gib

[ gib ]

/ gɪb /

noun

a hooked prolongation that develops during the spawning season on the lower jaw of a male salmon or trout.

Machinery.

a thin, wedgelike strip of metal for controlling the area in which a moving part, as the table of a milling machine, slides.
a keylike part having a head at each end, used with a matching cotter as a fastening.

(in carpentry or ironwork) a heavy metal strap for fastening two members together.

verb (used with object), gibbed, gib·bing.

to fasten (parts) together by means of a gib.

Words nearby gib

giantism, giaour, giardia, giardiasis, giauque, gib, gib board, gib., gibbed, gibber, gibberd

Origin of gib

First recorded in 1555–65; origin uncertain

Definition for gib (2 of 3)

gib²

[ gib ]

/ gɪb /

noun

a cat, especially a male cat.

a castrated cat.

Origin of gib

1350–1400; Middle English gib(be), short for Gilbert proper name

Definition for gib (3 of 3)

Gib.

Gibraltar.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for gib

Here I first met "Gib Spencer" and formed a friendly acquaintance with him which continues to this day.
Forty Years Among the Indians|Daniel W. Jones
You go en fetch me some clo's heah, so nobody won't see you, en keep yo' mouf shet, en I 'll gib you a dollah.'
The Conjure Woman|Charles W. Chesnutt
"You'll run without me, Gib," Scraggs declared emphatically.
Captain Scraggs|Peter B. Kyne
The extractor (figs. 11 and 12) is recessed to take a movable plate (u) termed a “gib,” behind which is a spring (v).
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 17, Slice 2|Various

Gib grinned as he drew the heavy piece of iron back into the punt.
The Phantom Yacht|Carol Norton

British Dictionary definitions for gib (1 of 3)

gib¹

/ (ɡɪb) /

noun

a metal wedge, pad, or thrust bearing, esp a brass plate let into a steam engine crosshead

verb gibs, gibbing or gibbed

(tr) to fasten or supply with a gib

Word Origin for gib

C18: of unknown origin

British Dictionary definitions for gib (2 of 3)

gib²

/ (ɡɪb) /

noun

a male cat, esp a castrated one

Word Origin for gib

C14: probably a shortening and alteration of the proper name Gilbert

British Dictionary definitions for gib (3 of 3)

Gib

/ (dʒɪb) /

noun

an informal name for Gibraltar

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