gallant
/ɡəˈlɑnt/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.21 in modern English
8
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
noun
A topgallant.
Example Sentences
- "That gallant spirit hath aspired the clouds."
- "It is plain that the great majority of school children must be regarded, from the physical standpoint, as decidedly gallant little persons, who have wrestled through their infancy and have managed to come out of tribulations that have killed a large proportion of all the children of their birth-years."
- "Captain Edward Carlisle[…]felt a curious sensation of helplessness seize upon him as he met her steady gaze,[…]; he could not tell what this prisoner might do. He cursed the fate which had assigned such a duty, cursed especially that fate which forced a gallant soldier to meet so superb a woman as this under handicap so hard."
- "This town is built in a very gallant place."
- "our royal, good and gallant ship"
- "I admire all that quaint, old-fashioned politeness; it is much more to my taste than modern ease; modern ease often disgusts me. But this good old Mr. Woodhouse, I wish you had heard his gallant speeches to me at dinner. Oh! I assure you I began to think my caro sposo would be absolutely jealous."
Etymology
From Middle English galant, galaunt, from Old French galant (“courteous; dashing; brave”), present participle of galer (“to rejoice; make merry”), from gale (“pomp; show; festivity; mirth”); either from Frankish *wala (“good, well”), a variant form of *wela, from Proto-Germanic *wela (whence well), from Proto-Indo-European *welh₁- (“to choose, wish”); or alternatively from Frankish *gail (“merry; mirthful; proud; luxuriant”), from Proto-Germanic *gailaz (“merry; excited; luxurious”), related to Dutch geil (“horny; lascivious; salacious; lecherous”), German geil (“randy; horny; lecherous; wicked”), Old English gāl (“wanton; wicked; bad”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ɡəˈlɑnt/
- British English: /ɡəˈlænt/
Usage
Inflected Forms
more gallant (comparative)
most gallant (superlative)
gallaunt (alternative, obsolete)
gallants (plural)
gallants (present, singular)
gallanting (participle, present)
gallanted (participle, past)
gallanted (past)