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gentile

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gen⋅tile

  [jen-tahyl]
Use gentile in a Sentence
–adjective (sometimes initial capital letter)
1. of or pertaining to any people not Jewish.
2. Christian, as distinguished from Jewish.
3. Mormon Church. not Mormon.
4. heathen or pagan.
5. (of a linguistic expression) expressing nationality or local origins.
6. of or pertaining to a tribe, clan, people, nation, etc.
–noun
7. a person who is not Jewish, esp. a Christian.
8. (among Mormons) a person who is not a Mormon.
9. a heathen or pagan.
Origin:
1350–1400; ME < L gentīlis, equiv. to gent-, s. of gēns gens + -īlis -ile
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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gen·tile   (jěn'tīl')   
n.   often Gentile

  1. A person who is not Jewish.

  2. Archaic A pagan or heathen.

  3. Mormon Church A non-Mormon.

adj.  

  1. often Gentile Of or relating to a Gentile.

  2. Of or relating to a gens, tribe, or people.

  3. Grammar Expressing national or local origins.


[Middle English gentil, from Late Latin gentīlis, pagan, from Latin, of the same clan; see gentle.]
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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Cultural Dictionary

Gentile

Someone who is not a Jew. “The nations” is the common expression in the Old Testament for non-Jews as a group, and a Gentile is a person belonging to “the nations.”

Note: Both the Old Testament and the New Testament tell of numerous conflicts between Jews and Gentiles. Figuratively, a “gentile” is any nonbeliever.
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

gentile 
1160, from L.L. gentilis "foreign, heathen, pagan," from L. gentilis "person belonging to the same family, fellow countryman," from gentilis (adj.) "of the same family or clan," from gens (gen. gentis) "race, clan" (see gentle). Used in Vulgate to translate Gk. ethnikos, from ta ethne "the nations," which translated Heb. ha goyim "the (non-Jewish) nations." Used during 14c. to mean both "one who is not a Christian" and "one who is not a Jew."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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