Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - funk

 I. noun  Etymology: probably ultimately from French dialect (Picard) funquer to give off smoke  Date: 1623 a strong offensive smell  II. Date: circa 1739  intransitive verb to become frightened and shrink back  transitive verb  1. to be afraid of ; dread  2. to shrink from undertaking or facing  III. noun  Etymology: perhaps from obsolete Dutch dialect (Flanders) fonck  Date: 1743  1.  a. a state of paralyzing fear  b. a depressed state of mind  2. one that ~s ; coward  3. slump 1 an economic ~ the team went into a ~  IV. noun  Etymology: back-formation from 2~y  Date: 1959  1. music that combines traditional forms of black music (as blues, gospel, or soul) and is characterized by a strong backbeat  2. the quality or state of being ~y jeans…have lost much of their ~ — Tom Wolfe FUNK  I. biographical name Casimir 1884-1967 American (Polish-born) biochemist  II. biographical name Isaac Kauffman 1839-1912 American editor & publisher