fairy

noun

1. (obsolete, uncountable)The realm of faerie; enchantment, illusion.

   “These he knew by their fiery eyes, and knew that he was at last in the land of Fairy.”

2. (countable, uncountable)A mythical being of human form with magical powers, known in many sizes and descriptions, although often depicted in modern illustrations only as a small sprite with gauze-like wings, especially one that is female. Fairies are revered in some modern forms of paganism.

   “"They used to say there were fairies in that hill, I must tell you!"”

3. (countable, uncountable)An enchantress, or creature of overpowering charm.
4. (British, colloquial, countable, obsolete, uncountable)An attractive young woman.

   “"When are we going to see this fairy?" demanded Algy. "You, personally, never. You're far too immoral. I might let the others look at her from a distance in a year or two."”

   “As she took out her key she was quite unaware that three pairs of eyes were watching her with interest from across the street. [...] ‘Strewth–’e ain’t ‘arf got a fairy this time,’ remarked the husky Mr. Clegg.”

5. (Northern-England, US, colloquial, countable, derogatory, uncountable)A male homosexual, especially one who is effeminate.
6. (countable, derogatory, uncountable)An effeminate man or boy.

   “The cripple returned the smile and stuck out his hand. Miss Lonelyhearts clasped it, and they stood this way, smiling and holding hands, until Mrs. Doyle reëntered the room. "What a sweet pair of fairies you guys are," she said. The cripple pulled his hand away and made as though to strike his wife.”

   “We saw a horrible sight in the bar: a white hipster fairy had come in wearing a Hawaiian shirt and was asking the big drummer if he could sit in.”

   “Wimpy names—e.g., Cecil, Clarence, and Wendell—also seem to carry homosexual overtones, because we all know that fairies are meek and wimpy, just as we know that all wimps are ‘fags’ in one sense or the other.”

7. (countable, uncountable)A member of two species of hummingbird in the genus Heliothryx.
8. (countable, uncountable)A legendary Chinese immortal.

adj

1. Like a fairy; fanciful, whimsical, delicate.