51Թ

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gall

1

[gawl]

noun

  1. impudence; effrontery.

    Synonyms: , , ,
  2. bile, especially that of an animal.

  3. something bitter or severe.

  4. bitterness of spirit; rancor.



gall

2

[gawl]

verb (used with object)

  1. to vex or irritate greatly.

    His arrogant manner galls me.

  2. to make sore by rubbing; chafe severely.

    The saddle galled the horse's back.

verb (used without object)

  1. to be or become chafed.

  2. Machinery.(of either of two engaging metal parts) to lose metal to the other because of heat or molecular attraction resulting from friction.

  3. Metallurgy.(of a die or compact in powder metallurgy) to lose surface material through adhesion to the die.

noun

  1. something very vexing or irritating.

  2. a state of vexation or irritation.

  3. a sore on the skin, especially of a horse, due to rubbing; excoriation.

gall

3

[gawl]

noun

  1. any abnormal vegetable growth or excrescence on a plant, caused by various agents, as insects, nematodes, fungi, bacteria, viruses, chemicals, and mechanical injuries.

Gall

4

[gawl]

noun

  1. Pizi, 1840?–94, leader of the Hunkpapa Sioux: a major chief in the battle of Little Bighorn.

gall

1

/ ɡɔː /

noun

  1. informalimpudence

  2. bitterness; rancour

  3. something bitter or disagreeable

  4. physiol an obsolete term for bile 1

  5. an obsolete term for gall bladder

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

gall

2

/ ɡɔː /

noun

  1. a sore on the skin caused by chafing

  2. something that causes vexation or annoyance

    a gall to the spirits

  3. irritation; exasperation

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. pathol to abrade (the skin, etc) as by rubbing

  2. (tr) to irritate or annoy; vex

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

gall

3

/ ɡɔː /

noun

  1. an abnormal outgrowth in plant tissue caused by certain parasitic insects, fungi, bacteria, or mechanical injury

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

gall.

4

abbreviation

  1. gallon

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

gall

  1. An abnormal swelling of plant tissue, caused by injury or by parasitic organisms such as insects, mites, nematodes, and bacteria. Parasites stimulate the production of galls by secreting chemical irritants on or in the plant tissue. Galls stimulated by egg-laying parasites typically provide a protective environment in which the eggs can hatch and the pupae develop, and they usually do only minor damage to the host plant. Gall-stimulating fungi and microorganisms, such as the bacterium that causes crown gall, are generally considered to be plant diseases.

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Other 51Թ Forms

  • ungalled adjective
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51Թ History and Origins

Origin of gall1

First recorded before 900; Middle English galle, gal “gallbladder; bitter taste; rancor; poison,” Old English gealla “bile”; cognate with German Galle; akin to Latin fel, Greek cholḗ, chólos “gall, bile”; gall 2 ( def. )

Origin of gall2

First recorded before 1000; Middle English gal(l)e, gaul(e) “sore (on the skin); stain, impurity; barren spot (in a field),” Old English gealla “an abrasion or sore (on a horse)”; possibly from Latin galla “nutgall”; possibly the same as gall 1 ( def. ), the senses developing from “bile” to “poison” to “(poisonous) sore” to “stain”; gall 3 ( def. )

Origin of gall3

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English galle, from Middle French, from Latin galla “gԳܳ”; gall 2
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51Թ History and Origins

Origin of gall1

from Old Norse, replacing Old English gealla; related to Old High German galla, Greek DZŧ

Origin of gall2

C14: of Germanic origin; related to Old English gealla sore on a horse, and perhaps to gall 1

Origin of gall3

C14: from Old French galle, from Latin galla
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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms
  1. gall and wormwood, bitterness of spirit; deep resentment.

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

It was galling for Mr Varvill "because we were turning it around with an improved engine. Just as we were getting close to succeeding we failed. That's a uniquely British characteristic."

From

The timing of the announcement was particularly galling for some.

From

Fans bang on about loyalty this, loyalty that - the rank hypocrisy is galling.

From

Sometimes even the smallest things seem especially galling.

From

That fact is galling considering the gala’s 77-year history and is incredibly relevant to a moment when Trump, his cabinet, and businesses affected by the government are scaling back diversity, equality and inclusion policies.

From

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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