Emily Dickinson Lexicon

GILL'O-PEN-ING, n.

The aperture of a fish or other animal, by which water is admitted to the gills. Ed. Encyc.

GIL'LY-FLOW-ER, n. [Fr. giroflée, giroflier. The corresponding word in Arm. is genofles or genoflen.]

The name of certain plants. The clove gillyflower is of the genus Dianthus, or carnation pink; the stock gillyflower is the Cheiranthus; the queen's gillyflower is the Hesperis. Fam. of Plants.

GILSE, n.

A young salmon.

GILT, n.

1. Gold laid on the surface of a thing; gilding. Shak.
2. In England, a young female pig. Cyc.

GILT, pp. [of gild.]

Overlaid with gold leaf, or washed with gold; illuminated; adorned.

GILT'HEAD, n. [gilt and head.]

1. In ichthyology, a fish or a genus of fishes, the Sparus, of many spectes; so named from their color, or from a golden spot between the eyes. Encyc.
2. A bird. Hakewill.

GILT'TAIL, n.

A worm so called from its yellow tail. Johnson.

GIM, a. [contracted from gemmy.]

Neat; spruce; well dressed.

GIM'BAL, n.

A brass ring by which a sea compass is suspended in its box, by means of which the card is kept in a horizontal position, notwithstanding the rolling of the ship. Mar. Dict.

GIM'CRACK, n.

A trivial mechanism; a device; a toy; a pretty thing. Prior. Arbuthnot.

GIM'LET, n. [Fr. gibelet; Arm. guymeled. Gimlet seems to be the same word as wimble, with the Celtic pronunciation, guimble, and if m is casual, and the primary word is gibelet or guibelet, the elements of the word coincide with wabble, quibble, and with the W. gwid, a serpentine motion, gwibiaw, to wander, to move in a circular direction, gwiber, a serpent, a viper, and the primary sense is to turn.]

A borer; a small instrument with a pointed screw at the end, for boring holes in wood by turning. It is applied only to small instruments; a large instrument of the like kind is called an auger.

GIM'LET, v.t.

In seamen's language, to turn round an anchor by the stock; a motion resembling that of the turning of a gimlet. Mar. Dict.

GIM'LET-ING, ppr.

Turning as an anchor round the stock. [Used also as a noun.]

GIM'MAL, a. [L. gemellus, twins.]

Consisting of links. Shak.

GIM'MAL, n.

Some device or machinery. Shak.

GIM'MER, n.

Movement or machinery. [Obs.] More.

GIMP, a. [W. gwymp.]

Smart; spruce; trim; nice. [Not in use.]

GIMP, n. [Fr. guiper, to cover or whip about with silk; Eng. to whip.]

A kind of silk twist or edging.

GIN, n.¹

A contraction of Geneva, a distilled spirit. [See Geneva.]

GIN, n.² [A contraction of engine.]

1. A machine or instrument by which the mechanical powers are employed in aid of human strength. The word is applied to various engines, as a machine for driving piles, another for raising weights, &c.; and a machine for separating the seeds from cotton, invented by E. Whitney, is called a cotton-gin. It is also the name given to an engine of torture, and to a pump moved by rotary sails.
2. A trap; a snare. Milton. Shak.

GIN, v.i.

To begin. [Sax. gynnan.]

GIN, v.t.

1. To clear cotton of its seeds by a machine which separates them with expedition. Trans. of Society of Arts.
2. To catch in a trap.

GIN'GER, n. [It. gengiovo; Sp. gengibre; Port. gengivre; Fr. gingembre; G. ingber; D. gember; Sw. ingefära; Dan. ingefer; L. zinziber; Gr. ζιγγιβερις; Arm. zindibel or singebel; Ar. Pers. and Turk. zingibil or zinjibil; Syr. and Ch. nearly the same.]

A plant, or the root of Zingiber officinale, a native of Gingi in China. The roots are jointed, and the stalks rise two or three feet, with narrow leaves. The flower stems arise by the side of these, immediately from the root, naked and ending in an oblong scaly spike. The dried roots are used for various purposes, in the kitchen and in medicine. Encyc.

GIN'GER-BREAD, n. [ginger and bread.]

A kind of cake, composed of flour with an admixture of butter, pearlash, and ginger, sweetened.

GIN'GER-LY, adv.

Nicely; cautiously. [Not used.] Skelton.