gad
verb (used without object)
to move restlessly or aimlessly from one place to another.
gad
1 American
[gad]
/ gæd /
verb (used without object)
-
gads,
present (3rd person singular)
-
gadded,
past participle, past
-
gadding
present participle
noun
gad
2
American
[gad]
/ gæd /
noun
-
a goad for driving cattle.
-
a pointed mining tool for breaking up rock, coal, etc.
Gad
3
American
[gad]
/ gæd /
Or
gad
interjection
Gad
4
American
[gad]
/ gæd /
noun
-
-
(in the Bible) a son of Jacob and Zilpah.
-
one of the 12 tribes of ancient Israel, traditionally descended from him.
-
-
(in the Bible) a Hebrew prophet and chronicler of the court of David.
Gad
1
British
/ ɡæd /
noun
-
-
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)
gad
2
British
/ ɡæd /
noun
-
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
verb
gad
3
British
/ ɡæd /
verb
noun
Gad
4
British
/ ɡæd /
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
gadsimple
-
gadssimple
-
have gaddedperfect
-
has gaddedperfect
-
am gaddingprogressive
-
are gaddingprogressive
-
is gaddingprogressive
-
have been gaddingperfect progressive
-
has been gaddingperfect progressive
Past
-
gaddedsimple
-
had gaddedperfect
-
was gaddingprogressive
-
were gaddingprogressive
-
had been gaddingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of gad1
1425–75; late Middle English gadden, perhaps back formation from gadeling companion in arms, fellow (in 16th century, vagabond, wanderer), Old English gædeling, derivative of gæd fellowship; see gather, -ling 1
Origin of gad2
1175–1225; Middle English < Old Norse gaddr spike; cognate with Gothic gazds
Origin of Gad3
First recorded in 1600–10; euphemism for God
Origin of Gad4
From Late Latin, from Greek Gád, from Hebrew Gādh “(good) luck”
Explanation
To gad is to wander without much purpose, aside from having fun. You might gad around town on a Saturday afternoon with your friends, looking for something entertaining to do. If someone's roving from place to place seeking amusement, you can say they gad about. Your brother might gad about the neighborhood all day while you're at home diligently studying for a math test. As a noun, a gad is a tool with a point on it, like a chisel, and in the western U.S. it's also a word meaning "spur," the spike on a cowboy's boot used to encourage a horse to get going. This verb forms the noun gadabout, a person who restlessly seeks amusement.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The humor doesn’t so much pop as gad about.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2022
Bernice King’s father gad called Vivian “the greatest preacher who ever lived,” a fierce and influential advocate for social justice.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 10, 2021
The pair gad from location to location with a cheery boisterousness.
From The Guardian ● Jan. 28, 2013
But do you remember how that face looked in 1992, when the supermodel, shown below, was in her 20s, on the gad at the Park Avenue Armory for a Versace gala, aglitter in ruby sequins?
From New York Times ● Sep. 28, 2012
In the pasture field the cows were on the gad, and could be seen galloping about with their tails in the air, which made Sir Ector angry.
From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
“A lot of low-wage jobs are going to go away,” said Gad Levanon, chief economist at the Burning Glass Institute, a labor research firm.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 29, 2026
"One of the conditions for keeping the licence is to actively explore the area," Pram Gad pointed out, while noting that "the company is under pressure", as it is not active currently.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
“Ruben carved his own masculinity. To give him credit, if that’s even something you can give him, those spaces wouldn’t hold any weight for him. He’s his own man,” Gad says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 23, 2026
"There weren't really any British artists making reggae, so we had to set that path," reflects Aswad's Tony "Gad" Robinson.
From BBC ● Apr. 14, 2026
“Gad, sir! Gad, sir!” spluttered the Skookum Bench king.
From "The Call of the Wild" by Jack London
The Americas with Simon Reeve is an amiable travelogue in which a dishy documentarian gads about the US.
From The Guardian ● Oct. 27, 2019
When the Senate is not sitting, he gads about the country publicizing golf tournaments on public links.
From Time Magazine Archive
She got disgusted and said, Ye gads, like ABC gum, already been chewed.
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
Dot wouldn't do for me, for mine fader would be looking for me wid two big gads to him—" "Helloa!
From The Lost Trail by Edward Sylvester Ellis
No wonder she gads when she has a chance!
From A Girl of the Limberlost by Gene Stratton-Porter
One was back in the city, on the evening of a reporter’s visit, to be followed the next day by a conference where he gadded about with John Legend.
From New York Times ● Nov. 6, 2015
So while Johann I gadded about, Johann II composed and practiced the organ in church.
From Time Magazine Archive
Mrs. Ogletree even primped her boy Georgie, whom she’d gadded up in a green velvet Little Lord Fauntleroy suit.
From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly
The accusation that Rachel "gadded" as much as other girls of her age was obviously an unmerited one.
From The Arbiter A Novel by Lady Florence Eveleen Eleanore Olliffe Bell
John came home early, Meg gadded no more, and that greatcoat was put on in the morning by a very happy husband, and taken off at night by a most devoted little wife.
From Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
But with the big night in sight there's no more time for gadding about.
From BBC ● May 15, 2019
It has been a good twenty-five years since they would have been arrested, or shot, just for gadding about in joy on the river, as they are now.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2015
The other half of the year, when we’re not gadding about, Cosima cooks for us at her place.
From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2015
Hockney, an Englishman who loves opera and long designed opera sets, is reading more and gadding about less.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 5, 2015
“Hold your tongue, you disrespectful old bird! And, Jo, you’d better go at once. It isn’t proper to be gadding about so late with a rattlepated boy like...”
From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott
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.
