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gest

noun
\ ˈjest How to pronounce gest (audio) \
variants: or geste

Definition of gest

1 : a tale of adventures especially : a romance in verse
2 : adventure, exploit knightly gests
Synonyms Did You Know? More Example Sentences Learn More about gest

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Did You Know?

Let the Queen know of our gests, Antony instructs his men after a hard-won victory on the battlefield in Shakespeare's "Antony and Cleopatra." Great deeds and heroic acts have been the stuff of gests since medieval days; in fact, the word is more often associated with knights and heroes of old than with modern adventurers. We may not be hearing about many 21st century "gests," but we do frequently encounter other relatives of the word. "Gest" traces to Latin gestus, the past participle of the verb "gerere," which means "to wage," "to bear," or "to carry," among other things. That Latin verb gave us stoutly enduring words like "gesture," "ingest," "jest," "register," and "suggest."

Examples of gest in a Sentence

before packing it all in, he was looking for one grand gest that would serve as a fitting finale for his life

First Known Use of gest

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for gest

Middle English gest, geste, jeste — more at jest entry 1

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More from Merriam-Webster on gest

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with gest

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for gest

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about gest

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