Fout

(Do you mean the fanzine by Martin Fleishman?)

Fout is an outcry of surprise, disgust or what have you. "Hot Fout!" (sometimes "Hotfout!") is the superlative form, and more frequently has the connotation of pleasurable surprise.

In fandom, it was first used sometime in the 1940s during a Minneapolis Fantasy Society meeting and from them spread quickly through fandom. It originally was an expression of utter disgust, but with time has mellowed to indicating mild impatience or grumpiness at being provoked.

While commonly reported that Phil Bronson's younger brother first used fout in this way, Phil did not have a younger brother. He may have had a step-brother but it has not been possible to confirm this.

It also illustrates Americans’ abysmal ignorance of languages other than English, since nobody apparently recognized French foutre, which means "fuck."

From Fancyclopedia 2, ca. 1959

"Hotfout" also has a non-derogatory use. And "fout" itself is often a verb, as in the jingle: Fantasite’s a fouty rag, fouty rag, fouty rag, Fantasite's a fouty rag, Fout on Fantasite!

From Fancyclopedia 1, ca. 1944

(MFS - Root of such words as "fouty" (a very vague adjective of derision) and Hotfout!" (an interjection expressing extreme joy or exuberance).

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Fanspeak

This is a fanspeak page. Please extend it by adding information about when and by whom it was coined, whether it’s still in use, etc.