• enPR: gān, IPA: /ɡeɪn/

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.

gain (gains, present participle gaining; simple past and past participle gained)

1. (transitive) To acquire possession of.

   Looks like you’ve gained a new friend.

   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC ↗, Matthew 16:26 ↗:

     What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

   • 1850, [Alfred, Lord Tennyson], In Memoriam, London: Edward Moxon, […], →OCLC ↗, Canto XXI, page 35 ↗:

     Another answers, ‘Let him be,
     ⁠He loves to make parade of pain,
     ⁠That with his piping he may gain
     The praise that comes to constancy.’

2. (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.

   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC ↗, Ezekiel 22:12 ↗:

     Thou hast greedily gained of thy neighbours by extortion.

3. (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

4. (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.

5. (intransitive, often with on) To grow more likely to catch or overtake someone.

   to gain ground

   I’m gaining (on you).

6. (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.

7. To draw into any interest or party; to win to one’s side; to conciliate.
   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC ↗, Matthew 18:15 ↗:

     If he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.

   • 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

8. (intransitive) To put on weight.

   I’ve been gaining.

9. (of a clock or watch) To run fast.

• French: gagner
• German: gewinnen
• Italian: guadagnare, acquisire
• Portuguese: ganhar
• Russian: получа́ть
• Spanish: ganar

• Italian: guadagnare, aumentare, mettere su peso
• Spanish: ganar

gain

1. 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

2. 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.

3. (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.

• loss

• 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").

1. (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.

gain

1. (obsolete or dialectal) Straight, direct; near; short.

   the gainest way

2. (obsolete or dialectal) Suitable; convenient; ready.
3. (dialectal) Easy; tolerable; handy, dexterous.
4. (dialectal) Honest; respectable; moderate; cheap.

gain

1. (obsolete or dialectal) Straightly; quickly; by the nearest way or means.
2. (dialectal) Suitably; conveniently; dexterously; moderately.
3. (dialectal) Tolerably; fairly.

   gain quiet ― fairly/pretty quiet

Compare Welsh gan.

gain (plural gains)

1. (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.

• 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.

1. Surname.