gird

[ gurd ]

/ gɜrd /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR gird ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), gird·ed or girt, gird·ing.

to encircle or bind with a belt or band.

to surround; enclose; hem in.

to prepare (oneself) for action: He girded himself for the trial ahead.

to provide, equip, or invest, as with power or strength.

Nearby words

girandole, girard, girasol, giraud, giraudoux, gird, gird one's loins, girder, girdle, girdle anesthesia, girdle sensation

Origin of gird

before 950; Middle English girden, Old English gyrdan; cognate with German gürten

SYNONYMS FOR gird

3 brace, steel, fortify, strengthen.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR gird ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

gird·ing·ly, adverb

Definition for gird (2 of 2)

gird

[ gurd ]

/ gɜrd /

verb (used without object)

to gibe; jeer (usually followed by at).

verb (used with object)

to gibe or jeer at; taunt.

noun

a gibe.

Origin of gird

1175–1225; Middle English gyrd a stroke, blow, hence a cutting remark, derivative of girden to strike, smite < ?

Related forms

gird·ing·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for gird

They warn authorities to gird themselves for the possibility that many more men could surface.
Penn State’s Next Battle: More Sandusky Accusers Come Forward|Diane Dimond|July 18, 2012|DAILY BEAST
As we gird our national loins for the mid-term elections in November, here is a brisk primer on the movement.
My A-Z Guide to the Tea Party|Tunku Varadarajan|September 18, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Gird on your sword, and tell your wife that she has nothing to fear.
The Golden Age in Transylvania|Mr Jkai
Would the Nonconformists gird up their loins for the spiritual battle?
The Soul of Susan Yellam|Horace Annesley Vachell

If so, gird on thy sword, and take the spear in thy hand, and go forth to fight for thy inheritance.
Translations from the German (Vol 3 of 3)|Thomas Carlyle
Unless we gird it on, we shall be onlookers instead of participants.
The War After the War|Isaac Frederick Marcosson
For this, and this mainly, did Europe gird herself at frightful cost for war.
Darkwater|W. E. B. Du Bois

British Dictionary definitions for gird (1 of 3)

gird

/ (ɡɜːd) /

verb girds, girding, girded or girt (tr)

to put a belt, girdle, etc, around (the waist or hips)

to bind or secure with or as if with a beltto gird on one's armour

to surround; encircle

to prepare (oneself) for action (esp in the phrase gird (up) one's loins)

to endow with a rank, attribute, etc, esp knighthood

Word Origin for gird

Old English gyrdan, of Germanic origin; related to Old Norse gyrtha, Old High German gurten

British Dictionary definitions for gird (2 of 3)

gird

/ (ɡɜːd) Northern English dialect /

verb

(when intr, foll by at) to jeer (at someone); mock

(tr) to strike (a blow at someone)

(intr) to move at high speed

noun

a blow or stroke
a taunt; gibe

a display of bad temper or anger (esp in the phrases in a gird; throw a gird)

Word Origin for gird

C13 girden to strike, cut, of unknown origin

British Dictionary definitions for gird (3 of 3)

gird

/ (ɡɪrd) /

noun

Scot a hoop, esp a child's hoopAlso: girr

Word Origin for gird

a Scot variant of girth

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