gamin
[ gam-in ]
/ ˈgæm ɪn /
noun
a neglected boy left to run about the streets; street urchin.
RELATED WORDS
lad, fellow, youth, youngster, child, guy, beggar, urchin, vagrant, orphan, waif, tramp, tatterdemalion, bum, vagabond, loafer, hobo, wastrel, guttersnipe, scarecrow
Nearby words
- gamey,
- gamic,
- gamification,
- gamify,
- gamilaraay,
- gamine,
- gaminess,
- gaming,
- gaming platform,
- gaming table
Origin of gamin
From French, dating back to 1830–40, orig. boy assisting a glassblower, young boy; of uncertain origin
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for gamin
gamin
/ (ˈɡæmɪn, French ɡamɛ̃) /
noun
a street urchin; waif
Word Origin for gamin
from French
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
gamin
"street urchin," 1837, from French gamin (18c.), perhaps from Berrichon dialect gamer "to steal." Introduced in English in translations of Hugo.
Un groupe d'enfants, de ces petits sauvages vanu-pieds qui ont de tout temps battu le pavé de Paris sous le nom éternel de gamins, et qui, lorsque nous étions enfants aussi, nous ont jeté des pierres à tous, le soir, au sortir de classe, parce que nos pantalons n'étaient pas déchirés; etc. [Hugo, "Notre-Dame de Paris"]
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper