Frig (interjection)

Frig (/frɪɡ/) is an interjection in the English language that expresses contempt. The word can be used as a euphemism for fuck or to refer to masturbation or sexual intercourse. The participle form frigging is used as an adjective to express annoyance or frustration. Oxford University Press' Oxford Dictionary of Modern Slang argues that frig originally meant to move restlessly. A different etymology is proposed by Oxford University Press' Dictionary of Euphemisms, which argues that frig initially meant to rub and developed its sexual meanings from this origin; this dictionary further argues that the modern meanings of the word are not derived from the Cornish word frig, meaning wife, or from the Germanic deity Frigg, the wife of Odin. The deity Frigg has sometimes been referred to in recent times as "Friga" or "Frigga" in order to distance her from the English word frig. The word's use as a synonym for masturbate dates to 1598 in the United Kingdom, while its use as a euphemism for fuck dates to 1879 in the United Kingdom. Frig has entered the Australian English lexicon. In the U.S. state of Maine, frig does not have the sexual connotations that it has elsewhere, and has gained social acceptance in the phrase frig around meaning to fool around or to putter around.