gelding

[gel-ding]

See more synonyms for gelding on Thesaurus.com

noun

a castrated male animal, especially a horse.
a eunuch.

Origin of gelding

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English word from Old Norse word geldingr. See geld¹, -ing³

geld

[geld]

verb (used with object), geld·ed or gelt, geld·ing.

to castrate (an animal, especially a horse).
to take strength, vitality, or power from; weaken or subdue.

Origin of geld

1250–1300; Middle English gelden < Old Norse gelda

Related formsgeld·er, nounun·geld·ed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for gelding

emasculate, neuter, fix, sterilize, spay, alter, unman, eunuchize

Examples from the Web for gelding

Contemporary Examples of gelding

As a gelding, Mine That Bird obviously has no breeding future.
Can These Two Horses Save Racing?
Sally Denton
June 4, 2009
After gelding took care of that final problem, his career blossomed.
Can These Two Horses Save Racing?
Sally Denton
June 4, 2009

Historical Examples of gelding

He went across to the hotel, tied the gelding at the rack, and sat down on the veranda.
Way of the Lawless
Max Brand
Could they have outridden the gelding to such an extent as that?
Way of the Lawless
Max Brand
In the meantime, three days had put the gelding in very fair condition.
Way of the Lawless
Max Brand
With head bowed, shoulders hunched, he bent over the gelding.
Garrison's Finish
W. B. M. Ferguson
She glanced at him sharply, then fell to pleating the gelding's mane.
Garrison's Finish
W. B. M. Ferguson

British Dictionary definitions for gelding

gelding

noun

a castrated male horse

Word Origin for gelding

C14: from Old Norse geldingr; see geld 1, -ing 1

geld

verb gelds, gelding, gelded or gelt (tr)

to castrate (a horse or other animal)
to deprive of virility or vitality; emasculate; weaken

Derived Formsgelder, noun

Word Origin for geld

C13: from Old Norse gelda, from geldr barren

geld

noun

a tax on land levied in late Anglo-Saxon and Norman England

Word Origin for geld

Old English gield service, tax; related to Old Norse gjald tribute, Old Frisian jeld, Old High German gelt retribution, income

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 gelding

late 13c. (as a surname), from Old Norse geldingr, from gelda "castrate" (see geld (v.)).

geld

"royal tax in medieval England," Old English gield "payment, tribute," from Proto-Germanic *geldam "payment" (cf. Middle High German gelt "payment, contribution," German geld "money," Old Norse gjald "payment," Gothic gild "tribute, tax"), from PIE root of yield (v.).

geld

"to castrate," c.1300, from Old Norse gelda "castrate" from geldr "barren," from Proto-Germanic *galdu-, from PIE *ghel- "to cut." Related: Gelded. Cf. Old Norse geldr "yielding no milk, dry," Old High German galt "barren," said of a cow.