see also: Gain
Pronunciation Etymology 1
From Middle English gayn, gain, gein ("profit, advantage"), from Old Norse gagn, from Proto-Germanic *gagną, *gaganą ("gain, profit", literally "return"), from Proto-Germanic *gagana, a reduplication of Proto-Germanic *ga-, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm.
Cognate with Icelandic gagn, Swedish gagn, Danish gavn, Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐌲𐌴𐌹𐌲𐌰𐌽, Old Norse gegn, dialectal Swedish gen, Latin cum; see gain-, again, against. Compare also Middle English gaynen, geinen ("to be of use, profit, avail"), Icelandic - and Swedish gagna, Danish gavne.
The Middle English word was reinforced by Middle French gain, from Old French gaaing, gaaigne, gaigne, a noun derivative of gaaignier, gaigner ("to till, earn, win"), from Frankish *waiþanōn, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *waiþiz, *waiþō, *waiþijō ("pasture, field, hunting ground"); compare Old High German weidōn, weidanōn ("to hunt, forage for food") (Modern German Weide), Old Norse veiða, Old English wǣþan.
Verbgain (gains, present participle gaining; simple past and past participle gained)
- (transitive) To acquire possession of.
- Looks like you’ve gained a new friend.
- (intransitive) To have or receive advantage or profit; to acquire gain; to grow rich; to advance in interest, health, or happiness; to make progress.
- The sick man gains daily.
- (transitive, dated) To come off winner or victor in; to be successful in; to obtain by competition.
- to gain a battle; to gain a case at law
- (transitive) To increase.
- 1883, Howard Pyle, chapter V, in The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood […], New York, N.Y.: […] Charles Scribner's Sons […], →OCLC ↗:
- Then they had bouts of wrestling and of cudgel play, so that every day they gained in skill and strength.
- (intransitive, often with on) To grow more likely to catch or overtake someone.
- to gain ground
- I’m gaining (on you).
- (transitive) To reach.
- to gain the top of a mountain
- 1908, Jack London, The Iron Heel, New York: The Macmillan Company:
- Ernest laughed harshly and savagely when he had gained the street.
- To draw into any interest or party; to win to one’s side; to conciliate.
- 1697, Virgil, translated by John Dryden, The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC ↗:
- to gratify the queen, and gain the court
- (intransitive) To put on weight.
- I’ve been gaining.
- (of a clock or watch) To run fast.
infinitive | (to) gain | ||
---|---|---|---|
present tense | past tense | ||
1st-person singular | gain | gained, gain'd† | |
2nd-person singular | gain, gainest† | gained, gainedst†, gain'd† | |
3rd-person singular | gains, gaineth† | gained, gain'd† | |
plural | gain | ||
subjunctive | gain | gained, gain'd† | |
imperative | gain | — | |
participles | gaining | gained, gain'd† |
†Archaic or obsolete.
- French: gagner
- German: gewinnen
- Italian: guadagnare, acquisire
- Portuguese: ganhar
- Russian: получа́ть
- Spanish: ganar
- Italian: guadagnare, aumentare, mettere su peso
- Spanish: ganar
gain
- The act of gaining; acquisition.
- c. 1587–1588, [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC ↗; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire, London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act II, scene ii ↗:
- All running headlong after greedie ſpoiles:
And more regarding gaine than victorie:
- 1855, Alfred Tennyson, Maude:
- the lust of gain, in the spirit of Cain
- The thing or things gained.
- c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC ↗, [Act IV, scene i]:
- Everyone shall share in the gains.
- (electronics) The factor by which a signal is multiplied.
- 1987, John Borwick, Sound recording practice, page 238:
- There follows the high and low-frequency replay equalization, which normally involves two adjustments with a further control allowing the replay gain to be set.
- French: gain
- German: Gewinnen, Zugewinnen
- Italian: guadagno, profitto
- Portuguese: ganho
- Russian: получе́ние
- Spanish: ganancia
- French: gain
- German: Gewinn, Zugewinn, Ertrag, Ausbeute
- Italian: lucro, guadagno, profitto
- Portuguese: ganho
- Russian: при́быль
- Spanish: ganancia
- German: Verstärkung
- Italian: guadagno
- Russian: усиле́ние
- Spanish: ganancia
From dialectal English gen, gin, short for again, agen ("against"); also Middle English gain, gayn, gein, ȝæn ("against"), from Old English gēan, geġn ("against").
Preposition- (obsolete) Against.
From Middle English gayn, gein, geyn ("straight, direct, short, fit, good"), from Old Norse gegn, from gegn ("opposite, against") (whence gagna ("to go against, meet, suit, be meet")); see below at gain.
Adjectivegain
- (obsolete or dialectal) Straight, direct; near; short.
- the gainest way
- (obsolete or dialectal) Suitable; convenient; ready.
- (dialectal) Easy; tolerable; handy, dexterous.
- (dialectal) Honest; respectable; moderate; cheap.
gain
- (obsolete or dialectal) Straightly; quickly; by the nearest way or means.
- (dialectal) Suitably; conveniently; dexterously; moderately.
- (dialectal) Tolerably; fairly.
- gain quiet ― fairly/pretty quiet
Compare Welsh gan.
Noungain (plural gains)
- (architecture) A square or bevelled notch cut out of a girder, binding joist, or other timber which supports a floor beam, so as to receive the end of the floor beam.
Gain
Etymology
- As an English and Scottish surname of nrf - origin, from the name Engaine, based on Old French engaigne, from Latin ingenium.
- As a French - surname, from the verb gagner.
This text is extracted from the Wiktionary and it is available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license | Terms and conditions | Privacy policy 0.003
