gag 
lent or authoritative suppression of freedom 
of speech. 
Untie his feet ; pull out his gag; he will choke else. 
: Fletcher and Shirley, .Niuht-Wulker, iii. 5. 
Imagine, if you can, his indignant eloquence had Eng* 
land offered to put a gag upon his lips. 
W. Phillips, Speeches, p. 9. 
2. A mouthful which produces nausea and 
retching, or threatens with choking. 
L. has recorded the repugnance of the school to gags, or 
the fat of fresh beef boiled. Lamb, Christ's Hospital. 
3. An apparatus or device for distending the 
jaws, such as is used in various surgical opera- 
tions; hence, anything used to pry or keep 
open the jaws. 
Musicians in England have vsed to put gagges in chil- 
dren's mouthes, that thev might pronounce distinctly. 
Sir T. Wilson, Art of Rhetoric, p. 223. 
The eyelid is set open with the gags of lust and envy. 
Rev. T. Adatns, Works, I. 73. 
4. In coal-mining, a chip of wood in a sinking 
pit-bottom or sump. Gresley. [Eng.] 5. An 
interpolation introduced by an actor into his 
part, whether in accordance with custom or 
with his own fancy. [Stage slang.] 
You see the performances consisted all of gag. I don't 
suppose anybody knows what the words are in the piece. 
Mayhew. 
I have heard some very passable /"./ at the Marionette, 
but the real commedia a braccio no longer exists, and Its 
familiar and invariable characters perform written plays. 
Uowells, Venetian Life, v. 
6. A joke, especially a practical joke ; a farce ; 
a hoax. [Slang.] 
gagatet, [ME. gagate, also as I .. gagates, an 
agate : see agate 2 /] Agate. Fuller. 
gage 1 (gaj), . [< ME. gage, a gage (in chal- 
lenge), < OF. gage, F.gage, a gage, pawn, pledge, 
security, pi. gages, wages, = Pr. gatge, gatgne, 
gaje = Sp. gaje = Pg. gage = It. gaggio, a gage, 
pledge, wage, reward, < ML. vadium, wadium 
(also gagium, after OF.), a pledge, < Goth, wadi 
= OHG. tceti, wetti, MHG. G. wette = AS. wedd, 
E. wed, a pledge, = L. vas (vad-), a surety, bail 
(a person), whence vadimoniuni, a promise se- 
cured by bail, security, recognizance. See wage, 
n., a doublet of gage 1 , and teed, n., the native E. 
form.] 1. A pledge or pawn ; a movable chat- 
tel laid down or given as security for the per- 
formance of some act or the fulfilment of some 
condition. 
And if there by any man wyll saye (except your per- 
sone) that I wold any thiuge otherwise than well to you 
or to your people, here is my guage to the contrarie. 
Berners, tr. of Froissart's Chron., II. xv. 
Considering also with howe many benefltes and speciall 
gages of loue we are bound both to God and Christ. 
J. Udall, On Rom. viii. 
The sheriff is commanded to attach him, by taking gage : 
that is, certain of his goods, which he shall forfeit if he 
doth not appear. Blackstone, Com., III. xix. 
2. The act of pledging, or the state of being 
pledged; pawn; secunty. 
His credite he did often leave 
In gage for his gay Masters hopelesse dett. 
Spenser, Mother Hub. Tale, 1. 865. 
I was fain to borrow these spurs ; I have left my gown in 
gage for them. 
B. Jonson, Every Man out of his Humour, ii. 2. 
3. Anything thrown down as a token of chal- 
lenge to combat; hence, challenge. Formerly it 
was customary for the challenger to cast on the ground 
some article, most commonly a glove or gauntlet, which 
was taken up by the accepter of the challenge. See gaunt- 
let. 
Pale trembling coward, there I throw my gage, 
Disclaiming here the kindred of the king. 
Shak., Rich. II., I. 1. 
There take my gage ; behold, I offer it 
To him that tir.-t accused him in this cause. 
Fairfax, tr. of Tasso's Godfrey of Boulogne, v. 58. 
To lay to gaget, to leave in pawn. Nares. 
For learned Collin lays his pipes to gage, 
And is to fayrie gone a pilgrimage. 
Drayton, Shepherd's Garland. 
gage 1 (gaj), v. t. ; pret. and pp. gaged, ppr. gag- 
ing. [< OF. gager, F. gager = Pr. gatgar, gat- 
jar, gage, pledge, < ML. wadiare, pledge ; from 
the noun : see gage 1 , n. Of. engage, disgage.] 1 . 
To pledge, pawn, or stake ; give or deposit as 
a gage or security ; wage or wager. [Archaic.] 
Sir John Philpot, cittizen of London, deserues great 
commendacions, who w l his own money released the ar- 
mour which the souldiours had gaged for their victualls, 
more than a thousand in number. 
Stow, Rich. II., an. 1380. 
Against the which, a moiety competent 
Was gaged by our king. Shak., Hamlet, 1. 1. 
O, do not go : this feast, I'll gage my life, 
Is but a plot to train you to your ruin. 
Ford, 'Tis Pity, v. 3. 
2+. To bind by pledge, caution, or security ; en- 
gage. 
2428 
But my chief care 
Is to come fairly off from the great debts 
W herein my time, something too prodigal, 
Hath left me ga-.nl. Shak.. M. of V., i. 1. 
gage 2 , gauge (gaj), t: t. ; pret. and pp. gaged, 
gauged, ppr. gaging, gauging. [The pron. and 
the reg. former usage require the spelling gage; 
< ME. gagen, also gawgyn, < OF. ganger, gaugir, 
later jauger, F. jauger, gage, measure; ML. 
"gaugiare (in deriv. gaugiator, a gager) ; cf. 
ML. gaugatum, the gaging of a wine-cask, 
gaugettum, a fee paid for gaging, a gage (see 
gage 2 , n.). Origin uncertain ; the yili.jalngium. 
the right of gaging wine-casks, compared with 
jalea, a gallon, F. jale, a bowl, suggests a con- 
nection with gallon and gill*. Various other 
conjectural derivations are given; e. g., < L. 
(ML.) qualificare: see qualify.] 1. To mea- 
sure the content or capacity of, as a vessel; 
more generally, to ascertain by test or measure- 
ment the capacity, dimensions, proportions, 
quantity, amount, or force of; measure or as- 
certain by measurement: as, to gage a barrel or 
other receptacle (see gaging) ; to gage the pres- 
sure of steam, or the force of the wind ; to gage 
a stone for cutting it to the proper size. 
He gauged ye depnesse of the dyche with a speare. 
Berners, tr. of Froissart's Chron., I. cclxix. 
Lauds he could measure, terms and tides presage, 
And e'en the story ran that he could gauge. 
Goldsmith, Des. VU., 1. 210 
No eye like his to value horse or cow, 
Or gauge the contents of a stack or mow. 
Lowell, Fitz Adam's Story. 
2. To measure in respect to capability, power, 
character, or behavior ; take cognizance of the 
capacity, capability, or power of; appraise; 
estimate : as, to gage a person's character very 
accurately. 
Nay, but I bar to-night ; you shall not gage me 
By what we do to-night. Shak., M. of V., it 2. 
Gaging his heroes by each other. /'"/. Homer's Battles. 
Medical science has never gauged never, perhaps, 
enough set itself to gauge the intimate connection be- 
tween moral fault and disease. 
M. Arnold, Literature and Dogma, v. 
It is quite possible to gauge tendencies and to interpret 
them correctly. W. L. Davidson, Mind, XIII. 91. 
3. In needlework, especially dressmaking, to 
pucker in parallel rows by means of gathering- 
threads, either for ornament or to hold the mate- 
rial firmly in place. 
gage 2 , gauge (gaj), n. [< OF. gauge, jauge, F. 
jauge, a gage, gaging-rod ; ML. OOUffM, gauja, 
gagga, the standard measure of a wine-cask. 
See gage 2 , t'.] 1. A standard of measure; an 
instrument for determining the dimensions, ca- 
pacity, quantity, force, etc., of anything; hence, 
any standard of comparison or estimation; 
measure in general : as, a gage for the thickness 
of wires ; to take the gage of a man's ability. 
Timothy . . . had prepared a gauge by which they [ser- 
vants] were to be measured. Arbuthnot, John Bull. 
The gauge of a pensioner's disability is always his fit- 
ness to do manual labor. The Century, XXVIII. 430. 
Specifically (a) In the air-pump, an instrument of vari- 
ous forms for indicating the degree of exhaustion in the 
receiver. The kind most commonly used is the siphon- 
gage (which see, below). (6) In joinery, an instrument for 
striking a line on a board, etc., parallel to its edge, consist- 
ing of a square rod with a marker near its end and an ad- 
justable sliding piece for a guide, (c) In printing, a mea- 
sure of the length of a page, or a graduated strip of wood, 
metal, or cardboard for determining the number of lines 
of type ef a certain size in a given space, (d) In type- 
founding, a piece of hard wood or polished steel, various- 
ly notched, used to adjust the dimensions, slopes, etc., of 
the various sorts of letters. () Sameas<7rt;>, 7. (See also 
caliber-gage, center-gage, gaging-rod, pressure-gage, rain- 
gage, steam-gage, wind-gage, and phrases below.) 
2. A standard or determinate dimension, quan- 
tity, or amount; a fixed or standard measure- 
ment, (a) In railroad c&nxtruction. the width or dis- 
tance between the rails : as, standard, broad, or narrow 
gage. The standard gage is 4 feet 84 inches. A greater 
distance between the rails constitutes a broad gage, a less 
distance a narrow gage. (6) In building, the length of a 
slate or tile below the lap. (c) In plastering: (l)Thequan- 
tity of plaster of Paris used with common plaster to accel- 
erate its setting. (2) The composition of plaster of Paris 
and other materials used in finishing plastered ceilings, 
for moldings, etc. (<f) In lace-weaving, the fineness of the 
lace. It depends upon the number of slits or openings in 
the combs, and consequently upon the number of bobbins 
in an inch of the double tier, (e) The diameter or size of 
the bore of a shot-gun. 
3. Naut. : (a) The depth to which a vessel sinks 
in the water. (6) The position of a ship with 
reference to another vessel and to the wind. 
When to the windward she is said to have the 
weather-gage; when to the leeward, the lee-gage. 
4. A quart pot. Davies. [Cant.] 
I bowse no lage, but a whole gage 
Of this I bowse to you. 
Brome, Jovial Crew, ii. 
Bisecting Gage. 
gage-concussion 
Bisecting gage, a gage formed by a bar carrying two 
heads or cheeks connected by two arms of equal length, 
forming;! to^K' joint, at which 
a pencil or srril>r-a\vl is placed. 
The pencil or awl is thus at 
equal distances from the cheeks 
at whatever gage they may be 
set. Catheter-gage. *ee 
catheter. Centering-gage, a 
gage for fixing the middle point 
of an axle. Car-Builder's Diet. 
Difference-gage, a gam- adapt- 
ed for testing the slight dif- 
ference of diameter commonly 
required between parts which 
are to be fitted into each other, 
as the slight excess of diameter in a bearing in which an 
axle is to revolve, or the slight shortness of diameter in a 
socket into which a shaft is to be forced so as to fit tightly. 
External gage, a mule or plug gage. Seeplug-atid-col- 
lar gage. Female gage. Same as internal gage. Flat 
gage, a guge of which the two sides are made in true paral- 
lel planes, used for testing the correctness of the notches 
in wire gages. Floating gage, a gage indicating the 
height of the surface of a liquid by the agency of a float 
which rises and falls with the liquid. Hydraulic gage. 
See hydraulic. Internal gage, a female or collar gage. 
See plu<i-and-cullar gage, Male gage. Same as external 
gage. Mercurial gage, a pressure-gage in which a col- 
umn of mercury is used to indicate the pressure ; a mercu- 
rial level. Plug-and-COllar gage, a pair of contact-mea- 
suring gages, external and internal, accurately adjusted to 
each other, and used respectively for testing internal and 
external diameters in cylindrical work. Router gage. 
See router, Siphon-gage, a short beut tube, one branch 
of which is connectedwith the receiver, the other being 
closed at the top and filled with mercury when the process 
begins. As the pressure diminishes the mercury falls, and 
the degree of exhaustion is measured by the difference in 
its height in the two branches. This would become zero 
if a perfect vacuum were produced. Star-gage, (a) A 
count of stars visible in a powerful telescope, within a cer- 
tain area, in a given part of the heavens. (6) An instru- 
ment for measuring the diameter of the bore of a cannon 
at any part of its length. It consists of a graduated brass 
lulu having at one end a head from which radiate two 
fixed and two movable steel points. A slider in the gradu- 
ated tube pushes outward the movable points as may be 
necessary. Stepped gage, a 
form of male or plug gage 
in which a series of external 
gages are combined, each pro- 
jecting like a step beyond that 
next in front of it. V-gage, 
stepped Gage. a ' ornl of wire-gage in which 
the notches are tapering or V- 
shaped, the sides of the notches being graduated. Such 
gages are sometimes made with but a single notch of large 
size. Wire-gage, a gage for measuring the thickness of 
wire and sheet-metal. It 
is usually a plate of steel 
having round the edge a 
series of notches of stan- 
dard opening. 
gage 3 (gaj), n. [From 
a personal name : see 
the extract.] A name 
given to several va- 
rieties of plum: as, 
the green gage, gold- 
en gage , transparent 
gage, etc. 
On Plums. Mem. I was 
on a visit to Sir William 
Gage at Hengrave near Bury ; he was then near 70. He 
told me that ... in compliment to him the Plum was 
called the Green Gage; this was about the year 1725. 
Cvllinson, Hortus Collinsonianus, p. 60. 
Gagea (ga'je-a), . [NL., named after Sir 
Thomas Gage, anEnglish botanist (1780-1820).] 
A genus of small bulbous liliaceous plants, of 
about 20 species, natives of Europe and central 
Asia. They have linear radical leaves, and a scape bear- 
ing an umbel or a corymb of greenish-yellow flowers. The 
yellow star-of-Bethlehem, G. luie.a, is found in England. 
gageable, gaugeable (ga'ja-bl), a. [< gage 2 
+ -able.] Capable of being gaged or mea- 
sured. 
gage-bar (gaj'bar), n. 1 . One of the two trans- 
verse bars which sustain the gage-blocks in a 
marble-sawing machine. 2. An adjustable 
gage used to determine the depth of the kerf 
in sawing. 
gage-block (gai'blok), n. In marble-cutting, an 
iron block used to adjust the saws. Gage-blocks 
are of the exact thickness of the marble slabs required, are 
placed alternately with the saw-blades, and are sustained 
between two transverse gage-bars. 
gage-box (gaj'boks), . A box of size to con- 
tain a fixed quantity of any material, used in 
various processes of manufacture, etc. ; specifi- 
cally, a box just large enough to hold the num- 
ber 'of shingles required for a bunch. 
gage-COCk (gaj'kok), n. One of the stop-cocks 
in the boiler of a steam-engine, used to indicate 
the depth of the water. 
gage-concussion (gaj'kon-kush"on), n. The 
impacts of the flanges of railroad-vehicles 
against the rails, by which they are enabled to 
guide the wheels. The extent of such concussion de- 
pends upon the gage-play and other obscure causes, but 
is always present at high speed. 
Wire-gage. 
