
gab | gab: v. 1 jabber, gabble, chatter, gibber, blather or blether, prate, prattle, blab, gossip, Colloq Brit natter, witter, Slang jaw, yack, US run off at the mouth: Stop gabbing and get on with your work! --n. 2 chatter, chit-chat, prattle, jibber-jabber, jabber, gossip, blarney, blather or blether, tittle-tattle; cackle, moonshine, nonsense, drivel, twaddle, rubbish, gobbledegook or gobbledygook, mumbo-jumbo, poppycock, bunk or bunkum, balderdash, stuff and nonsense, hogwash, eyewash, Colloq piffle, flummery, rot, bull, codswallop, Slang bullshit, horseshit, shit, crap, garbage, Chiefly Brit tosh, balls: He had nothing important to say - just a lot of gab.
gad | gad: v. Usually, gad about or around. gallivant, run around, flit about, traipse: He''s never home, always gadding about, from one party to another.
gadget | gadget: n. contrivance, device, appliance, creation, invention, machine, tool, utensil, implement, instrument, mechanism, apparatus, Colloq contraption, widget, thingumabob or thingamabob or thingumbob, thingumajig or thingamajig or thingummy, whatchamacallit, what''s-its-name, Brit doodah, US hickey, doodad, doohickey, whosis, whatsis, dingus, Chiefly US and Canadian gismo or gizmo: He invented a gadget for resealing fizzy drink bottles.
gag� | gag�: v. 1 silence, stifle, still, muffle, stop (up), muzzle, quiet, curb, suppress, repress, restrain, throttle, strangle, check, inhibit, discourage: The department gagged him, forbidding any press interviews. 2 retch, choke, heave; gasp for air, struggle for breath; US keck: That drink made me gag. --n. 3 restraint, curb, muzzle, check: MI5 tried to put a gag on the revelations of the former spy.
gag� | gag�: n. 1 joke, witticism, jest, quip, pun, gibe, Colloq wisecrack, Slang crack: He told some gags but nobody found them funny. 2 practical joke, hoax, prank, trick, Colloq fast one: For a gag, we put a snake in the sergeant''s bed.
gaiety | gaiety: n. 1 cheerfulness, exhilaration, elation, glee, joie de vivre, buoyancy, light-heartedness, blitheness, happiness, felicity, pleasure, delight, joy, joyfulness, joyousness, exultation, merriment, mirth, mirthfulness, jubilation, good or high spirits, sprightliness, liveliness, joviality, jollity, hilarity: The gaiety of the celebration was becoming infectious. 2 Often, gaieties. merrymaking, festivity, festivities, celebration, revelry, revels, rejoicing, conviviality, Old-fashioned Brit mafficking: We all joined in the gaiety of Mardi Gras. 3 colourfulness, brightness, gaudiness, garishness, brilliance, brightness, cheeriness: The gaiety of her costume was offset by her lugubrious expression.
gaily | gaily: adv. 1 showily, gaudily, brightly, splendidly, brilliantly, colourfully, flashily, flamboyantly, garishly: The dancers appeared in their gaily coloured dresses. 2 happily, cheerfully, cheerily, gleefully, joyously, joyfully, jubilantly, merrily, blithely, light-heartedly, airily, jauntily, insouciantly: The revellers came cavorting gaily down the street.
gain | gain: v. 1 get, obtain, acquire, procure, attain, achieve, secure, earn, win, capture, bag, net, harvest, reap, garner, glean, collect, gather, come by, pick up: Any advantage we gain today may be lost tomorrow. 2 make, get, profit, gain ground, earn, benefit, realize, clear, bring in, produce, yield: Have you gained from the transaction? 3 improve, recuperate, progress, rally, get better, advance, gain ground: Her health has gained steadily since the cyst was removed. 4 catch up (to or on or with), approach, get nearer (to), overtake, close with, close in (on), narrow the gap, gain ground: As we came to the finish line, Tom was gaining on me. Though he kept gaining, I won. 5 leave behind, outdistance, draw or pull away (from), widen the gap, get or go or move further or farther ahead, get further or farther away (from), increase the lead: I kept gaining on him till I was a mile ahead. 6 reach, arrive at, get to, come to: After paddling for hours, we finally gained the shore. 7 increase, move ahead, improve, advance, progress, gain ground: Shares gained again on the exchange. --n. 8 profit, advantage, margin, yield, return, revenue, income, dividend, benefit, emolument, payment, pay, money; proceeds, earnings, winnings; Colloq chiefly US take, payout, pay-off: What was your gain on the sale of the house? He has seen gains of 20 per cent on his investment. 9 increase, increment, improvement, rise, addition, enhancement, elevation, augmentation, upward or forward movement, advance, progress: Each month has seen a gain in share prices. 10 acquisition, achievement, attainment: My gain was at the expense of their sacrifice.
gainful | gainful: adj. advantageous, profitable, productive, fruitful, beneficial, useful, valuable, worthwhile, rewarding, remunerative, lucrative, moneymaking: Your father thinks it about time you sought gainful employment.
gala | gala: n. 1 f�te or fete, festival, festivity, feast, celebration, event, red-letter day, holiday, holy day, carnival, occasion, happening, event, pageant, party, ball; field-day: The annual gala is planned for Midsummer''s Eve. --adj. 2 merry, festive, joyful, joyous, gleeful, jovial, gay, celebratory, jolly, convivial, happy, cheerful, cheery: Her home-coming was a gala occasion.
gale | gale: n. 1 wind-storm, strong wind, (big or hard) blow, blast, turbulence, storm, tempest: I refuse to take the boat out in that gale. 2 outburst, burst, explosion, eruption; peal, roar, scream, shout, howl, shriek: Bea Lillie needed merely to raise an eyebrow to send her audience into gales of laughter.
gall� | gall�: n. 1 bitterness, acerbity, acrimony, harshness, vitriol, asperity, bile, spleen, causticness or causticity, bite, mordacity or mordaciousness, sharpness, rancidness or rancidity; venom, poison, rancour: Once more he experienced the gall of disappointment. 2 impudence, insolence, impertinence, audacity, brashness, brazenness, sauciness, effrontery, temerity, overconfidence, front, Colloq brass, nerve, guts, cheek, lip, crust, sauce, US and Canadian chutzpah, moxie; Slang balls: One student had the gall to suggest that he would be a better teacher than I am.
gall� | gall�: n. 1 sore (spot), abrasion, scrape, graze, scratch, chafe: This gall on my leg is from the saddle. 2 irritation, annoyance, nuisance, bother, exasperation, vexation, Colloq aggravation: One has to tolerate a lot of gall in this job. --v. 3 irritate, chafe, abrade, fret, scrape, rub, grate, scratch: His shoe was galling his heel. 4 irritate, annoy, bother, vex, irk, exasperate, harass, harry, plague, provoke, goad, nag, pester, hector, badger, nettle, needle, ruffle, fret, anger, enrage, inflame, infuriate, incense, arouse, US rankle: It galls me to think of all the animals killed just to make fur coats.
gallant | gallant: adj. 1 brave, courageous, bold, valiant, daring, dauntless, intrepid, plucky, fearless, valorous, unafraid, undaunted, manly, manful, plucky, mettlesome, stout-hearted, lion-hearted, heroic, dashing, (high-)spirited: Three gallant soldiers held off the enemy attack. 2 chivalrous, courtly, courteous, polite, attentive, gentlemanly, noble, gracious, considerate, thoughtful, well-bred, mannerly: What man is so gallant today as to give up his seat on a bus to a lady? 3 dignified, elegant, imposing, grand, noble, glorious, fine, splendid, majestic, stately, magnificent: Overwhelmed by four enemy men o'' war, the gallant ship sank beneath the waves. --n. 4 champion, hero, knight, cavalier, paladin: Which gallant wears her scarf on his sleeve in today''s jousts? 5 lover, Romeo, sweetheart, beloved, paramour, boyfriend, beau, escort, suitor, admirer, Literary swain: In those days, gallants continually sent their ladies gifts and flowers.
gallows | gallows: n. gibbet: Another name for gallows was ''Tyburn tree'', after that at Tyburn, in London.
galore | galore: adv. in abundance, in large quantity or numbers or amounts, in excess, everywhere, aplenty, in profusion: There were prizes galore for everything from swimming to skittles.
gamble | gamble: v. 1 risk, venture, hazard, bet, wager, stake, chance, speculate; play, game, Brit punt: I wouldn''t gamble that he''ll be on time. I go to Monte Carlo to gamble. 2 gamble on. back, bet or wager on, stake or put money on, take a chance or flier on, try one''s luck or fortune on, lay or place or make a wager or bet on; count on, rely on: We gambled on the horse to win. I was gambling on his having forgotten the debt. --n. 3 chance, risk, venture; uncertainty, speculation, Colloq US crap-shoot: I had to take the gamble that the rope would hold. All of life is just a gamble. 4 bet, wager, stake, Brit punt: She took a gamble on number 14.
game | game: n. 1 amusement, pastime, diversion, distraction, recreation, play; sport: She regards love as just a game. 2 contest, competition, meeting or US also meet, tournament or US also tourney, match, encounter, engagement, event, round; regatta: Would you like to see a football game? The games are held annually. 3 scheme, plan, plot, design, stratagem, strategy, tactic, artifice, trick, device(s), ploy: Aha! I am on to your little game! 4 occupation, line (of work), job, position, field, business, trade, profession, Slang racket: She is in the advertising game. 5 quarry, prey; victim, target: Game has been plentiful this year, especially pheasant and quail. He is fair game for any unscrupulous swindler. 6 play games. dissemble, dissimulate, be deceitful or underhand, misrepresent, pretend, practise deceit or deception, fake, feign: She wasn''t serious about selling, she was just playing games. --adj. 7 ready, willing, prepared; plucky or spirited or daring or adventurous enough: She''s game for anything: I''m sure she''ll jump at the chance of scuba-diving lessons. 8 plucky, spirited, high-spirited, daring, devil-may-care, adventurous, unflinching, courageous, brave, bold, heroic, Colloq nervy, gutsy: Entering the cave to rescue the dog was a game thing for him to do. --v. 9 gamble: He has taken up gaming as a hobby.
gamut | gamut: n. range, scale, spectrum, compass, spread, sweep, field, series: Parker said that Hepburn''s acting ran the whole gamut of emotions from A to B.
gang | gang: n. 1 group, band, crowd, company, pack, mob, ring: The police are looking for the gang that robbed the mail train. 2 clique, set, coterie, circle, party, company, team, troupe: A whole gang of my friends came over yesterday evening. --v. 3 gang up (on or against.) conspire or plot against, combine or unite or unify or join (against), league or ally or club or band (against), join forces (against), overwhelm: When they all ganged up on me, I decided to change my mind.
gangster | gangster: n. criminal, gang member, racketeer, Mafioso, soldier, hooligan, gunman, thug, mugger, robber, tough, ruffian, desperado, brigand, bandit, Brit skinhead, Australian and New Zealand larrikin, Chiefly US and Canadian hoodlum, gunslinger, Colloq crook; Slang hood, hit man, US gunsel, torpedo, mobster, goon: The gangsters were arrested for smuggling cocaine.
gap | gap: n. 1 opening, space, aperture, distance, hole, void, gulf, cavity, break, breach, crevice, chink, crack, split, division, cleft, rift, rip, tear, rent; interruption, interval, lacuna, hiatus, discontinuity, disruption; lull, pause, rest, recess, halt, stop, suspension, delay, wait, intermission, respite: The gap between the walls is just big enough for a child. I can see through a gap in the curtain. There is a gap in his payment record. 2 difference, divergence, disparity, disagreement, inconsistency, discrepancy; division, distinction: A gap exists between your ideas of justice and mine.
gape | gape: v. 1 stare, gawk, goggle, Slang rubberneck, Brit gawp or gaup: She gaped when they brought in the boar''s head. 2 yawn, open wide, part; split: The jaws of the huge shark gaped to swallow the diver.
garbage | garbage: n. rubbish, refuse, waste, muck, offal, sweepings, swill, filth, slops, dross, scraps, junk, litter, debris, detritus, Chiefly US and Canadian trash, Slang crap: The garbage in the river is a health hazard.
garble | garble: v. 1 warp, distort, twist, corrupt, adulterate, slant, colour, mangle, mutilate, pervert, doctor, falsify, misrepresent, belie, misstate, misquote, misreport, mistranslate, misrender; misunderstand, misconstrue, misread: She has garbled the story and it makes no sense. I''ve garbled your message completely. 2 confuse, mix up, jumble, mumble, mutter: He garbles his words so badly that I cannot understand him.
garish | garish: adj. gaudy, flashy, glaring, cheap, tawdry, florid, raffish, vulgar, harsh, loud, meretricious, Brummagem, showy, crude, tasteless, Colloq flash, Slang US glitzy: Their flat is filled with the most garish decorations.
garland | garland: n. 1 wreath, festoon, crown, chaplet, circlet: Diana crowned the sleeping Endymion with a garland of flowers. --v. 2 wreathe, festoon, crown, decorate, coil, spiral, encircle, ring, circle: The columns were all garlanded with brightly coloured paper decorations.
garments | garments: n.pl. garb, clothes, clothing, raiment, dress, attire, apparel, costume, outfit, habit, vestments, habiliment; wardrobe; uniform, livery; Colloq duds, rig, togs, Slang rags, threads, gear: All his garments are custom-made in Savile Row.
garner | garner: v. gather, collect, accumulate, assemble, amass, store (up), stock (up), husband, lay in or up or down or by, heap or pile up, put away or by, stow (away), cache, store, save, reserve: He garnered what he could from the family estate.
gash | gash: n. 1 cut, slash, wound, score, cleft, incision, laceration, slit, groove, split: The chisel slipped, cutting a deep gash in the table. --v. 2 cut, slash, wound, score, cleave, incise, lacerate, slit, groove, split: I''ve gashed my hand on a rusty nail.
gasp | gasp: v. 1 pant, gulp for air, fight for air or breath; catch one''s breath, snort, huff, puff: I gasped when I saw the condition of the room. --n. 2 snort, puff, blow, gulp, wheeze: He gave a gasp of horror.
gate | gate: n. 1 gateway, barrier, doorway, door, access, entrance, exit, passage, opening: The garden gate sagged on its hinges. 2 admissions, attendance, crowd, audience, assemblage: We had the biggest gate of the year at yesterday''s game.
gather | gather: v. 1 collect, assemble, accumulate, amass, muster, heap or pile (up), garner, pick, harvest, glean, get or bring together, stockpile, stock: I gathered all the firewood I could find. 2 collect, assemble, convene, meet, huddle, forgather or foregather, get or come together, congregate, turn out, flock or herd (together), group, cluster, throng, crowd, swarm, rally: We gathered round the old man''s bed. 3 purse, shirr, pucker, tuck, ruffle, pleat, draw or pull together, contract, constrict: The fabric is gathered at the waist. 4 draw, conclude, infer, assume, deduce, understand, learn, hear, be led to believe: I gather that you''d prefer not to collect the award in person. 5 increase, grow, enlarge, expand, extend, wax, heighten, deepen, intensify, build, rise: He stood, menacingly, in the gathering shadows.
gathering | gathering: n. assembly, convocation, convention, congress, assemblage, meeting, get-together, turnout, conclave, rally, aggregation: There is a gathering of the clan once a year.
gaudy | gaudy: adj. garish, flashy, glaring, tawdry, loud, cheap, florid, showy, ostentatious, raffish, vulgar, crude, tasteless, Brummagem, meretricious, tinselly, gimcrack, shoddy, trashy, Brit tatty, US and Canadian honky-tonk, Colloq US tacky, chintzy: The carnival stands were painted pink, purple, and other gaudy colours.
gauge | gauge: v. 1 measure, determine, weigh, calculate, compute, reckon, figure, US technical also gage: Try to gauge the height of that building. 2 judge, evaluate, appraise, assess, rate, estimate, guess, US technical also gage: How can we gauge the strength of the opposition? --n. 3 standard, yardstick, criterion, benchmark, basis, measure, norm, model, example, pattern, rule, touchstone, test, guide, guideline, US litmus test, Technical also gage: You cannot use your compulsive work habits as a gauge for others. 4 scope, capacity, amount, extent, measure, size, dimension(s), magnitude, degree, limit: There are a number of narrow-gauge railways in Wales. What will be the gauge of your involvement in the enterprise?
gaunt | gaunt: adj. 1 emaciated, scrawny, raw-boned, bony, angular, haggard, skeletal, wasted, starved-looking, cadaverous, scraggy, spindly, meagre, hollow-cheeked, spare, skinny, lank(y), pinched, thin, underweight: We were shocked by the gaunt faces of the famine victims. 2 dreary, dismal, bleak, bare, barren, deserted, desolate, harsh, hostile, unfriendly, inimical, stern, forbidding, stark, grim, forlorn: Under the low cloud, the moor looked even more gaunt than usual.
gawk | gawk: n. 1 oaf, lout, bumpkin, clod, boor, churl, dolt, dunderhead or dunderpate, ninny, ninny-hammer, ignoramus, fool, simpleton, ass, bungler, bumbler, Colloq clodhopper, lummox, Slang chiefly US old-fashioned galoot or galloot, lug: You big gawk, get out of my way! --v. 2 stare, goggle, gape, Colloq rubberneck, Slang Brit gawp or gaup: Stop gawking and help me get him to a hospital.
gay | gay: adj. 1 See homosexual, 1, below. 2 happy, blithe, jovial, light-hearted, carefree, debonair, cheerful, gleeful, bright, joyful, joyous, jubilant, high-spirited, merry, lively, vivacious, buoyant, effervescent, bubbly, bubbling, sparkling, US chipper: In those days our hearts were young and gay. 3 garish, gaudy, flashy, bright, brilliant, vivid, many-coloured: The gay decorations added to the atmosphere to the party. --n. 4 See homosexual, 2, below.
gaze | gaze: v. 1 look at or on or upon or over, view, regard, contemplate, stare; wonder, gape: She stood gazing out to sea. I gazed at the screen in disbelief. --n. 2 fixed or steady or intent look, stare, look: His gaze faltered and he averted his eyes.
