1fair 
/ˈfeɚ/ adjective
fair·er; fair·est /ˈfeɚ/ adjective 1 : agreeing with what is thought to be right or acceptable
▪ We received fair treatment. ▪ fair elections ▪ a fair fight ▪ a fair bargain/deal/trade ▪ I'm just trying to get a fair price for the house. [=I'm not trying to get more money for the house than most people think is right] ▪ That's a fair question, and it deserves an honest reply. ▪ The workers claim that they are not being paid fair wages. [=they are being paid less than they should be paid] ▪ It's only fair [=it is the right thing] to tell him the truth. ▪ I washed the dishes yesterday, so it's only fair (that) you to do them today. ▪ He gets his fair share of attention too. [=he gets a reasonable amount of attention] ▪ She's had more than her fair share of trouble. [=she has had a lot of trouble] 2 : treating people in a way that does not favor some over others
▪ He is known as a very fair man. ▪ I try to be fair to/with my children. ▪ He claims that the competition wasn't fair. ▪ It's not fair that she gets to leave early and I don't. ▪ Sometimes life isn't fair. ▪ a fair and impartial jury ▪ a bargain/deal/trade that is fair to/for everyone ▪ All she wants is a fair chance. [=the same chance everyone else gets] 3 : not too harsh or critical
▪ “What a bad movie!” “Be fair! Parts of it are actually pretty funny.” ▪ I can't say I liked the movie, but, to be fair, parts of it are pretty funny. ▪ She did poorly on the test, but, to be fair, so did a lot of other people. 4 a : not very good or very bad : of average or acceptable quality
▪ Her work has been fair to good. ▪ The quality of her work has been only fair. ▪ I think our waiter did a fair job. ▪ The patient has been upgraded from serious to fair condition. ▪ The food was fair to middling. [=just average; not especially good]
b approving : reasonably good : good although usually not excellent
▪ The team has a fair [=pretty good] chance of winning the championship this year. ▪ He does a pretty fair [=good] imitation of the President. ▪ He was able to give us a fair idea of the problems involved. ▪ It's a fair bet that the weather will improve soon. ▪ “I'm guessing that he's about 50 years old.” “That's a fair guess, but he's actually almost 60.”
c always used before a noun : reasonably large — used to describe an amount or size that is not small although it is also not extremely large ▪ There were a fair number of new participants at the convention. ▪ Researchers now know a fair amount about the earliest humans. ▪ He lives a fair distance from here. 5 : not stormy or cloudy
▪ fair skies ▪ fair weather 6 of a person's hair, skin, etc. : having a light color
▪ fair hair/skin ▪ a person of fair complexion ▪ a fair-skinned person — opposite dark 7 literary + old-fashioned : attractive or pleasing to look at
▪ We're happy to welcome you to our fair [=lovely] city. ▪ a fair maid/maiden ▪ Who's the fairest of them all? 8 baseball : in the area between the foul lines
▪ The ball was caught in fair territory. ◊A fair ball is a batted ball that lands in the area between the foul lines. — compare foul
▪ We received fair treatment. ▪ fair elections ▪ a fair fight ▪ a fair bargain/deal/trade ▪ I'm just trying to get a fair price for the house. [=I'm not trying to get more money for the house than most people think is right] ▪ That's a fair question, and it deserves an honest reply. ▪ The workers claim that they are not being paid fair wages. [=they are being paid less than they should be paid] ▪ It's only fair [=it is the right thing] to tell him the truth. ▪ I washed the dishes yesterday, so it's only fair (that) you to do them today. ▪ He gets his fair share of attention too. [=he gets a reasonable amount of attention] ▪ She's had more than her fair share of trouble. [=she has had a lot of trouble]
▪ He is known as a very fair man. ▪ I try to be fair to/with my children. ▪ He claims that the competition wasn't fair. ▪ It's not fair that she gets to leave early and I don't. ▪ Sometimes life isn't fair. ▪ a fair and impartial jury ▪ a bargain/deal/trade that is fair to/for everyone ▪ All she wants is a fair chance. [=the same chance everyone else gets]
▪ “What a bad movie!” “Be fair! Parts of it are actually pretty funny.” ▪ I can't say I liked the movie, but, to be fair, parts of it are pretty funny. ▪ She did poorly on the test, but, to be fair, so did a lot of other people.
▪ Her work has been fair to good. ▪ The quality of her work has been only fair. ▪ I think our waiter did a fair job. ▪ The patient has been upgraded from serious to fair condition. ▪ The food was fair to middling. [=just average; not especially good]
b approving : reasonably good : good although usually not excellent
▪ The team has a fair [=pretty good] chance of winning the championship this year. ▪ He does a pretty fair [=good] imitation of the President. ▪ He was able to give us a fair idea of the problems involved. ▪ It's a fair bet that the weather will improve soon. ▪ “I'm guessing that he's about 50 years old.” “That's a fair guess, but he's actually almost 60.”
c always used before a noun : reasonably large — used to describe an amount or size that is not small although it is also not extremely large ▪ There were a fair number of new participants at the convention. ▪ Researchers now know a fair amount about the earliest humans. ▪ He lives a fair distance from here.
▪ fair skies ▪ fair weather
▪ fair hair/skin ▪ a person of fair complexion ▪ a fair-skinned person — opposite dark
▪ We're happy to welcome you to our fair [=lovely] city. ▪ a fair maid/maiden ▪ Who's the fairest of them all?
▪ The ball was caught in fair territory. ◊A fair ball is a batted ball that lands in the area between the foul lines. — compare foul
a fair bit — see 1bit
a fair shake — see 2shake
all's fair in love and war
— used to describe a situation in which people do not follow the usual rules of behavior and do things that are normally considered unfair ▪ Sure, it was underhanded to steal his customers, but all's fair in love and war.
bid fair — see 1bid
fair and square
: in an honest and fair manner
▪ He won the election fair and square.
▪ He won the election fair and square.
fair crack of the whip — see 2crack
fair enough
informal — used to say that something is reasonable or fair ▪ “I'll wash the dishes today, and you can wash them tomorrow.” “Fair enough.” ▪ “He needs more time.” “Fair enough, but we can't wait too much longer.”
fair's fair
informal — used to say that something was done or should be done because it is fair ▪ Fair's fair: I washed the dishes yesterday, so it's your turn to do them today.
fair to say
◊A comment that is fair to say is reasonable and is not expected to cause argument.
▪ The key concept in this book, I think it is fair to say, is freedom. ▪ She's not entirely to blame, but it's (only) fair to say that she handled the situation badly.
▪ The key concept in this book, I think it is fair to say, is freedom. ▪ She's not entirely to blame, but it's (only) fair to say that she handled the situation badly.
fair warning
: enough warning to be able to avoid something bad
▪ I'm giving you fair warning that you had better not discuss politics at dinner tonight.
▪ I'm giving you fair warning that you had better not discuss politics at dinner tonight.
it's a fair cop — see 1cop
— fair adverb
▪ He claims that his opponent wasn't playing fair. [=wasn't playing according to the rules]
▪ He claims that his opponent wasn't playing fair. [=wasn't playing according to the rules]
— fair·ness noun [noncount]
▪ She questioned the fairness of the decision. ▪ In the interest of fairness, let's not mention any names. ▪ She did poorly, but in all fairness [=to be fair to her], she was tired.
▪ She questioned the fairness of the decision. ▪ In the interest of fairness, let's not mention any names. ▪ She did poorly, but in all fairness [=to be fair to her], she was tired.
