gael
/ɡeɪ̯l/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.93 in modern English
5
Scrabble Score
4
Letters
1
Syllables
4
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A member of an ethnic group in Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man, whose language is one that is Gaelic.
name
A male given name.
Example Sentences
- "For the great Gaels of Ireland Are the men that God made mad, For all their wars are merry, And all their songs are sad."
- "For England knows and England fears the famous Northern Gael and that's another reason why we'll free our lads in Crumlin Jail."
- "Every cock in the farmyard stock crows a triumph to the Gael and it wouldn't be surprising if there'd be another rising said the man from the Daily Mail."
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *dwóh₁ Proto-Indo-European *dwi- Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁- Proto-Indo-European *h₁weydʰh₁- Proto-Celtic *weidus Proto-Celtic *weidelos Proto-Brythonic *guɨðel Proto-Brythonic *Guɨðelbor. Old Irish Goídel Irish Gaelbor. English Gael Borrowed from Irish Gael, alt. Gaol, from earlier Gaoidheal, cognate with Scottish Gaelic Gàidheal and Manx Gael, from Middle Irish Gaídel, from Old Irish Goídel (“Irishman”), a loanword from Old Welsh Guoidel (“wild man, warrior”) (also recorded as a personal name in the Book of Llandaff), from Proto-Brythonic *Guɨðel (“savage, woodsman”), from Proto-Celtic *weidelos (“savage, woodsman”), related to *weidus (“wild”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁weydʰh₁- (“wood, wilderness”) (cf. Old English wāþ (“hunt”)). Doublet of Goidel. False cognate of English Gaul, Gallia. Medieval Irish traditions, including the Lebor Gabála Érenn, trace the origin of the Goídels to an eponymous ancestor, Goídel Glas, but this is no longer held to be the ultimate etymology of the word.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: *h₁weydʰh₁-, Gael, Gaídel, Goídel, Guoidel, *Guɨðel
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ɡeɪ̯l/
- British English: /ɡeɪ̯l/