gel

[jel]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR gel ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

Physical Chemistry. a semirigid colloidal dispersion of a solid with a liquid or gas, as jelly, glue, etc.

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), gelled, gel·ling.

to form or become a gel.

jell(def 2).

Origin of gel

First recorded in 1895–1900; shortening of gelatin

Related formsde·gel, verb (used with object), de·gelled, de·gel·ling.non·gel·ling, adjectivere·gel, verb (used without object), re·gelled, re·gel·ling.

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

Related Words for gel

materialize, crystallize, fix, strengthen, reinforce, solidify, stabilize, clot, curdle, swell, congeal, condense, transpire, ensue, befall, arise, thicken, stiffen, set, finalize

Examples from the Web for gel

Contemporary Examples of gel

My stranger-friend left the room to let the gel mask sit on my face for a bit.
I Got a $180 Bird-Poop Facial
Kelsey Meany
August 6, 2013
Wilkinson says the gel combats the “I had a run-in with a can of paint” defense.
High-Tech Anti-Riot Gear
Sam Bungey
August 14, 2011
But waiting for a draft-Clark movement to gel turned out to be problematic.
Mitch Daniels' Hamlet Complex
Jill Lawrence
May 9, 2011
The first step is to gel your hair and hit the gym to work on your fitness.
9 Great Jersey Shore Moments
Sujay Kumar, The Daily Beast Video
July 28, 2010

Historical Examples of gel

Do you think I'm not doing my best for you, gel—my very best?
The Woman Thou Gavest Me
Hall Caine
A puff of wind and a slant of rain, as I've been saying to my gel here.
The Woman Thou Gavest Me
Hall Caine
But show me the daughter that could do better for herself than my gel's father has done for her.
The Woman Thou Gavest Me
Hall Caine
You shall read it aloud to me, my gel—or, better still, I'll read it to you.
Sue, A Little Heroine
L. T. Meade
I'm soory fur the gel, but ef she had the locket, of course she tuk the locket.
Sue, A Little Heroine
L. T. Meade

British Dictionary definitions for gel

gel

noun

a semirigid jelly-like colloid in which a liquid is dispersed in a solidnondrip paint is a gel

See hair gel

theatre informal See gelatine (def. 4)

verb gels, gelling or gelled

to become or cause to become a gel

a variant spelling of jell

Word Origin for gel

C19: by shortening from gelatine

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

Word Origin and History for gel

1899, as a chemical term, short for gelatin and perhaps influenced by jell. The invention of this word is credited to Scottish chemist Thomas Graham (1805-1869). Hair-styling sense is from 1958. The verb meaning "to become a gel" is attested by 1902; figurative sense is from 1958. Related: Gelled; gelling.

gel in Medicine

gel

[jĕl]

n.

A colloid in which the disperse phase combines with the dispersion medium to produce a semisolid material.

v.

To become a gel.

To convert a sol into a gel.