etymology · 1300s–1400s
fancy
Drift #22 · Jun 3, 2026 · abstract
Meaning comparison
Today it means
elaborate; decorative; of high quality
It used to mean (1300s–1400s)
a fantasy; an imagined vision; a delusion
Etymology
'Fancy' is a contracted form of 'fantasy,' from Greek 'phantasia' — imagination, appearance, apparition. In medieval English, a fancy was an imagined vision, not necessarily grounded in reality. It shifted toward personal taste and preference ('I have a fancy for it'), and eventually to meaning elaborate or ornamental.
The Drift
How the meaning shifted over time
the drift
In Historical Context
He dismissed the poet's verses as mere fancy — bright images conjured from nothing, dissolving like morning mist in the face of hard reason.
drift fact
'Phantasm,' 'phantom,' and 'fantasy' all share the same Greek root as 'fancy' — what began as an apparition became a preference and then a price tag.
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