What does frisk mean?
Frisk is an English verb with two quite different faces. In its dominant modern sense, to frisk a person is to run the hands rapidly over their outer clothing to determine whether they are carrying a concealed weapon or other item — a procedure performed by police officers and security staff, and one so entrenched in law enforcement vocabulary that it anchors the well-known phrase 'stop and frisk'. The word's older, gentler sense describes lively, springy movement: lambs and kittens are said to frisk about when they leap and gambol playfully, a use now largely confined to literary and rural description. Frisk entered English in the early modern period from Old French, where a related word meant lively or brisk, and its cheerful original connotation still lingers in the common derivative 'frisky'. Today most people encounter frisk in news coverage of policing, which has given the word a serious, procedural tone that contrasts sharply with its playful origins. Knowing both senses helps readers parse everything from courtroom reports to nature writing.
To pass the hands over someone's clothing quickly in order to search for concealed weapons or items.
"The bouncer frisked everyone in line before letting them into the club."
This is the standard modern sense; it appears constantly in legal and journalistic writing about policing.
To move about in a lively, playful manner, leaping or skipping.
"Goats frisked across the rocky slope as the hikers passed."
Now chiefly applied to animals and somewhat old-fashioned in register.
Before it was ever used on police pat-downs, 'frisk' described frolicking lambs and playful animals leaping about a field.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of frisk
Frisk entered English from Old French, in which a related word described someone or something lively, brisk, and full of bounce; scholars generally trace the ultimate origin to Germanic roots, though details remain uncertain. When the word first appeared in English in the early modern period, it carried this playful sense, describing people and especially animals leaping and gambolling about. The search-of-the-person sense developed later, and by the nineteenth century frisk was established as slang among police for a rapid physical search. The derivative adjective frisky preserves the word's original spirit of high-spirited liveliness.
Related word forms
How frisk is actually used
In modern usage the security-search sense overwhelmingly dominates, especially in American English, where it is closely associated with police procedure and phrases such as 'stop and frisk'. The playful-movement sense survives mostly in descriptions of animals and carries an old-fashioned, literary flavor.
Easily confused with frisk
Risk means exposure to danger or harm, while frisk means either a quick body search or playful, lively movement.