gimp
1 Americannoun
-
a flat trimming of silk, wool, or other cord, sometimes stiffened with wire, for garments, curtains, etc.
-
a coarse thread, usually glazed, employed in lacemaking to outline designs.
noun
noun
-
a limp.
-
Usually Disparaging and Offensive. a term used to refer to a person who limps or is lame.
verb (used without object)
adjective
noun
-
offensive a physically disabled person, esp one who is lame
-
slang a sexual fetishist who likes to be dominated and who dresses in a leather or rubber body suit with mask, zips, and chains
noun
Sensitive Note
When describing someone who is lame, gimp is used with disparaging intent and perceived as insulting. But within the disability community, it is sometimes a term of self-reference.
Other Word Forms
- gimpy adjective
Etymology
Origin of gimp1
First recorded in 1655–65; probably from Dutch gimp; further origin unknown
Origin of gimp2
First recorded in 1900–05; origin uncertain
Origin of gimp3
An Americanism dating back to 1920–25; origin uncertain
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.
A man has been found guilty of causing intentional harassment, alarm or distress after scaring female motorists while dressed in a gimp suit.
From BBC
Twin chairs sit opposite the couch, green gimp and nailhead trim adding a stately detail to the delicate pair.
From Seattle Times
In 2019 a man in a “gimp suit” charged at a woman in the village terrifying her.
From BBC
“Stories” inherits this knowing drollness, which is why Scarlett is also haunted by a gimp suit and eventually revealed to be just as fine a fit for it as its previous occupant.
From Washington Post
Trump, meanwhile, was viewed by the news media and most serious political observers as a buffoon, the gimp at a political freak show.
From Salon
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.
