gal

¹ American  

[gal] / gæl /

noun

Informal: Sometimes Offensive.

1. a term used to refer to a girl or woman.

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gal ² American  

[gal] / gæl /

noun

1. a centimeter-gram-second unit of acceleration, equal to one centimeter per second per second.

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gal. ³ American  

abbreviation

1. gallon; gallons.

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Gal. ⁴ American  

abbreviation

Bible.

1. Galatians.

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Gal. ¹ British  

abbreviation

1. Galatians

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GAL ² British  

abbreviation

1. get a life

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gal ³ British  

/ ɡæl /

noun

1. slang a girl

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gal. ⁴ British  

abbreviation

1. gallon

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gal ⁵ British  

/ ɡæl /

noun

1. a unit of acceleration equal to 1 centimetre per second per second

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gal. Scientific  

1. Abbreviation of gallon

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Sensitive Note

See girl.

Etymology

Origin of gal¹

First recorded in 1785–95; originally, a dialectal pronunciation of girl

Origin of gal²

First recorded in 1910–15; named after Galileo

Example Sentences

By the time we had the old gals taken care of, my hands were hurting all over.

From Literature

Some years later I was at a dance and met a pretty gal from Blue River.

From Literature

In September 2023 the NRA approved Chubu Electric's estimate of 1,200 gal, a unit of acceleration used to measure the intensity of quakes.

From Barron's

Testing showed that he had indeed been sensitized to alpha gal.

From Science Daily

I take no pleasure in hating “With Love, Meghan” — Markle is a local gal who inarguably got a very bum deal in her early married life, and I honestly want her to succeed.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• female
• girl
• woman