gel
Americannoun
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gels
plural
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Physical Chemistry. a semirigid colloidal dispersion of a solid with a liquid or gas, as jelly, glue, etc.
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Theater. gelatin.
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Biochemistry. a semirigid polymer, as agarose, starch, cellulose acetate, or polyacrylamide, cast into slabs or cylinders for the electrophoretic separation of proteins and nucleic acids.
verb (used without object)
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gels,
present (3rd person singular)
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gelled,
past participle, past
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gelling
present participle
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to form or become a gel.
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jell.
noun
verb
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to become or cause to become a gel
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a variant spelling of jell
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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gelsimple
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gelssimple
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have gelledperfect
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has gelledperfect
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am gellingprogressive
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are gellingprogressive
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is gellingprogressive
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have been gellingperfect progressive
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has been gellingperfect progressive
Past
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gelledsimple
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had gelledperfect
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was gellingprogressive
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were gellingprogressive
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had been gellingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of gel
First recorded in 1895–1900; shortening of gelatin
Vocabulary lists containing gel
Theater - Middle School
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Theater - High School
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Vocabulary from Readings 3, Unit 2
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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:
I think that's on De Zerbi because, although new players take time to gel, his side have put in two really insipid performances so far.
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
Carter, who left in 2024, said it can take five years for a new school’s approach to gel.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 1, 2026
Islander Chris Chadwick said he was against the application, saying: "It just didn't gel with me that they were going to cover a greenfield site with solar panels."
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
After the gel is placed on a tooth, it forms a thin but durable coating that penetrates the tooth's surface and fills small cracks, pores, and other damaged areas.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 23, 2026
I couldn't gel near him, but I stayed till his eye started to crust over.
From "Life Is So Good" by George Dawson
If it did, the attempt to recreate the first film’s magic would’ve come with plenty of film stock and some colored gels to make sure every shot isn’t washed out in jaundiced yellow.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
However, those gels still need to be surgically implanted.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 7, 2026
Different gels and drinks will be offered to different players.
From BBC ● Jun. 17, 2026
To be clear: These athletes aren’t chowing on the yucky old sports gels we all know and hate, the ones that taste like tangerines and moldy baseball gloves.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026
“They’ll also have energy gels for you at the water stops,” he told me.
From "The Running Dream" by Wendelin Van Draanen
The older players had a good relationship with Robins, but when Lampard arrived the younger members - who grew up watching him play for Chelsea and Manchester City - gelled with him quickly.
From BBC ● Apr. 18, 2026
But when she arrives at Iona’s apartment, Andie is shocked to see that a coiffed perm, light makeup, a sensible suit and a string of pearls have replaced her friend’s beehives and gelled spikes.
From Salon ● Feb. 28, 2026
After treatment with dancing molecules, the gelled nanofiber scaffold reduced inflammation, shrank glial scarring, stimulated neurite extension, and encouraged neurons to grow in organized patterns.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 16, 2026
McVay fist-bumped players during warmups at State Farm Stadium, his trademark gelled hair spikes in full effect.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 7, 2025
I looked up to see a cute, baby-faced boy, his pale blond hair carefully gelled into orderly spikes, smiling at me in a friendly way.
From "Twilight" by Stephenie Meyer
There’s a rhythm and a quality of engagement that I learned completely in the theater world that applied to the gelling and the cohesion of “Rooster” in all of the scenes.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 26, 2026
Many vegan meat alternatives also use gelling agents that bind water and fat.
From Salon ● Nov. 25, 2024
A palpable sense of optimism might finally be taking root on a team that showed distinct signs of gelling following a year of upheaval and overhaul.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 30, 2022
We want to see goals, we want to see defending, great assists, the team really gelling together on the pitch.
From BBC ● Mar. 8, 2022
A method according to claim 1 wherein said gel 60 consists essentially of 1,2-butylene oxide and a gelling agent selected from the group consisting of SiO2, particulate carbon and aluminum octoate.
From U.S. Patent 4,293,314: Gelled Fuel-Air Explosive October 6, 1981. by Bertram O. Stull
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.
