gin

¹ American  

[jin] / dʒɪn /

noun

1. an alcoholic liquor obtained by distilling grain mash with juniper berries.

2. an alcoholic liquor similar to this, made by redistilling spirits with flavoring agents, especially juniper berries, orange peel, angelica root, etc.

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gin ² American  

[jin] / dʒɪn /

noun

1. cotton gin.

   Did Whitney's invention of the gin actually enable an expansion in the slave trade?

2. a trap or snare for game.

   They learned how to devise a simple gin for catching rabbits and quail and such.

3. any of various machines employing simple tackle or windlass mechanisms for hoisting.

   She finished developing her father's design of a gin that would facilitate safer movement of large parts in the manufacturing plant.

4. a stationary prime mover having a drive shaft rotated by horizontal beams pulled by horses walking in a circle.

   The gins were activated by teams of horses to power the pulley system that hauled the coal out of the mines.

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verb (used with object)

ginned, ginning

1. to clear (cotton) of seeds with a gin.

   The weather's fine today for ginning cotton.

2. to snare (game).

   Hey! Looks like you ginned a woodcock.

gin ³ American  

[gin] / gɪn /

verb (used with or without object)

gan, gun, ginning

1. Archaic. to begin.

   At twilight, gin we our leave.

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gin ⁴ American  

[jin] / dʒɪn /

noun

1. Also called gin rummy.  a variety of rummy for two players, in which a player with 10 or fewer points in unmatched cards can end the game by laying down the hand.

   They get together ever Tuesday for a friendly game of gin.

2. the winning of such a game by laying down a full set of matched cards, earning the winner a bonus of 20 or 25 points.

   Sorry, but that's gin for me again.

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verb (used without object)

ginned, ginning

1. to win a game in gin by laying down a hand in which all 10 cards are included in sets.

   How many times has she ginned tonight?

gin ⁵ American  

[gin] / gɪn /

conjunction

Chiefly Scot. and Southern Appalachian.

1. if; whether.

   It's a beast of a river to cross, gin ye dare.

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gin ⁶ American  

[jin] / dʒɪn /

Or jin

noun

Australian Informal: Offensive.

1. an Aboriginal woman.

2. an Aboriginal wife.

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gin ¹ British  

/ dʒɪn /

noun

1. a primitive engine in which a vertical shaft is turned by horses driving a horizontal beam or yoke in a circle

2. Also called: cotton gin.  a machine of this type used for separating seeds from raw cotton

3. a trap for catching small mammals, consisting of a noose of thin strong wire

4. a hand-operated hoist that consists of a drum winder turned by a crank

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verb

1. to free (cotton) of seeds with a gin

2. to trap or snare (game) with a gin

gin ² British  

/ dʒɪn /

noun

1. an alcoholic drink obtained by distillation and rectification of the grain of malted barley, rye, or maize, flavoured with juniper berries

2. any of various grain spirits flavoured with other fruit or aromatic essences

   sloe gin

3. an alcoholic drink made from any rectified spirit

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gin ³ British  

/ ɡɪn /

verb

1. an archaic word for begin

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gin ⁴ British  

/ ɡɪn /

conjunction

1. if

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gin ⁵ British  

/ dʒɪn /

noun

1. offensive an Aboriginal woman

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Other Word Forms

• ginner
  noun

Etymology

Origin of gin¹

First recorded in 1705–15; shortened from geneva, alteration of Dutch genever “gin,” literally “juniper” (because the liquor was flavored with juniper berries), from Old French genevre “juniper plant,” from assumed Vulgar Latin jeniperus, from Latin juniperus

Origin of gin²

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English gyn, shortened variant of Old French engin “innate quality, clever invention”; see origin at engine

Origin of gin³

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English ginnen, Old English ginnan, shortened variant of onginnan, beginnen “to begin”; see begin

Origin of gin⁴

First recorded in 1955–60; perhaps special use of gin ¹, a shortening of the variant gin rummy, recorded in 1940–45

Origin of gin⁵

First recorded in 1665–75; variously explained as sense development of gien “given” ( see gie, -en ³); as contraction of gif ( see if, an ²; cf. iffen); or as a shortening of again

Origin of gin⁶

First recorded in 1790–1800; from Dharuk di-yin, diyin “woman, old woman”

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

gin gan ginned ginning gun

But the silence has catalyzed non-Swiftie onlookers to gin up something decisively, inarguably odious to place at the singer’s feet.

From Salon ● Jul. 9, 2026

The Queen thanked Curtis and told him "this is my husband's favourite" after he handed her a bottle of gin from Wales as another gift.

From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026

“It’s too late now to gin up something to harm a competitor,” Bill Savitt, a lawyer for OpenAI, had argued in his opening statement.

From MarketWatch ● May 18, 2026

Despite periodic attempts to gin up an economic-growth agenda, Mr. Starmer hasn’t been able to settle on an approach that would raise living standards and stir optimism.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 7, 2026

At the gin, I came upon Mr. O’Flanagan, who had moved Polly’s stand outside so that they could both take some air.

From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly

Along the way, I acquired some new words in Korean, like bangsaneung for radiation and gan for liver.

From Slate ● Mar. 6, 2023

Datganiad o gefnogaeth gan yr Urdd i ffoaduriaid Wcráin.

From BBC ● Mar. 21, 2022

Then there’s the city’s signature dish, hot dry noodles, or re gan mian.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 6, 2020

Then the cousin laughed and they gan bei-ed.

From The New Yorker ● Nov. 11, 2019

I read him most of chapter 1, up to the part where the young warrior Sohrab comes to his mother, Tahmineh, the princess of Samen- gan, and demands to know the identity of his father.

From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini

Traffic has stalled and customers didn’t respond to promotions it ginned up in the spring.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 9, 2026

McCartney, 15, ginned up the courage to approach Lennon after his set; their bond was forged over a mutual passion for Little Richard and Elvis Presley’s “Heartbreak Hotel.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 4, 2025

Spotify users who have been amused by these thrice-daily servings of word salad might be surprised — or, just as likely, not — to learn that the playlist names are ginned up by A.I.

From New York Times ● Jan. 24, 2024

Ausserer, during his closing argument, insinuated Ellis’ family lawyer ginned up evidence against the officers by collecting cellphone videos and interviews from eyewitnesses who implicated the officers.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 12, 2023

White suspected that Hale had ginned up the document while trying to obtain the insurance policy, and altered it after realizing that he had blundered on the date.

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann

Mr. Jacobsen notes that some of those ginning up hysteria about the risks associated with sunlight stand to profit from it.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 16, 2026

It refers to ginning up the gene pool through tools like gene editing and A.I. enhancement, the argument being that manipulating genes can make us better, faster, smarter.

From Slate ● Mar. 19, 2026

“If you want to be able to keep ginning up Black Detroiters to vote, having some representation in the Congress is important.”

From Seattle Times ● May 21, 2024

The orchestra was just being factual in ginning up a little excitement at a climactic moment in the six-decade career of one of the most eminent figures in classical music.

From New York Times ● Jun. 17, 2023

He had built up the ginning enterprise himself and overseen it through this seasonal spasm of mad activity for thirty years; he no longer had the slightest interest or obligation.

From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly

"You start with a pistol, and then you get a shotgun, then you get a machine gun," Cregger explained.

From Barron's ● Sep. 16, 2026

President Claudia Sheinbaum has deployed thousands of soldiers into the state, but despite increasing gun and drug seizures, it has so far failed to curb the violence.

From Barron's ● Sep. 13, 2026

Then came what appeared to be the evidentiary smoking gun: a lettuce sample that tested positive for Cyclospora.

From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2026

Under the law, even those with a permit to carry a gun could not take it out of their homes unless they applied for - and were granted - additional authorisation.

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026

The wind wails impossibly louder, throwing debris against the door like a machine gun.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

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