gad1
[gad]
- to move restlessly or aimlessly from one place to another: to gad about.
- the act of gadding.
Origin of gad1
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for gadder
Historical Examples
Sir: A gadder friend of mine has been on the road so long that he always speaks of the parlor in his house as the lobby.
The So-called Human RaceBert Leston Taylor
Den dey all gadder in de circle an' fo' dey git dey supply, dey got ta do de pigeon wing.
Slave Narratives: A Folk History of Slavery in the United States From Interviews with Former SlavesWork Projects Administration
Abhor a person of no imploy, or gadder along the streets; for they are fit for nothing.
gad1
- (intr; often foll by about or around) to go out in search of pleasure, esp in an aimless manner; gallivant
- carefree adventure (esp in the phrase on or upon the gad)
Word Origin
C15: back formation from obsolete gadling companion, from Old English, from gæd fellowship; related to Old High German gatuling
gad2
- mining a short chisel-like instrument for breaking rock or coal from the face
- a goad for driving cattle
- a western US word for spur (def. 1)
- (tr) mining to break up or loosen with a gad
Word Origin
C13: from Old Norse gaddr spike; related to Old High German gart, Gothic gazds spike
Gad1
- an archaic euphemism for God by Gad!
Gad2
- Jacob's sixth son, whose mother was Zilpah, Leah's maid
- the Israelite tribe descended from him
- the territory of this tribe, lying to the east of the Jordan and extending southwards from the Sea of Galilee
- a prophet and admonisher of David (I Samuel 22; II Samuel 24)
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
Word Origin and History for gadder
gad
v.
"to rove about," mid-15c., perhaps a back-formation from Middle English gadeling (Old English gædeling) "kinsman, fellow, companion in arms," but which had a deteriorated sense of "rogue, vagabond" by c.1300 (it also had a meaning "wandering," but this is attested only from 16c.); or else it should be associated with gad (n.) "a goad for driving cattle." Related: Gadding.
gad
n.
"goad, metal rod," early 13c., from Old Norse gaddr "spike, nail," from Proto-Germanic *gadaz "pointed stick" (see yard (n.2)).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper