fresh off the boat

English

Alternative forms

• fob, FOB

Adjective

fresh off the boat

1. (idiomatic, usually derogatory) Newly arrived from a foreign place, especially as an immigrant who is still unfamiliar with the customs and language of their new environment.

   Synonym: (abbreviation) FOB

   • 1998, “Two Little Girls”, in Ani DiFranco (lyrics), Little Plastic Castle, performed by Ani DiFranco:

     You were fresh off the boat from Virginia / I had a year in New York City under my belt / We met in a dream, we were both nineteen

   • 2005, Lev Grossman, "They Built This City (book review)," Time, 20 Mar.:

     Metropolis is the story of a harmless, hapless, nameless young German immigrant, fresh off the boat in 1860-something, who has a knack for naively stumbling into complicated plots through no fault of his own.

Derived terms

• fob

Further reading

• fresh off the boat on Wikipedia.Wikipedia