frist

/fɹɪst/

Etymology

From Middle English *frist, frest, first, furst, from Old English fierst (“period, space of time, time, respite, truce”), from Proto-Germanic *fristiz, *frestą (“date, appointed time”), from Proto-Indo-European *pres-, *per- (“forward, forth, over, beyond”). Cognate with North Frisian ferst, frest (“period, time”), German Frist (“period, deadline, term”), Swedish frist (“deadline, respite, reprieve, time-limit”), Icelandic frestur (“period”). See also first.

frist means A certain space or period of time; respite. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 85 out of 100.

Why this word is great

FRIST — [Noun, Verb] A granted delay or period of allotted time, especially for the repayment of a debt; to grant such a respite. From Middle English *frist*, from Old English *fierst* ("period, space of time, respite"), from Proto-Germanic *fristiz* ("appointed time"). Unlike a "deadline"—the fixed, final point that terminates possibility—or a "moratorium"—a formal, often legal, suspension—a frist is the elastic space itself, the breathing room negotiated between demand and capability. It is the tactile warmth of the coin purse returned for another week, the softening of a creditor's gaze across a cluttered desk, and the three beats of silence between a question and the answer you cannot give: a temporary stay against the relentless arithmetic of time, a small, purchased lie about its nature.

noun

A certain space or period of time; respite.
Time allotted for repayment; a term (in which a debt is to be repaid); a delay; respite; suspension.“His was a short frist (He had a short life).”
Credit; trust.“Sald tham to fryst to a man of the Hag, […] Sold them to frist to a man of The Hague, […]”

verb

To grant respite; especially, to give a debtor credit or time for payment.
To defer; postpone.“Now, in the strength of Jesus, dispatch your business; that debt is not forgiven, but fristed: death hath not bidden you farewel, but hath only left you for a short season.”