Faceful

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. The quantity of something that splashes, lands on, or fills a person's face all at once
2. A mouthful-style measure of material thrown or pushed into the face, such as a faceful of snow
3. Whatever amount of substance strikes or covers someone's face in one go

Etymology: "Faceful" is a plain compound: "face" combined with the suffix "-ful," the same ending found in words like "handful" and "spoonful," meaning as much as the first part can hold. Its literal sense is therefore "as much face as a container or measure could take," a picture that translates neatly into the word's usual sense of a quantity of facial expression or appearance. Because "-ful" attaches readily to nouns of many kinds, English speakers could coin such formations on the spot, and "faceful" follows that pattern. It is built entirely from familiar English parts, with no borrowed or classical element, so its history is simply the history of those two components joined together.