English Dictionary — Definitions & Meanings

gossiping

noun

The act of spreading talk or rumors about other people's private lives.

gossipmonger

noun

Someone who likes spreading gossip about other people.

gossipmongering

noun

What a gossipmonger does; the spreading of scandalous rumours.

gossipred

noun

(historical) A close spiritual bond, such as the one formed between a child's parents and godparents at baptism.

gossipry

noun

(historical) A close bond of spiritual kinship, such as that between godparents and a child's family.

got

verb

Past tense and past participle of "get" — to have received, obtained, or acquired something.

gotcha

interjection

Casual way of saying "I understand" or "I've got it".

goth

adjective

Relating to goth music, fashion, or the goth subculture.

Gothenburg

proper noun

A major port city on the west coast of Sweden, the country's second largest.

Gothic

adjective

Relating to the medieval European architectural style with tall pointed arches, ribbed vaults, and large stained-glass windows.

gothlike

adj

Resembling the ancient Goths; savage and destructive without mercy.

GOTO

noun

In programming, an instruction that jumps execution straight to another labeled point in the code, skipping the normal top-to-bottom flow.

gots

verb

Non-standard, informal form of "has got" or "have got," used in casual speech.

Gott

name

A surname, possibly derived from the German word for God.

gotta

verb

Another way of saying 'have to' or 'have got to'.

gotten

adjective

Obtained or acquired.

Gottfried

name

A masculine given name and surname of German origin, meaning "peace of God."

Gotti

name

An Italian surname, notably borne by American mobster John Gotti.

Gottlieb

name

A German surname.

Gotto

name

An Italian surname.

Gouda

noun

A pale yellow Dutch cheese, made from cow's milk, that ranges from soft and mild to firm and nutty as it ages.

gouge

noun

A chisel with a curved blade, used to cut grooves or hollows into wood or stone.

gouger

noun

A person who gouges.

gouging

noun

The act of cutting or scooping something out with a gouge, or of badly overcharging someone.

goulash

noun

A hearty stew of beef, vegetables, and paprika, associated with Hungarian cooking.

Gould

name

A surname, and the name of several small places across the United States.

gound

noun

The sticky liquid that collects in your eyes while you sleep.

gourd

noun

A hard-shelled fruit from a climbing or trailing vine in the pumpkin and squash family.

gourmand

noun

Someone who eats and drinks far too much.

gourmet

noun

Someone with refined, expert taste in food and drink.

gout

noun

A painful form of arthritis caused by a build-up of uric acid crystals in the joints, often striking the big toe.

govern

verb

To run the political affairs of a country, state, or region.

governable

adj

Able to be governed or brought under authority; willing to submit to law or rule.

governance

noun

The system, process, or authority by which an organization or country is directed and controlled.

governess

noun

A woman employed to educate children in their own home, typically living with the family.

governless

adj

Having no government or control; lawless.

government

noun

The group of people with the authority to run a country, state or other area, who make and enforce its laws and policies.

governmental

adjective

Relating to a government or to the act of governing.

governor

noun

The elected or appointed head of a state, province, or similar region.

governorate

noun

An area of land ruled by a governor; a province.

Govinda

name

A name of the Hindu god Krishna, meaning "finder of cows"; also a masculine given name used in India, sometimes transliterated as Govind.

gowan

noun

A daisy, especially the common daisy — a term still used in Scottish and northern English dialect.

Gower

name

A surname, and a peninsula in southern Wales; also used as a place name in the United States and Australia.

gowk

verb

To turn someone into a fool, or to daze them.

gown

noun

A long, flowing dress, especially one worn for a formal occasion.

goy

noun

A non-Jewish person, from a Jewish perspective; a gentile.

goya

noun

Bitter melon, a bumpy green gourd with a sharp, bitter taste, popular in Okinawan and other East Asian cooking.

goyazite

noun

A mineral with six-sided crystals, made up of aluminium, hydrogen, oxygen, phosphorus and strontium.

goyishkeit

noun

The culture, customs and way of life of people who are not Jewish.

GPS

noun

A satellite-based system used to determine a precise location on Earth (short for Global Positioning System).

GPU

noun

A chip designed to perform very large numbers of simple calculations at the same time, originally to draw images on a screen and now also used for tasks such as video editing, scientific computing and training machine-learning models.

Gra

name

A traditional Hebrew acronym referring to Elijah ben Shlomo Zalman, the influential 18th-century rabbi known as the Vilna Gaon.

grab

verb

To take hold of something suddenly and firmly.

grabber

noun

A person or device that grabs or seizes something.

grabbing

noun

The act of seizing or snatching something.

grabble

verb

To feel around with your hands, trying to grasp or find something.

grabby

adjective

Inclined to grab things, often rudely or greedily.

graben

noun

A long block of the Earth's crust, enclosed by faults, that has sunk relative to the land around it.

Grable

name

A surname, notably borne by American actress Betty Grable.

grace

noun

Smooth, elegant movement or manner.

graceful

adjective

Moving or shaped in a smooth, elegant way.

gracefully

adverb

In a smooth, elegant, or dignified way.

graceless

adj

Lacking elegance or charm.

gracelessness

noun

The state of lacking grace or elegance.

Graces

noun

In Greek mythology, the three goddesses (Euphrosyne, Aglaia, and Thalia) who personified charm, beauty, and goodwill.

gracias

interjection

Thank you (borrowed directly from Spanish, used in English as an informal way of saying thanks).

Gracie

name

A pet form of the given name Grace.

gracile

adj

Thin and slender.

gracious

adjective

Warm, polite, and considerate toward others, especially in a way that shows good manners.

graciously

adverb

In a warm, polite, and considerate way.

graciousness

noun

The quality of being kind, polite and warm towards other people.

Grad

noun

Informal short form of "graduate," someone who has just finished school, college, or university.

gradatim

adv

In a careful, orderly way, one stage at a time.

gradation

noun

A series of small steps that follow one after another in order.

grade

noun

A mark or score showing how well someone did on a test or in a course.

graded

adjective

Having been leveled or smoothed, especially of land or a road surface.

grader

noun

A heavy construction machine used to level and smooth the ground.

grades

noun

Plural of grade — marks earned on schoolwork, or the school years before high school (US usage).

gradient

noun

The steepness or slope of a road, hill, or surface.

grading

noun

A level or rank given to something.

gradual

adjective

Happening slowly, in small steps, rather than suddenly.

gradualist

noun

Someone who supports making changes slowly and in small steps.

gradually

adverb

Slowly, in small steps over time, rather than all at once.

gradualness

noun

The quality of happening slowly, in small steps rather than all at once.

graduand

noun

A student who has finished their course but has not yet formally received their degree.

graduate

noun

A person who has completed a degree or course of study at a school, college, or university.

graduated

adjective

Having successfully completed a degree or course of study.

graduation

noun

The act of completing a degree or course of study.

Grady

name

A surname of Irish origin.

Graeme

name

A variant spelling of the surname and given name Graham.

Graf

noun

A German or Austrian nobleman equivalent to a count.

graff

noun

An overseer or steward (archaic).

graffiti

noun

Words, drawings, or designs painted or scratched onto a wall or other public surface, often without permission.

graft

noun

A piece of living tissue, skin, or plant shoot transplanted onto or into another body or plant to grow there.

grafting

noun

The process of attaching a shoot or bud from one plant onto another so they grow together.

Grafton

name

The name of numerous towns and places across England, the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

graham

noun

Whole-wheat flour made by grinding the entire wheat kernel, including the bran.

grail

noun

In legend, the cup used by Christ at the Last Supper, sought after by knights in medieval stories.

grain

noun

The edible seeds of cereal crops such as wheat, corn, rice, or barley, or the crops that produce them.

Grainger

name

A surname originally meaning someone who dealt in grain (a variant of Granger).

grains

noun

Small hard seeds from cereal plants (such as wheat, rice, or barley), especially as harvested for food.

grainy

adjective

Having a rough, granular texture, made up of small visible particles.

graith

verb

To get something ready and in order for use.

gram

noun

A metric unit of mass equal to one-thousandth of a kilogram.

grame

noun

Strong feelings of anger, bitterness or scorn towards someone.

gramercy

interjection

An old-fashioned way of saying "many thanks" or expressing gratitude.

gramma

noun

A type of pumpkin, a variety of the squash plant Cucurbita moschata.

grammar

noun

The set of rules governing how words are structured and combined into sentences in a language.

grammarian

noun

A person who studies grammar, whether as a serious academic discipline or in a more casual, unscientific way.

grammatical

adjective

Following the rules of grammar of a language.

Grammy

noun

One of the awards given annually by the (US) Recording Academy for achievement in music.

gramophone

noun

An old-fashioned device that plays music from vinyl records using a needle and horn or speaker.

grampa

noun

Informal spelling of grandpa, used mainly by or with children.

gramps

noun

Informal word for grandfather.

grams

noun

Plural of gram, either the metric unit of mass or an informal word for grandmother.

gran

noun

An informal, affectionate term for a grandmother.

Granada

name

A city and province in Andalusia, Spain, famous for the Alhambra palace; also a city and department in Nicaragua, and several small U.S. places.

granary

noun

A building or structure used to store harvested grain.

grand

adj

Impressively large, important, or magnificent.

grandam

noun

Another word for grandmother.

grandchild

noun

A child of one's son or daughter.

granddad

noun

An informal word for grandfather.

granddaddy

noun

A very informal, affectionate word for grandfather.

granddaughter

noun

A daughter of one's son or daughter.

grande

adj

Describing a mid-sized coffee-shop drink, larger than a "tall" but smaller than a "venti," typically around 16 ounces.

grandee

noun

A noble of high rank in Spain or Portugal.

grandeur

noun

Impressive beauty, size, or splendor.

grandfather

noun

The father of one's mother or father.

grandiloquence

noun

Speech or writing that sounds grand and important but is really pompous.

grandiose

adj

Extremely ambitious or impressive in scale.

grandiosity

noun

Behaviour or style that is pompous and pretentious, aiming to seem grander than it is.

grandioso

noun

A musical instruction telling performers to play a passage in a grand, noble style.

grandma

noun

An informal, affectionate word for grandmother.

grandmammy

noun

A grandmother.

grandmother

noun

The mother of one's mother or father.

grandness

noun

The quality of being grand, impressive or splendid.

grandpa

noun

An informal word for grandfather.

grandparent

noun

The parent of one's mother or father; a grandmother or grandfather.

grandpaw

noun

(informal) A pet owner's father, seen as a grandfather figure to the pet.

grandsire

noun

A grandfather.

grandson

noun

A son of one's son or daughter.

grandstand

noun

The main covered seating area at a stadium, racetrack, or arena.

grandstanding

noun

Showy behavior aimed at impressing an audience rather than achieving something genuine.

Grandview

name

A common place name for towns and villages in Canada and the United States.

granfer

noun

A pronunciation spelling of grandfather.

grange

noun

A farmhouse together with its outbuildings, especially one historically tied to a monastery or manor.

granger

noun

A member of the Grange, a farmers' fraternal organisation (formally the National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry) founded to support agricultural interests.

granite

noun

A hard, speckled igneous rock made mainly of quartz and feldspar, widely used in construction and countertops.

granitic

adj

Made of, or similar to, granite.

grannam

noun

A grandmother, or an elderly woman.