GENTILE • DICTIONARY ONE.COM • Definition of Gentile

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/dʒˈɛntˌaɪl/ Listen

noun

Gentile n.

One neither a Jew nor a Christian; a worshiper of false gods; a heathen.

A person who is not Jewish; used in this sense by Jews.

Synonyms: goy(male), shiksa(female). Note: The Hebrews included in the term goyim, or nations, all the tribes of men who had not received the true faith, and were not circumcised. The Christians translated goyim by the L. gentes, and imitated the Jews in giving the name gentiles to all nations who were neither Jews nor Christians. In civil affairs, the denomination was given to all nations who were not Romans. As used by Mormons, the term gentile designates any person who is not a Mormon.

Synonyms: Pagan; heathen. See Pagan.

adjective

Gentile adj.

Belonging to the nations at large, as distinguished from the Jews; ethnic; of pagan or heathen people.

(Gram.) Denoting a race or country; as, a gentile noun or adjective.

See images of 'Gentile'

Etymology of 'Gentile'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Gentile" Quotes from Famous Books

... upon him, and professed his willingness "to spend more, if he might have got any more money for his land that was left;" and in the face of such unquestionable facts—much to the credit certainly of his generosity—he was accused of swindling a Queen whom neither Jew nor Gentile had ever yet been sharp enough to swindle; while he was in reality plunging forward in a course of reckless extravagance in order to obviate the fatal effects of ...

— The Rise of the Dutch Republic, 1555-1566 • John Lothrop Motley

... is an evil will in Prussia. Prussia isn't Paradise. I have been fighting that evil will, in myself and others, all my life. It is the will of the brave Barabbas, and of the militant Nationalists who admired him and crucified the pro-Gentile. But the Prussians must save their own souls. They also have their Shaws and Chestertons and a divine spark in them for these to work on. . . . What we have to do is to make ridiculous the cry of "Vengeance ...

— Gilbert Keith Chesterton • Maisie Ward

... the way—very characteristic of such formalists. Killing an innocent man would not in the least defile them, or unfit for eating the passover, but to go into a house that had not been purged of 'leaven,' and was further unclean as the residence of a Gentile, though he was the governor, that would stain their consciences—a singular scale of magnitude, which saw no sin in condemning Jesus, and great sin in going into Pilate's palace! Perhaps some of our conventional sins are of ...

— Expositions of Holy Scripture: St. John Chaps. XV to XXI • Alexander Maclaren

... he contrasted the pure and affectionate social life of the Christian brotherhood with the licentiousness, cruelty, injustice, oppression, and mutual suspicion of Pagan society. This argument probably struck home in very many 'Gentile' hearts. The old civilisation, with all the brilliant qualities which make many moderns regret its destruction, rested on too narrow a base. The woman and the slave were left out, the woman especially by the ...

— Outspoken Essays • William Ralph Inge

... able to teach Titian very much, for the boy was an inspired artist and needed a good master; so, after a little, the family held a consultation and it was decided that Titian should become the pupil of Gentile Bellini, a very clever artist indeed. There was an interesting story told about this master which made the Vecellis feel that their boy would do well to be under the influence of a kind-hearted man, as well as a genius. It seems ...

— Pictures Every Child Should Know • Dolores Bacon

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