gametophyte 
gametophyte (gam'e-to-Gt), n. [< Gr. 
a wife, -ja/iiTtK, a husband (see gamete), + fymbv, 
a plant.] In thallophytes, the sexual form of 
the plant, as distinguished from the sporo- 
phyte, or asexual form. 
gamey, a. A less correct spelling of ganj. 
gamic (gani'ik), a, and n. [< Gr. ya/w/coc, of or 
for marriage, < yo/uof, marriage.] I. a. Having 
a sexual character ; sexual : opposed to agamic : 
said specifically of an ovum. 
In each ovarium, along with the rudiments of agamic 
eggs, or eggs which, if developed, produce young by true 
parthenogenesis, there usually, if not always, exists the 
rudiment of an ephippial egg; which, from sundry evi- 
dences, is inferred to be a sexual or gamic egg. 
H. Spencer. 
Gamic edges, corresponding edges of an antipolar poly- 
hedron. If to every summit corresponds a face formed 
by the same number of edges, then to every edge connect- 
ing two summits corresponds a gamic edge, separating 
the two corresponding faces. 
II. . A gamic edge. 
gamin (gam'in, F. pron. ga-man'), n. [P., of 
obscure origin.] A neglected and precocious- 
ly knowing street-boy; an unruly boy run- 
ning about at his own will. Also called street 
Arab. 
The word gamin was printed for the first time, and 
passed from the populace into literature, in 1834. It made 
its first appearance in a work called Claude Oueux : the 
scandal was great, but the word has remained. . . . The 
gamin of Paris at the present day, like the Greeculus of 
Koine in former time, is the youthful people with the 
wrinkle of the old world on its forehead. 
Victor Hugo, Les Miserables (trans.). 
It would seem as if there were a gamin element in the 
character of Irishmen. Edinburgh Ren., CLXIII. 460. 
gaming (ga'ming), n. [Verbal n. of game 1 , v.] 
Playing for stakes ; gambling. In law: (a) An 
agreement between two or more to risk money on a con- 
test or chance of any kind where one must be a loser and 
the other a gainer. Caruthern, J. (6) More specifically, 
any sport or play carried on by two or more persons, de- 
pending on skill, chance, or the occurrence of an unknown 
future event, on the result of which some valuable 
thing is, without other consideration, to be transferred 
from the one to the other, or which in its course or con- 
sequences involves some other thing demoralizing or 1111 
lawful. Bixhop. 
When he is drunk, asleep, or in his rage ; . . . 
At gaming, swearing ; or about some act 
That has no relish of salvation in i 
Shak., Hamlet, iii. 3. 
In the common usage of the two terms "betting" and 
"gaming," they may sometimes be employed interchange- 
ably, but not always. If two persons play at cards for 
money, they are said to be gambling or gaming ; but they 
are gambling because they lay a wager or make a bet on 
the result of the game, ami therefore to say they are bet- 
ting is equally appropriate. If two persons lay a wager 
upon the result of a pending election, it will be said that 
they are betting, but not that they are gaining. There is 
no gaming in which the element of the wager is wanting. 
but there is betting which the term naming is not com- 
monly made to embrace. Justice T. M. Cooley. 
gaming-house (ga'ming-hous), . A house 
where gaming is practised ; a gambling-house ; 
a hell. Common gaming-house. See common. 
gaming-room (ga'ming-rom), n. A room kept 
for the purpose of gaming or gambling. 
It being found, then, that the pooling schemes contem- 
plate gaming, it remains to see whether the room which 
is kept for the purposes of the schemes Is to be held a 
gaming-room. People vs. Weitho/, 51 Mich., p. 203. 
gaming-table (ga'ming-ta'bl), n. A table used 
or especially adapted for use in gaming or gam- 
bling. 
He's done him to a gamin' table. 
Heir qf Linne (Child's Ballads, VIII. 76). 
A jest calculated to spread at a gaming table may be re- 
ceived with a perfect neutrality of face, should it happen 
to drop in a mackerel boat. Ooldtmith, The Bee, No. 1. 
gamla (gam'la), n. Same as gomlah. 
gamma (gam'a), . [L. gamma, < Gr. ydft/m, of 
Phenician origin, Heb. gimel: see G, and of. 
digamma. In def. 3, ME. gamme, < OF. gamme, 
game = Sp. gama = Pg. It. gamma = Icel. gam- 
mi, < ML. gamma, the gamut: see (/amut.] 1. 
The third' letter of the Greek alphabet, T, y, 
represented historically by c, phonetically by 
g, in the Roman and English alphabet. 2. In 
entom., a common European noctuid moth of 
the family Plnsiid<e, Plusia gamma. Also called 
silver -Y and gamma-moth, from the shape of a 
silvery spot on the wing, like that of Greek 
gamma, )-, or English Y. The larva feeds on 
various low plants. 3. Same as gamut Gam- 
ma function, a function so called because usually writ- 
ten Tx where x is the variable, and most clearly defined 
by the equation 
Lim ' * = - 
2448 
ecclesiastical vestments resembling the Greek 
capital gamma ( I") in shape. Usually in the plural, 
four gammas in different positions being ,, placed back 
to back so as to form a voided Greek cross, =; p*. This orna- 
ment was formerly frequent on certain ' ' vestments 
of Greek prelates, and was also used on vestments in the 
Western Church. Also gamniatwn. 
gamma-moth (gam'a-mdth), . Same as gum- 
ma, 2. 
gainmarid (gam'a-rid), n. An amphipod of the 
family Gammaridfe. 
Gammaridse (ga-mar'i-de), n.pl. [NL., < Gam- 
miinix + -idee.] A large family of genuine 
amphipods, containing numerous aquatic and 
mostly marine forms, with large antennulee 
frequently branched, the second ramus longer 
than the shaft of the antennae, and broad coxal 
plates of the four anterior legs. These beach- 
fleas move by swimming rather than spring- 
ing. 
gammarolite (ga-mar'o-lit), . [< NL. Gam- 
marolitkes (Schlotheim, 1832), < L. gammarus, 
a kind of lobster, + Gr. /.iffof, a stone.] A fos- 
sil crawfish or some other crustacean having 
a certain resemblance to Gammarus. 
Gammarus (gam'a-rus), . [NL. (Fabricius), 
< L. gammarus, more correctly cammarus, < Gr. 
Kd/ifiapof, often written na/jfiopof, a kind of lob- 
ster.] The typical genus of amphipods of the 
gammadion (ga-m'di-on), n.; pi. gammadia 
(-&) [MGr. yafift&Siav, var. of yauftartov, dim. of 
Gr. ydu.ua, gamma: see</aija.] An ornament on 
Fresh-water Shrimp (Gaittmartts fultx], about five tunes natural 
size. 
family Gammarida;. G. pulex is a form known 
as the fresh-water shrimp, though not a shrimp 
in a proper sense. 
gammation (ga-ma'ti-on), n. Same as gamma- 
dion. E. D. 
gammet, Same as gamma, 3. 
gammer (gam'er), n. [A further contr. of gram- 
mer, a dial, contr. of grandmother. Cf. gaffer*, 
similarly contracted from grandfather."] An 
old woman : the correlative of gaffer. 
And with them came 
Old <ia miner Gurton, a right pleasant dame 
As the best of them. Drayton, The Moon-Calf. 
gammingt, . [Appar. a var. of jamming, ver- 
bal n. of jam 1 , v. Cf. gam, .] A jamming or 
clogging. 
He was not strangled, but by the gamming of the chaine, 
which could not slip close to his necke, he hanged in great 
torments under the jawes. John Taylor, Works (1630). 
gammon 1 (gam'on), n. [Better spelled gam- 
men, early mod. E. gamen, < ME. gammen, ga- 
men, the earlier form of game, sport, jest : see 
game 1 . Cf. backgammon.] 1. In the game of 
backgammon, a victory in which one player 
succeeds in throwing off all his men before 
his opponent throws off any: distinguished 
from backgammon, in which the opponent is 
not only gammoned, but has at least one man 
not advanced from the first six points. 2. A 
deceitful game or trick ; trickery ; humbug ; 
nonsense. [Colloq. or slang.] 
This gammon shall begin. Chester Plays, i. 102. 
Lord bless their little hearts, they thinks it's all right, 
and don't know no better, but they're the wictims o' gam- 
mon, ftamivel, they're the wictims o' gammon. 
Dickens, Pickwick, xxvii. 
gammon 1 (gam'on), v. [Early mod. E. gamen; 
< gammon 1 , n. Cf. game 1 , ., gamble 1 , v.] I.t 
intrans. 1. To play; gamble. 
Finding his conscience deepelye gauld with thee out- 
ragious oathes he vsed too thunder owt in gamening, hee 
made a few verses as yt were his cygnea oratio. 
Stanihiirgt, Epitaphes, p. 153. 
2. To play a part ; pretend. [Colloq. or slang.] 
Jerry did not make his look beggarly enough ; but Logic 
gammoned to be the cadger in fine style, with his crutch 
and specs. Pierce Egan, Life in London (1821). 
II. trans. 1. To impose upon; delude; trick; 
humbug; also, to joke; chaff. [Colloq. or 
slang.] 
A landsman said, " I twig the chap he's been upon the 
Mill- 
And 'cause he gammons so the flats, ve calls him Veeping 
Bill ! " Barham, Ingoldsby Legends, II. 137. 
So then they pours him out a glass of wine, and gammons 
him about his driving, and gets him into a reg'lar good 
humour. Dickens, Pickwick, xiii. 
:, rope gammoning ; 3, chain gam- 
moning ; 3, iron-strap gammoning. 
gamomorphism 
2. In the game of backgammon, to win a gam- 
mon over. See gammon 1 , n., 1. 
gammon 2 (gam'on), . [Formerly sometimes 
yambone; < OF. gambon, F.jambon(=i Sp.jamon 
= It. gambone), a gammon, < OF. gambe, F.jambe 
(= Sp. It. gamba), leg: see gamb and jamb.] 
The buttock or thigh of a hog, salted and 
smoked or dried ; a smoked ham. 
And then came haltynge Jone, 
And brought a gambone 
Of bakon that was reastye. 
Skelton, Elinor Humming. 
At the same time 'twas always the Fashion for a Man to 
have a Gammon of Bakon, to show himself to be no Jew. 
Selden, Table-Talk, p. 38. 
The custom of eating a gammon of bacon at Easter is 
still [1827] maintained in some parts of England. 
Hone, Every-day Book, II. 439. 
gammon 2 (gam'on), v. t. [< gammon 2 , .] 1. 
To make into bacon ; cure, as bacon, by salting 
and smoking. 2. [Appar. in allusion to the 
tying or wrapping up of a gammon or ham.] 
To fasten a bowsprit to the stem of (a ship). 
gammoning (gam on-ing), . [Verbal n. otgam- 
ioi 2 , v. t., 2. J Naut., formerly, a chain or rope 
lashing by which the 
bowsprit was lashed 
down to the stem ; 
now, an arrangement 
of iron bands secured 
by nuts and screws. 
gammoning-hole 
(gam'on-ing-hol), . 
Naut.,' a, scuttle cut 
through the knee 
of the head of a 
ship, through which 
the gammoning was 
passed. 
gammon-plate 
(gam'on-plat), n. 
Naut., an iron plate 
on the stem of a ship 
for securing gammon- 
shackles. See gam- 
moning. 
gammon-shackles (garn'on-shak^lz), n. pi. 
Naut., shackles for securing the gammoning. 
gammott, [Cf. It. gamaut, "the name of a 
barbers toole, gamanto, "the name of a sur- 
gions toole" (Florio), appar. a particular use 
of gamaut = E. gamut, with some ref. to the 
shape of the knife. See gamut.] A kind of 
knife formerly used by surgeons. 
Scolopomacheria [It.], an instrument to cut out the 
roots of vlcers or sores, called of our surgeons the incision 
knife or gammot. Florio. 
gammutt, n. See gamut. 
gammy(gam'i),a. [Origin obscure.] Bad; un- 
favorable. [Vagrants' slang.] 
gamnert, . [Contr. of gamener, < ME. gamen, 
game (see game 1 , v., gammon 1 , v.), + -er 1 .] A 
gamester ; a player. 
Some haue I sene euen in their last sicknes sit vp in 
their deathbed vnderpropped with pillowes, take their 
play-fellowes to them, and cumfort them selfe with cardes 
... as long as euer they might, til the pure panges of 
death pulled their hart fro their play, & put them in the 
case they could not reckon their game. And then left 
they their gamnert, and slily slunk away : and long was it 
not ere they gasped vp the goste. 
Sir T. More, Cumfort against Tribulation (1573), fol. 42. 
gamogastrous (gam-o-gas'trus), a. [< Gr. y<S- 
fiof, marriage, + yaaTJ/p(yaorp-), the womb.] In 
hot., having only the ovaries united: applied 
to a compound pistil the styles and stigmas of 
which are free. 
The union in a syncarpous pistil is not always complete ; 
it may take place by the ovaries alone, while the styles 
and stigmata remain free, the pistil being then gamogai- 
trous. Encyc. Brit., IV. 142. 
gamogenesis (gam-o-jen'e-sis), n. [< Gr. yapac,, 
marriage, + yeveaif, generation.] In biol., gen- 
esis or development from fertilized ova ; sexual 
generation or reproduction ; homogenesis : the 
opposite of agamogenesis. 
These cells whose union constitutes the essential act of 
gamoyenesis are cells in which the developmental changes 
have come to a close cells which ... are incapable of 
further evolution. B. Spencer, Prin. of Biol., 77. 
In the lowest organisms gamogenesis has not yet been 
observed. Huxley, Anat. Invert., p. 31. 
gamogenetic (gam'o-je-net'ik), a. [< gamogen- 
esis, after genetic.] Of or pertaining to gamo- 
genesis ; accomplished by means of gamogene- 
sis. 
gamogenetically (gam'6-je-net'i-kal-i), adv. In 
a gamogenetic manner; by gamogenetic means. 
gamomorphism (gam-o-m&r'fizm), n. [< Gr. 70- 
ftof, marriage, + imp&h, form.] That stage of 
development of organized beings in which the 
