gel

English Online Dictionary. What means gel‎? What does gel mean?

Translingual

Symbol

gel

1. (international standards) ISO 639-3 language code for Fakkanci.

See also

• Wiktionary's coverage of Fakkanci terms

English

Etymology 1

Coined by Thomas Graham in the mid 19th century as a clipping of gelatin, from French gélatine, from Italian gelatina, diminutive form of gelata (“iced”), from Latin gelata, past participle of gelo (“to freeze”), from gelu (“frost”), from Proto-Indo-European *gel- (“cold”). For the meaning development compare with Russian сту́день (stúdenʹ, “aspic, jelly, gel”) related to студёный (studjónyj, “cold”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: jĕl, IPA^(key): /d͡ʒɛl/, [d͡ʒɛɫ]
• Rhymes: -ɛl
• Homophones: jel, jell

Noun

gel (countable and uncountable, plural gels)

1. A semi-solid to almost solid colloid of a solid and a liquid, such as jelly, cheese or opal.
2. Any gel intended for a particular cosmetic use, such as for styling the hair.
3. A film of flexible transparent plastic (such as acetate, celluloid, or cellophane) suitable for making superimpositions or diapositives (image to overlay on other images, especially for overhead projectors); a digital virtual equivalent of this.

Derived terms

Translations

See also

For more information on classification of colloids, see Wikipedia article on colloids

Verb

gel (third-person singular simple present gels, present participle gelling, simple past and past participle gelled)

1. (transitive) To apply (cosmetic) gel to (the hair, etc).
2. (intransitive) To become a gel.
3. (intransitive) To develop a rapport.

4. (intransitive, figurative) To come together to form something; to cohere.

Translations

See also

• aerosol
• colloid
• emulsion
• foam
• sol

Etymology 2

Imitative of upper-class British pronunciation of girl.

Pronunciation

• enPR: gĕl, IPA^(key): /ɡɛl/

Noun

gel (plural gels)

1. (British, slang) A girl.

Anagrams

• leg, leg., ElG, LGE, lge, ELG

Catalan

Etymology

Inherited from Old Catalan gel, from Latin gelū, from Proto-Indo-European *gel- (“cold”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [ˈʒɛl]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ˈd͡ʒɛl]

Noun

gel m (plural gels)

1. ice

   Synonym: glaç

2. gel

Related terms

• gelar

Further reading

• “gel” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “gel”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2024
• “gel” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “gel” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Chinese

Etymology

From English gel.

Pronunciation

Verb

gel

1. (Cantonese) to gel
2. (Hong Kong Cantonese, Internet slang, neologism) to predict with confidence

Derived terms

See also

Cimbrian

Alternative forms

• ghéel (Sette Comuni)

Etymology

From Middle High German gël, from Old High German gelo, from Proto-West Germanic *gelu, from Proto-Germanic *gelwaz (“yellow”). Cognate with German gelb, English yellow.

Adjective

gel

1. (Luserna) yellow

References

• Patuzzi, Umberto, ed., (2013) Luserna / Lusérn: Le nostre parole / Ünsarne börtar / Unsere Wörter [Our Words], Luserna, Italy: Comitato unitario delle isole linguistiche storiche germaniche in Italia / Einheitskomitee der historischen deutschen Sprachinseln in Italien

Dutch

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʒɛl/, /dʒɛl/

Noun

gel m or n (plural gels)

1. gel (suspension of solid in liquid)
2. gel (cosmetic preparation)

Anagrams

• leg

Dutch Low Saxon

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡeːl/

Adjective

gel

1. yellow

French

Etymology

Inherited from Latin gelū, from Proto-Indo-European *gel- (“cold”). For the sense of "gel", compare English gel; compare gélatine.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʒɛl/

Noun

gel m (plural gels)

1. frost

   Synonym: givre

2. gel (suspension of solid in liquid)
3. gel (cosmetic preparation)
4. (colloquialism, Canada) fall freeze
   1. (seasons, time) freeze-up, one of the 6 seasons of high latitudes; the freeze.

Antonyms

Derived terms

Related terms

Descendants

• → Persian: ژل (žel)

See also

• glace

Further reading

• “gel”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

German

Pronunciation

Adjective

gel (strong nominative masculine singular geler, comparative geler, superlative am gelsten)

1. (obsolete) Alternative spelling of gehl, alternative form of gelb (“yellow”)

Declension

German Low German

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡeːl/

Adjective

gel

1. Alternative spelling of geel

Icelandic

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /cɛːl/
• Rhymes: -ɛːl

Noun

gel n (genitive singular gels, no plural)

1. gel

Declension

Nalca

Noun

gel

1. woman
2. wife

Old French

Alternative forms

• jel

Contraction

gel

1. Contraction of ge + le (I […] it)

Old Irish

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *gelos, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰelh₂- (“to shine”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡʲel/

Adjective

gel

1. bright
2. clear
3. white

Declension

Derived terms

• aingel

Descendants

• Irish: geal
• Manx: gial
• Scottish Gaelic: geal

Mutation

Further reading

• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “1 gel”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language

Old Norse

Verb

gel

1. first-person singular present active indicative of gala

Old Saxon

Etymology

From Proto-Germanic *gailaz, from Proto-Indo-European *gʰoylos (“frothing, tempestuous, wanton”). Cognate with Old English gāl, Dutch geil (“salacious, lustful”), Old High German geil (German geil (“lustful”)), Old Norse geiligr (“beautiful”).

Adjective

gēl (comparative gēloro, superlative gēlost)

1. wanton, lustful; wicked

Declension

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from English gel.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: (Portugal) -ɛl, (Brazil) -ɛw
• Hyphenation: gel

Noun

gel m (plural géis or geles)

1. gel (suspension of solid in liquid)

References

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French gel.

Noun

gel n (plural geluri)

1. gel

Declension

Spanish

Etymology

From gelatina or borrowed from French gel. Compare English gel, gelatine.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈxel/ [ˈxel]
• Rhymes: -el
• Syllabification: gel

Noun

gel m (plural geles)

1. gel (semi-solid colloid of a solid and a liquid)
2. gel (cosmetic gel, especially body wash)

Derived terms

Further reading

• “gel”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.8, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2024 December 10

Tok Pisin

Etymology

From English girl.

Noun

gel

1. girl

Turkish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɟɛl/, [ɟæl]

Verb

gel

1. second-person singular imperative of gelmek