gell

English

Etymology 1

Noun

gell (plural gells)

1. Pronunciation spelling of girl.
   • 1861, George Eliot, “Chapter 14”, in Silas Marner:

     Well, mayhap that'll do, as it's a little gell, for they're easier persuaded to sit i' one place nor the lads.

   • 1906, Edith Nesbit, The Railway Children, Chapter 4: "The engine-burglar":

     "You're a naughty little gell, that's what you are," said the fireman, and the engine-driver said:--

     "Daring little piece, I call her," but they made her sit down on an iron seat in the cab and told her to stop crying and tell them what she meant by it.

Etymology 2

Noun

gell (plural gells)

1. Alternative form of gill (“a leech”)

Breton

Noun

gell

1. Soft mutation of kell.

Adjective

gell

1. brown

See also

Cornish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡɛlː/

Etymology 1

From Proto-Celtic *gello- (“yellow”) or *gelo- (“white”) (compare Middle Welsh gell (“yellow”), Old Irish gel (“white, fair, shining”), whence Irish geal (“white, bright”)), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰelh₃- (“gleam, yellow”) (compare English yellow, Ancient Greek χλωρός (khlōrós, “light green”), Latin helvus (“dull yellow”), Lithuanian žalias (“green”), Persian زر (zar, “yellow”), Sanskrit हरि (hari, “greenish-yellow”), Welsh gwelw (“pale”))).

Adjective

gell

1. light brown

Related terms

• gorm (“dark brown”)

See also

Etymology 2

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Noun

gell

1. Soft mutation of kell.

Mutation

German

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡɛl/

• Audio

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛl

Etymology 1

From gellen.

Adjective

gell (strong nominative masculine singular geller, comparative geller, superlative am gellsten)

1. (literary) shrill

Declension

Etymology 2

Clipping of gelt es, from gelten (“to be valid”).

Particle

gell

1. (colloquial, regional, Southern Germany, Switzerland, Austria, South Tyrol, Alsace) right?; is it?; is it not?

   Synonyms: (Chiefly Northwestern Germany) ne, oder, (Eastern Germany) wa; see also Thesaurus:nicht wahr

   Wir gehen, gell? ― We’re going, aren’t we?

   Du verstehst mich, gell? ― You understand me, right?

Alternative forms

• gelle, gelt

Further reading

• “gell (adjective)” in Duden online
• “gell (interjection)” in Duden online
• “gell” in Digitales Wörterbuch der deutschen Sprache

Icelandic

Verb

gell (strong)

1. first-person singular present indicative of gjalla

Old Irish

Etymology

From Proto-Celtic *geldom (“pledge”), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *gʰeldʰ- (compare Proto-Germanic *geldaną (“to pay”)).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡʲel͈/

Noun

gell n

1. pledge, surety
2. hostage
3. stake, wager

Inflection

Derived terms

• gellach
• gellaid
• forcell

Descendants

• Middle Irish: gell
  • Irish: geall
  • Scottish Gaelic: geall
• ⇒ Middle Irish: gillán

Mutation

Further reading

• G. Toner, M. Ní Mhaonaigh, S. Arbuthnot, D. Wodtko, M.-L. Theuerkauf, editors (2019), “gell”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language

Welsh

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɡɛɬ/

Etymology 1

From Latin cella

Noun

gell

1. Soft mutation of cell.

Etymology 2

From Proto-Celtic *gello- (“yellow”) or *gelo- (“white”) (compare Middle Welsh gell (“yellow”), Old Irish gel (“white, fair, shining”), whence Irish geal (“white, bright”)), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰelh₃- (“gleam, yellow”) (compare English yellow, Ancient Greek χλωρός (khlōrós, “light green”), Latin helvus (“dull yellow”), Lithuanian žalias (“green”), Persian زر (zar, “yellow”), Sanskrit हरि (hari, “greenish-yellow”), Welsh gwelw (“pale”))).

Adjective

gell (feminine singular gell, plural gell, equative gelled, comparative gellach, superlative gellaf)

1. bay (colour)

Derived terms

• gellgi (“a Welsh staghound”)

Mutation

Further reading

• R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “gell”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies