guest

¹

[gest]

noun

1. a person who spends some time at another person's home in some social activity, as a visit, dinner, or party.

   Synonyms: company

2. a person who receives the hospitality of a club, a city, or the like.

3. a person who patronizes a hotel, restaurant, etc., for the lodging, food, or entertainment it provides.

4. an often well-known person invited to participate or perform in a regular program, series, etc., as a substitute for a regular member or as a special attraction.

5. Zoology.,  an inquiline.

verb (used with object)

1. to entertain as a guest.

verb (used without object)

1. to be a guest; make an appearance as a guest.

   She's been guesting on all the TV talk shows.

adjective

1. provided for or done by a guest.

   a guest towel; a guest column for a newspaper.

2. participating or performing as a guest.

   a guest conductor.

Guest

²

[gest]

noun

1. Edgar A(lbert), 1881–1959, U.S. journalist and writer of verse, born in England.

guest

/ ɡɛst /

noun

1. a person who is entertained, taken out to eat, etc, and paid for by another

2. 1. a person who receives hospitality at the home of another

      a weekend guest

   2. ( as modifier )

      the guest room

3. 1. a person who receives the hospitality of a government, establishment, or organization

   2. ( as modifier )

      a guest speaker

4. 1. an actor, contestant, entertainer, etc, taking part as a visitor in a programme in which there are also regular participants

   2. ( as modifier )

      a guest appearance

5. a patron of a hotel, boarding house, restaurant, etc

6. zoology a nontechnical name for inquiline

7. informal,  do as you like

verb

1. (intr) (in theatre and broadcasting) to be a guest

   to guest on a show

Other Word Forms

• guestless adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of guest¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English gest, from Old Norse gestr; replacing Old English gi(e)st; cognate with German Gast, Gothic gasts, Latin hostis; host ¹, host ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of guest¹

Old English giest guest, stranger, enemy; related to Old Norse gestr, Gothic gasts, Old High German gast, Old Slavonic gostǐ, Latin hostis enemy

Idioms and Phrases

see be my guest.

Synonym Study

See visitor.

Example Sentences

Phil previous principal guest conductor, had just conducted with the Tokyo Symphony to reportedly great acclaim the week before.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Americans aren’t eager to do arduous farm work, so most apple picking falls to immigrants and foreign guest workers in the U.S. on temporary H-2A visas.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The president cited the figure while speaking in Riyadh at the The Future Investment Initiative conference, where he was touted as a special guest during the ninth-edition of the forum.

Read more on Barron's

“I don’t think Fuentes is going away. Ben Shapiro tried to strangle him in the crib in college, and now he’s bigger than ever,” Carlson told his audience to flatter his guest.

Read more on Salon

Just south of the highway closure, the rustic, isolated Lucia Lodge and the New Camaldoli Hermitage, a Benedictine monastery, remain open for overnight guests.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• caller 
• client 
• companion 
• customer 
• inmate 
• patron 
• recipient 
• tenant 
• vacationer 
• visitor