gan

[ gan ]

/ gæn /

verb

simple past tense of gin³.

Nearby words

gamow, gamow, george, gamp, gamut, gamy, gan, ganache, gance, ganciclovir, gand, ganda

Definition for gan (2 of 4)

gin

[ jin ]

/ dʒɪn /

noun

cotton gin.

a trap or snare for game.

any of various machines employing simple tackle or windlass mechanisms for hoisting.

a stationary prime mover having a drive shaft rotated by horizontal beams pulled by horses walking in a circle.

verb (used with object), ginned, gin·ning.

to clear (cotton) of seeds with a gin.

to snare (game).

Origin of gin

1150–1200; Middle English gyn, aphetic variant of Old French engin engine

Related forms

gin·ner, noun

Definition for gan (3 of 4)

gin

[ gin ]

/ gɪn /

verb (used with or without object), gan, gun, gin·ning. Archaic.

to begin.

Origin of gin

1150–1200; Middle English ginnen, Old English ginnan, aphetic variant of onginnan, beginnen to begin

Definition for gan (4 of 4)

gin

⁴

[ jin ]

/ dʒɪn /

Cards.

noun

Also called gin rummy. a variety of rummy for two players, in which a player with 10 or fewer points in unmatched cards can end the game by laying down the hand.

the winning of such a game by laying down a full set of matched cards, earning the winner a bonus of 20 or 25 points.

verb (used without object), ginned, gin·ning.

to win a game in gin by laying down a hand in which all 10 cards are included in sets.

Origin of gin

⁴

First recorded in 1955–60; perhaps special use of gin¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for gan

Hannah and the others with GAN would have at least a chance where there had been no chance at all.
The Shutdown’s Human Cost: A Family’s Hopes at NIH Put on Hold|Michael Daly|October 12, 2013|DAILY BEAST
As with other GAN kids, numbness is accompanied by an unusual sensitivity.
The Shutdown’s Human Cost: A Family’s Hopes at NIH Put on Hold|Michael Daly|October 12, 2013|DAILY BEAST
“Eight weeks in the life of a child with GAN is huge,” Lori says.
The Shutdown’s Human Cost: A Family’s Hopes at NIH Put on Hold|Michael Daly|October 12, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The young James had a lot of irreverent fun with the idea of the Great American Novel—the GAN, as he called it.
Is Henry James’s ‘The Portrait of a Lady’ the Great American Novel?|Michael Gorra|August 30, 2012|DAILY BEAST

With all their wit they could not hinder it, when Folker and Hagen gan rage so sore.
The Nibelungenlied|Unknown
Then gan they from the wooing / strive to turn the noble thane.
The Nibelungenlied|Unknown
On all sides Hagen gan wake the warriors, if perchance they would fain go to the minster for mass.
The Nibelungenlied|Unknown
Increasing evidences of the enemy's presence be gan to stimulate them.
Si Klegg, Book 4 (of 6)|John McElroy
Kriemhild gan make passing sore wail, or ever she heard aright that it was her husband.
The Nibelungenlied|Unknown

British Dictionary definitions for gan (1 of 7)

gan

/ (ɡæn) /

verb

archaic, or poetic the past tense of gin 3

British Dictionary definitions for gan (2 of 7)

gan

/ (ɡæn) /

verb gans, ganning or ganned

(intr) Northeast English dialect to go

Word Origin for gan

from Old English gangan; related to Old Norse ganga. See gang 1

British Dictionary definitions for gan (3 of 7)

gin

/ (dʒɪn) /

noun

an alcoholic drink obtained by distillation and rectification of the grain of malted barley, rye, or maize, flavoured with juniper berries

any of various grain spirits flavoured with other fruit or aromatic essencessloe gin

an alcoholic drink made from any rectified spirit

Word Origin for gin

C18: shortened from Dutch genever juniper, via Old French from Latin jūniperus juniper

British Dictionary definitions for gan (4 of 7)

gin

/ (dʒɪn) /

noun

a primitive engine in which a vertical shaft is turned by horses driving a horizontal beam or yoke in a circle

Also called: cotton gin a machine of this type used for separating seeds from raw cotton

a trap for catching small mammals, consisting of a noose of thin strong wire

a hand-operated hoist that consists of a drum winder turned by a crank

verb gins, ginning or ginned (tr)

to free (cotton) of seeds with a gin

to trap or snare (game) with a gin

Derived Forms

ginner, noun

Word Origin for gin

C13 gyn, shortened from engine

British Dictionary definitions for gan (5 of 7)

gin

/ (ɡɪn) /

verb gins, ginning, gan or gun

an archaic word for begin

British Dictionary definitions for gan (6 of 7)

gin

⁴

/ (ɡɪn) /

conjunction

Scot if

Word Origin for gin

perhaps related to gif, an earlier form of if

British Dictionary definitions for gan (7 of 7)

gin

⁵

/ (dʒɪn) /

noun

Australian offensive, slang an Aboriginal woman

Word Origin for gin

C19: from a native Australian language

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