Hypertext Webster Gateway: "gay"

From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)

Gay \Gay\, a. [Compar. {Gayer}; superl. {Gayest}.] [F. gai,
perhaps fr. OHG. g?hi swift, rapid, G. g["a]h, j["a]h, steep,
hasty; or cf. OHG. w?hi beatiful, good. Cf. {Jay}.]
1. Excited with merriment; manifesting sportiveness or
delight; inspiring delight; livery; merry.

Belinda smiled, and all the world was gay. --Pope.

Gay hope is theirs by fancy fed. --Gray.

2. Brilliant in colors; splendid; fine; richly dressed.

Why is my neighbor's wife so gay? --Chaucer.

A bevy of fair women, richly gay In gems and wanton
dress! --Milton.

3. Loose; dissipated; lewd. [Colloq.]

Syn: Merry; gleeful; blithe; airy; lively; sprightly,
sportive; light-hearted; frolicsome; jolly; jovial;
joyous; joyful; glad; showy; splendid; vivacious.

From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)

Gay \Gay\, n.
An ornament [Obs.] --L'Estrange.

From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)

gay
adj 1: bright and pleasant; promoting a feeling of cheer; "a cheery
hello"; "a gay sunny room"; "a sunny smile" [syn: {cheery},
{sunny}]
2: full of or showing high-spirited merriment; "when hearts
were young and gay"; "a poet could not but be gay, in such
a jocund company"- Wordsworth; "the jolly crowd at the
reunion"; "jolly old Saint Nick"; "a jovial old
gentleman"; "have a merry Christmas"; "peals of merry
laughter"; "a mirthful laugh" [syn: {jocund}, {jolly}, {jovial},
{merry}, {mirthful}]
3: given to social pleasures often including dissipation; "led
a gay Bohemian life"; "a gay old rogue with an eye for the
ladies"
4: brightly colored and showy; "girls decked out in brave new
dresses"; "brave banners flying"; "`braw' is a Scottish
word"; "a dress a bit too gay for her years"; "birds with
gay plumage" [syn: {brave}, {braw}]
5: offering fun and gaiety; "a gala ball after the
inauguration"; "a festive (or festal) occasion"; "gay and
exciting night life"; "a merry evening" [syn: {gala(a)}, {festal},
{festive}, {merry}]
6: homosexual or arousing homosexual desires [syn: {queer}, {homophile(a)}]
n : someone who practices homosexuality; having a sexual
attraction to persons of the same sex [syn: {homosexual},
{homo}]


Additional Hypertext Webster Gateway Lookup

Enter word here:
Exact Approx


dict.stokkie.net
Gateway by dict@stokkie.net
stock only wrote the gateway and does not have any control over the contents; see the Webster Gateway FAQ, and also the Back-end/database links and credits.