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gall

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gall

1[gawl]
–noun
1. impudence; effrontery.
2. bile, esp. that of an animal.
3. something bitter or severe.
4. bitterness of spirit; rancor.
5. gall and wormwood, bitterness of spirit; deep resentment.

Origin:
bef. 900; ME; OE galla, gealla; c. G Galle; akin to L fel, Gk chol gall, bile


1. nerve, audacity, brass, cheek.

gall

2[gawl]
–verb (used with object)
1. to make sore by rubbing; chafe severely: The saddle galled the horse's back.
2. to vex or irritate greatly: His arrogant manner galls me.
–verb (used without object)
3. to be or become chafed.
4. Machinery. (of either of two engaging metal parts) to lose metal to the other because of heat or molecular attraction resulting from friction.
5. Metallurgy. (of a die or compact in powder metallurgy) to lose surface material through adhesion to the die.
–noun
6. a sore on the skin, esp. of a horse, due to rubbing; excoriation.
7. something very vexing or irritating.
8. a state of vexation or irritation.

Origin:
bef. 1000; ME galle (n.), gallen (v.) perh. < MD, MLG gall, akin to OE gealla sore on a horse

gall

3[gawl]
–noun
any abnormal vegetable growth or excrescence on plants, caused by various agents, as insects, nematodes, fungi, bacteria, viruses, chemicals, and mechanical injuries.

Origin:
1350–1400; ME galle < MF < L galla gallnut. See gall 2

Gall

[gawl]
–noun
(Pizi), 1840?–94, leader of the Hunkpapa Sioux: a major chief in the battle of Little Bighorn.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To gall
bile   (bīl)   
n.  
  1. A bitter, alkaline, brownish-yellow or greenish-yellow fluid that is secreted by the liver, stored in the gallbladder, and discharged into the duodenum and aids in the emulsification, digestion, and absorption of fats. Also called gall1.

  2. Bitterness of temper; ill humor; irascibility.

  3. Either of two bodily humors, black bile or yellow bile, in ancient and medieval physiology.


[French, from Latin bīlis.]
gall 1   (gôl)   
n.  
  1. See bile.

    1. Bitterness of feeling; rancor.

    2. Something bitter to endure: the gall of defeat.

  2. Outrageous insolence; effrontery.


[Middle English, from Old English gealla, galla; see ghel-2 in Indo-European roots.]
gall 2   (gôl)   
n.  
  1. A skin sore caused by friction and abrasion: a saddle gall.

    1. Exasperation; vexation.

    2. The cause of such vexation.

v.   galled, gall·ing, galls

v.   tr.
  1. To make (the skin) sore by abrasion; chafe.

  2. To damage or break the surface of by or as if by friction; abrade: the bark of saplings galled by improper staking. See Synonyms at chafe.

  3. To irk or exasperate; vex: It galled me to have to wait outside.

v.   intr.
To become irritated, chafed, or sore.

[Middle English galle, from Old English gealla, possibly from Latin galla, nutgall.]
gall 3   (gôl)   
n.  An abnormal swelling of plant tissue caused by insects, microorganisms, or external injury.

[Middle English galle, from Old French, from Latin galla, nutgall.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

gall  (1)
"bile," O.E. galla (Anglian), gealla (W. Saxon), from P.Gmc. *gallon- (cf. O.N. gall, O.H.G. galla), from PIE base *ghol-/*ghel- "gold, yellow, yellowish-green" (cf. Gk. khole, see cholera; L. fel; perhaps also O.E. geolo "yellow," Gk. khloros). Informal sense of "impudence, boldness" first recorded Amer.Eng. 1882; but meaning "embittered spirit, rancor" is from c.1200.

gall  (2)
"sore spot on a horse," O.E. gealla "painful swelling," from L. galla "gall, lump on plant," originally "oak apple," of uncertain origin. Perhaps from or influenced by gall (1) on notion of "poison-sore." The verb meaning "to make sore by chafing" is from c.1440; fig. sense of "harass, irritate" is from 1573.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 1gall
Pronunciation: 'gol
Function: noun
: BILE;especially : bile obtained from an animal and used in the arts or medicine

Main Entry: 2gall
Function: noun
: a skin sore caused by chronic irritation

Main Entry: 3gall
Function: transitive verb
: to fret and wear away by friction : CHAFE galled the horse's back>

Main Entry: 4gall
Function: noun
: a swelling of plant tissue usually due to fungi or insect parasites and sometimes forming an important source of tannin
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

gall 1 (gôl)
n.
See bile.

gall 2 (gôl)
n.
A skin sore caused by friction and abrasion. v. galled, gall·ing, galls
To become irritated, chafed, or sore.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Bible Dictionary

Gall

(1) Heb. mererah, meaning "bitterness" (Job 16:13); i.e., the bile secreted in the liver. This word is also used of the poison of asps (20:14), and of the vitals, the seat of life (25). (2.) Heb. rosh. In Deut. 32:33 and Job 20:16 it denotes the poison of serpents. In Hos. 10:4 the Hebrew word is rendered "hemlock." The original probably denotes some bitter, poisonous plant, most probably the poppy, which grows up quickly, and is therefore coupled with wormwood (Deut. 29:18; Jer. 9:15; Lam. 3:19). Comp. Jer. 8:14; 23:15, "water of gall," Gesenius, "poppy juice;" others, "water of hemlock," "bitter water." (3.) Gr. chole (Matt. 27:34), the LXX. translation of the Hebrew _rosh_ in Ps. 69; 21, which foretells our Lord's sufferings. The drink offered to our Lord was vinegar (made of light wine rendered acid, the common drink of Roman soldiers) "mingled with gall," or, according to Mark (15:23), "mingled with myrrh;" both expressions meaning the same thing, namely, that the vinegar was made bitter by the infusion of wormwood or some other bitter substance, usually given, according to a merciful custom, as an anodyne to those who were crucified, to render them insensible to pain. Our Lord, knowing this, refuses to drink it. He would take nothing to cloud his faculties or blunt the pain of dying. He chooses to suffer every element of woe in the bitter cup of agony given him by the Father (John 18:11).

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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Encyclopedia

Gall

Hunkpapa Sioux war chief, who was one of the most important military leaders at the Battle of the Little Bighorn (June 25, 1876).

Learn more about Gall with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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