed by Jim "Jimbo" Charna, Jeremy "staunchy" Sewell and Crew, it was released by Prawn Song Records on May 29, 2007. The soundtrack combines soundboard and " taper (Jimbos)" recordings for concert-like experience.

Fancy is the third and final studio album by the American experimental rock band Idiot Flesh.

Fancy is the fifth album by Bobbie Gentry. The first of three albums she released in 1970, it was recorded at Fame Recording Studios, Muscle Shoals, Alabama and eight of its ten tracks were produced by Rick Hall, the other two by Bobbie Gentry herself. String arrangements were by Jimmie Haskell. The album was released on Capitol Records.

Three singles were released from the album:

• " Fancy" (which depicts its heroine's overcoming poverty to become a successful courtesan, and for which Gentry received a Grammy nomination for best female pop vocal performance)
• " Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head" (a cover of the Hal David and Burt Bacharach song written for the 1969 film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid)
• "He Made a Woman Out of Me"

Fancy is the surname of:

• John Fancy (1913-2008), British Second World War airman and prisoner of war whose escapes inspired the book and film The Great Escape
• Richard Fancy (born 1943), American actor
• Stuart Fancy (born 1959), British chess FIDE Master who competes for Papua New Guinean
• Arthur Fancy, a character on the TV series NYPD Blue

"Fancy" is a song by Canadian recording artist Drake, from his debut album Thank Me Later. The song features vocals from American rappers T.I. and Swizz Beatz, the latter of whom also co-produced the track alongside Noah "40" Shebib. The song was released to US radio stations on August 3, 2010 as the album's fourth official single, however promotion of the track ended earlier than expected due to Drake's uncertainty towards the song's planned music video and promotion.

The song contains a sample of "I Don't Want to Play Around" by Ace Spectrum. The original version that had leaked features the chorus sung by Mary J. Blige and Swizz Beatz, while Swizz Beatz raps the first verse and the last two are sung by Blige. It was intended to be on Mary J. Blige's album Stronger with Each Tear, but missed the deadline and was later given to Drake. Blige's vocals were kept on Drake's version as a backing vocal, though formally uncredited.

The track received a nomination for Best Rap Performance By A Duo Or Group at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards.

"Fancy" is a song by Australian rapper Iggy Azalea featuring British recording artist Charli XCX, taken from the former's debut studio album, The New Classic (2014). It was released on 17 February 2014 by Def Jam Recordings as the fourth single from the album. "Fancy" was described as an electro-hop song; it was written by Azalea and XCX and composed by production team the Invisible Men, who also produced it, alongside The Arcade. It was leaked under the title "Leave It" in December 2013.

"Fancy" received positive reviews and was also commercially successful, having reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming both Azalea's and XCX's first number-one on that chart, holding the spot for seven consecutive weeks. It also topped the charts in Canada and New Zealand and had chart success around the world, including reaching the top ten in several countries such as Azalea's native Australia and United Kingdom, where it became her first top five hit in both countries as a lead artist. It is XCX's second top-ten single after her guest spot on Icona Pop's " I Love It" in 2013. The track was named Billboard's Song of the Summer for 2014, as well as the most-streamed song on Spotify and most-watched music video on Vevo in 2014. It won the Top Rap Song category at the 2015 Billboard Music Awards and was nominated for Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance at the 57th Grammy Awards. It is one of the best-selling singles worldwide, with combined sales and track-equivalent streams of 9.1 million units according to IFPI.

The accompanying music video for "Fancy" was directed by Director X and released in March 2014. The visuals are inspired by 1995 American comedy film Clueless, with Azalea playing Beverly Hills socialite Cher Horowitz and XCX as Tai Frasier. The music video was nominated for four awards at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards, although it did not win any of them. The song was performed by Azalea and XCX on Good Morning America, Jimmy Kimmel Live and the 2014 Billboard Music Awards. "Fancy" was covered by many artists, such as Anna Kendrick on the 39th season of Saturday Night Live, and received remix versions by rappers such as Da Brat and Lil' Kim.