frosh

English

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /fɹɔʃ/
• (cot–caught merger) IPA^(key): /fɹɑʃ/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /fɹɒʃ/

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔːʃ, -ɒʃ

Etymology 1

From Middle English frossh, frosch, from Old English frosc, from Proto-Germanic *fruskaz (“frog”), from Proto-Indo-European *prew- (“to jump, hop”). Cognate with West Frisian froask (“frog”), Dutch vors (“frog”), German Frosch (“frog”), Norwegian frosk (“frog”), Icelandic froskur (“frog”). Doublet of frosk; more at frog.

Noun

frosh (plural froshes)

2. (now dialectal) A frog.
   • 1565 (1593), Golding, Ovid's Met. xv. (1593) pg. 356:

     The mud hath in it certaine seed whereof greene froshes rise.

Translations

frog — see frog

Etymology 2

Blend of freshman +‎ sophomore.

Noun

frosh (plural froshes or frosh)

1. (colloquial) A first-year student, at certain universities, and a first-or-second-year student at other universities.

   The frosh are really getting on my nerves!

2. (colloquial, plural "froshes") Short for frosh week.

Synonyms

• underclassman
• newbie
• fresher (UK)

Derived terms

• prefrosh

Translations

first year student

• Dutch: schacht (nl) m or f
• French: bleu (fr) m

Verb

frosh (third-person singular simple present froshes, present participle froshing, simple past and past participle froshed)

1. (transitive, slang) To initiate academic freshmen, notably in a testing way.

   This campus does not tolerate froshing in any form.

2. (transitive, slang) To damage through incompetence.

   Trying to open my car door with a coat hanger, I froshed the mechanism.

Synonyms

• (initiate): haze

Derived terms

• froshing

Translations

to initiate academic freshmen

• Dutch: dopen (nl)
• French: bizuter (fr), baptiser (fr)

to damage through incompetence

Middle English

Noun

frosh

1. Alternative form of frossh