Under this interpretation, the plant name shares an origin with the South African term, both ultimately derived from kafir, the Arabic word for "non-believer".


to "electrician in charge of lighting on a film set."

© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. It may seem like fun and games but this quiz that uses vocab from popular stories will determine how much you know. Who coulde have thoughte that those ripe Grapes whereof dear There were deeper currents than any he had seen at Then, nudged by his daughter, who had grown very pale, All Of These Words Are Offensive (But Only Sometimes)“Affect” vs. “Effect”: Use The Correct Word Every TimeAbsentee Ballot vs. Mail-In Ballot: Is There A Difference?“Epidemic” vs. “Pandemic” vs. “Endemic”: What Do These Terms Mean?It’d be a real faux pas to miss this quiz on the words from August 3–9, 2020!to waver in mind or opinion; be indecisive or irresolute.Dictionary.com Unabridged
But the word gaffer is far older than the movie industry. Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!Learn a new word every day. Delivered to your inbox!Houston Street, lined with shops selling sunglasses one week or Studios have halted productions around the world in response to the coronavirus, putting actors, writers, truck drivers, sound engineers and The company has a growing inventory — a full line of regular bras and underwear, along with nipple pasties and a mystifyingly flexible hoisting breast tape inspired by Cameras, monitors, lights and a rainbow’s worth of If Potter is able to get results along with Brighton’s easy-on-the-eye football, the Seagulls’ supporters will be in for an exciting season under their new Gaffer definition: People use gaffer to refer to the person in charge of the workers at a place of work such... | Meaning, pronunciation, translations and examples Later it was used as a generic noun for any elderly man, and then it picked up the sense "foreman" (still See more. The first recorded use of gaffer dates from the 16th century, when it was used as a title of respect for an older gentleman. In its earliest use in the 16th century, the word was used as a title of respect for an older gentleman, but later came to simply refer to an old man.

Gaffer (boss), a British colloquial term for "boss", "foreman" or "old man" Gaffer (filmmaking) , the head of the electrical/lighting department Gaffer, a …

Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012the chief electrician on the set of a movie or television show.a foreman or overseer in charge of a group of physical laborers: a master glassblower responsible for shaping glassware.an old man, esp one living in the country: often used affectionately or patronizingly Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition In fact, the word predates Edison's patent for the first incandescent lightbulb by three centuries. Or the Modern English word might derive from British slang verb gaff "to cheat, trick" (1893); or gaff "criticism" (1896), from Scottish dialect sense of "loud, rude talk" (see gaff (n.2)). Late 16th century (in gaffer (sense 3 of the noun)): probably a contraction of godfather; compare with gammer. These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'gaffer.' Gaffer definition, the chief electrician on the set of a movie or television show. Entries related to gaffe gaffer – 1580s, "elderly rustic," apparently a contraction of godfather; originally "old man," it was applied from 1841 to foremen and supervisors, which sense carried over 20c. gaffer | Origin and meaning of gaffer by Online Etymology Dictionary GAFFER Meaning: "elderly rustic," apparently (based on continental analogies) a contraction of godfather (compare… See definitions of gaffer.