gill

¹

[ gil ]

noun

1. the respiratory organ of aquatic animals, as fish, that breathe oxygen dissolved in water.
2. Also called lamella. one of the radiating vertical plates on the underside of the cap of an agaric mushroom.
3. ground ivy ( def ).

verb (used with object)

1. to gut or clean (fish).
2. to catch (fish) by the gills in a gill net.

gill

²

[ jil ]

noun

1. a unit of liquid measure equal to ¼ pint (118.2937 milliliters).

gill

³

[ gil ]

noun

, British.

1. a deep rocky cleft or wooded ravine forming the course of a stream.
2. a stream; brook; rivulet.

gill

⁴

[ jil ]

noun

, Archaic.

1. a girl or young woman, especially a sweetheart.

gill

⁵

[ gil ]

noun

1. a faller used in the combing process, generally for only the highest-quality fibers.

verb (used with object)

1. to comb (fibers) with a gill.

Gill

⁶

[ gil jil ]

noun

1. a male given name.
2. a female given name.

gill

¹

/ dʒɪl /

noun

1. a unit of liquid measure equal to one quarter of a pint
2. dialect.
   half a pint, esp of beer

gill

²

/ ɡɪl /

noun

1. the respiratory organ in many aquatic animals, consisting of a membrane or outgrowth well supplied with blood vessels. External gills occur in tadpoles, some molluscs, etc; internal gills , within gill slits, occur in most fishes branchial
2. any of the radiating leaflike spore-producing structures on the undersurface of the cap of a mushroom

verb

1. to catch (fish) or (of fish) to be caught in a gill net
2. tr to gut (fish)

gill

³

/ dʒɪl /

noun

1. archaic.
   a girl or sweetheart
2. dialect.
   a female ferret Also speltjill
3. See ground ivy
   an archaic or dialect name for ground ivy

gill

⁴

/ ɡɪl /

noun

1. a narrow stream; rivulet
2. a wooded ravine
3. capital when part of place name a deep natural hole in rock; pothole

   Gaping Gill

Gill

⁵

/ ɡɪl /

noun

1. Gill(Arthur) Eric18821940MBritishARTS AND CRAFTS: sculptorARTS AND CRAFTS: engraverWRITING: typographer ( Arthur ) Eric ( Rowton ). 1882–1940, British sculptor, engraver, and typographer: his sculptures include the Stations of the Cross in Westminster Cathedral, London

gill

/ gĭl /

1. The organ that enables most aquatic animals to take dissolved oxygen from the water. It consists of a series of membranes that have many small blood vessels. Oxygen passes into the bloodstream and carbon dioxide passes out of it as water flows across the membranes.
2. One of the thin strips of tissue on the underside of the cap of many species of basidiomycete fungi. Gills produce the spore-bearing structures known as basidia.

Derived Forms

• ˈgill-less, adjective
• ˈgill-ˌlike, adjective
• gilled, adjective

Other Words From

• gill-less adjective
• gill-like adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of gill¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English gile, from Scandinavian; compare Old Norse gjǫlnar, from unattested gelnō; cognate with Swedish gäl, Danish gælle, Norwegian gjelle “gill”

Origin of gill²

First recorded in 1225–75; Middle English gille, from Old French: “vat, tub,” from Late Latin gello, gillo “water pot”

Origin of gill³

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English gille, from Old Norse gil

Origin of gill⁴

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English gil(le) (generic use of Gil(le), short form of Gillian; Gillian

Origin of gill⁵

First recorded in 1830–40; perhaps special use of gill ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of gill¹

C14: from Old French gille vat, tub, from Late Latin gillō cooling vessel for liquids, of obscure origin

Origin of gill²

C14: of Scandinavian origin; compare Swedish gäl, Danish gjælle, Greek khelunē lip

Origin of gill³

C15: special use of Gill, short for Gillian, girl's name

Origin of gill⁴

C11: from Old Norse gil steep-sided valley

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. green / white around the gills, somewhat pale, as from being sickly, nervous, or frightened:

   The tourists were seasick—all of them green around the gills as the boat rocked back to shore.

2. to the gills, Informal. completely; fully; totally:

   After that big meal we were all stuffed to the gills.

Example Sentences

As members of Congress interviewed the key players in the GameStop saga, Reddit users on the investing forum WallStreetBets published live commentary, cheering on Gill, who has become a folk hero in online trading communities.

From Washington Post

Debra O’Malley, a spokeswoman for the Massachusetts secretary of the commonwealth, said earlier this month that the state was examining Gill’s social media activity as it relates to his former role at MassMutual.

From Washington Post

On wallstreetbets, Gill’s fans debated whether he could retire and live off his dividends.

From Washington Post

“Now we must ensure all LGBTQ Americans are protected from discrimination,” Gill and Miller conclude.

From Washington Blade

It’s less clear how a single dose of Pfizer’s vaccine stacks up against a double dose, which is 95 percent effective—but Gill says the data suggests that one shot is around 90 percent effective.

From Popular-Science

“I feel sorry for what she did to Russ and his daughter,” Gill said.

From The Daily Beast

“She was hot-headed, had her own way of doing things,” Gill said—and so, he left to form a separate militia group.

From The Daily Beast

Another was Faisal Gill, a U.S. Navy veteran, who had in the past secured the GOP nomination for the Virginia House of Delegates.

From The Daily Beast

Our latest episode of “I Am Moral Courage” profiles a rare citizen, Randi Gill from Oklahoma.

From The Daily Beast

A week later Gill, 32, was taking a break in the Lake District, a picturesque sweep of mountains outside Manchester.

From The Daily Beast

The most significant of these is that in which the embryo is closely assimilated to the fish, by the possession of gill slits.

From Project Gutenberg

After the boiling has ceased, but before it is cold, add one gill of spirits of wine, and a grain of musk.

From Project Gutenberg

Captain Gill had been so kind as to send after me a choice tiffen, together with table and chairs, into this wilderness.

From Project Gutenberg

Half a gill of rum to two of water was served out once a day to each man.

From Project Gutenberg

It would not have been difficult to imagine in the midst of that swelling mass the shapes of fins and gill-coverings.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• run