gery 
Right so gan yeni Venus overcaste 
The hertes of hire folk. 
Chaucer, Knight's Tale, 1. 678. 
His second hawke waxed ,'/'///<, 
And was with flying wery. 
HMtnn, Ware the Hawke. 
Geryonia (jer-i-d'ni-ii), n~. [NL. (P6ron and Le- 
sueur, 1809), < L. Geryou, < Gr. Tripv&v, Geryon, 
a three-bodied giant, lit. ' the shouter,' < yr/pieiv, 
cry, shout.] The typical genus of the family 
Qeryontida. It is characterized by 8 radial canals with- 
out a lingual cone, and by haying the process of the audi- 
tory organ inclosed in a vesicle lying in the gelatinous 
substance of the disk, near the edge of the latter. G. 
umljella is an example. 
Geryoniidse (jer'i-o-nl'i-de), n. pi. [NL., < 
Geryonia + -/;.] A family of Trachymedusa: 
It is characterized by an umbrella with cartilaginous 
ridges, 8 to 12 marginal peroniie and as many acoustic 
vesicles, 4 to 6 tubular marginal tentacles, with as many 
canals leading into the radial canal, foliaceons gonads, and 
a long cyliudroconic inannhrium or gastric pedicle with 
a proboscis-like oral portion. Also written Geryonidte. 
Eschscholtz, 1829. 
gesettes-landt, n. Same as gafol-land. 
gesith (AS. pron. ge-seTH'), n. [AS. gesith, a 
companion, comrade, in particular, as in def. 
(= OS. gisith = OHG. gixindo, MHG. gesinde = 
Goth. gasintJija, a companion), < ge-, implying 
' together ' (see i-), + sith, a journey: see sithei 
and send.] In Anglo-Saxon England, one of 
the comitatus or personal following of a noble, 
and especially of the king. The kings gesiths stood 
in close relation to his person, depended upon his favor, 
and formed the basis of the order of thanes or lower no- 
bility. 
The most eminent of the persons who, in the relation of 
gesith or comes to the king, held portions of folkland or 
of royal demesne, and were bound to him by the oath of 
fealty. Slnbla, Const. Hist., 52. 
The "comrade," on the other hand the gesith or 
thegn as he was called hound himself to follow and 
fight for his lord. J. R. Green, Making of Eng., p. 168. 
geslingt, n. An obsolete variant of gosling. 
Gesnera (jes'ne-ra), n. [NL., named after 
Conrad von Gesncr: see Gesnerian.] A ge- 
nus of plants, the type of the order Gesneracece, 
including about 50 species of tropical America, 
mostly Brazilian. They have tuberous roots, herba- 
ceous stems with opposite leaves, and usually red or orange 
flowers. Most of the species are ornamental, and several 
are frequent in greenhouses. 
Gesneraceae (jes-ne-ra'se-e), n. pi. [NL., fern, 
pi. of gesncraceiis : see gesneraceous."] An or- 
der of gamopetalous exogens, with irregular 
corollas, didynamous stamens, and a one-celled 
ovary with two parietal many-seeded placentae. 
It is nearly allied to the Scrophulariacece. It includes 
about 70 genera and 700 species, natives of tropical or sub- 
tropical regions, especially of America. They are herbs 
or shrubs, with usually opposite leaves, and with large, 
showy, and often very handsome flowers. Among the 
larger genera are Gesnera, Gloxinia, Ctjrtandra, jEichy- 
nanthus, and Aehiinenes, many species of which are found 
in cultivation. The succulent fruits of some species are 
edible. 
gesneraceous (jes-ne-ra'shius), a. [< NL. ges- 
neraceus ; < Gesnera, q. v.] Belonging or per- 
taining to the Gesneraccte. 
Gesneria (jes-ne'ri-a), n. [NL., named after 
Conrad von Gesner: see Gesnerian.~\ In zool.: 
(a) A genus of pyralid moths : same as Scopa- 
ria. Hiibner, 1816. (V) A genus of dipterous 
' insects, of the family MusoiatB. Bobineau-Des- 
voidy, 1830. 
Gesnerian (ges-ne'ri-au), a. [< Gesner + -ian.~\ 
Pertaining to Conrad von Gesner (otherwise 
written Gessner), a naturalist and scholar of 
Zurich (1516-65), author of important works 
on zoology, botany, medicine, philology, etc. 
gesset, v. A Middle English form of guess*-. 
gesso (jes'so), n. [It., plaster, chalk, lime, < L. 
gypsum, plaster: seegypsum.] In the fine arts: 
(a) A prepared mass or surface of plaster, usu- 
ally as a ground for painting. 
When a smooth stone surface was to be painted, a thin 
coat of whitening or fine lesso was laid as a ground. 
Encyc. Brit., XVII. 46. 
Hence, by extension (6) Any preparation ap- 
plied to a surface to fit it to receive painting. 
[A shield] is formed of wood faced with canvas, on 
which is laid a gesso to receive the painting and gilding. 
J. Hewitt, Ancient Armour, III. 497. 
Gesso duro [It. : gexso, plaster ; duro, hard], a flue pre- 
pared hard plaster used for works of sculpture ; hence, 
a bas-relief composed of this material, generally colored 
as if in imitation of terra-cotta, and mounted in a frame 
wholly or in part of carved wood. These bas-reliefs are 
not uncommon in Italy ; among them are works of some 
of the great masters of the sixteenth and seventeenth cen- 
turies. 
The flue ijesso duro of this relief, . . . which is in some 
respects superior to the marble, perhaps represents the 
master's original conception. 
C. C. Perkins, Italian Sculpture, p. 123, note. 
gest 1 !, n. A Middle English form of guest*. 
2502 
gest-t (jest), ii. [< ME. gest. geste, a deed, 
achievement, event, more commonly a story of 
deeds or adventures, an entertaining tale (now 
used only in this sense, and spelled jest : see 
jest), < OF. geste, F. geste = Sp. Pg. It. gesta 
(usually as pi.), < ML. gesta, a deed, deeds, fern. 
(sc. res, thing) or neut. pi. of L. gestus, done, 
pp. of gerere, bear, carry, carry on, do, perform : 
see gerent, and cf. get, etc.] 1. That which 
is done ; an act, deed, or achievement. 
The gests of kings, great captains, and sad wars. 
B. J-onson, tr. of Horace's Art of Poetry. 
And surely no ceremonies of dedication, no, not of Solo- 
mon's temple itself, are comparable to those sacred gests 
whereby this place was sanctified. Atede, Churches. 
2. A tale of achievement or adventure ; a story ; 
a romance. 
The halle was al ful, ywis, 
Of hem that writen olde gestes, 
As ben on trees rokes nestes. 
Chaucer, House of Fame, L 3615. 
Ac for I can noither tabre ne trompe lie telle none gestes, 
Kartell, ne fythelen at festes, ne harpen, 
lape ne logly ne gentlych pype. 
Piers Plowman (B), xiii. 230. 
This Egea, the gest sais, was a lust lady. 
Destruction of Troy (E. E. T. S.), 1. 12772. 
gest'-t, *' *. [< ME. gestcn; from the noun. 
Now used in a particular sense, and spelled 
jest, q. v.] To tell stories or romances. 
But trusteth wel, 1 am a Southren man, 
I can nat geste, rom, raf, ruf, by lettre, 
Ne, God wot, rym holde I but litel bettre. 
Chaucer, Prol. to Parson's Tale, 1. 43. 
I haue ioye forto gest 
Of the lambe of love with-oute othe. 
Holy Rood (E. E. T. S.), p. 211. 
gest 3 t (jest), n. [< F. geste = 8p. Pg. It. gesto, 
< L. gestus, carriage, posture, gesture, < gere- 
re, bear, carry, reft, bear oneself, behave: see 
gest 2 .'] 1. Bearing; carriage of one's person ; 
deportment. 
Portly his person was, and much increast 
Through his Hcroicke grace and honourable gest. 
Spenser, F. Q., III. ii. 24. 
2. Gesture. 
The Porter eke to her did lout with humble gegtes. 
Spenser, V. Q., II. ix. 2ft 
A slender tender Boy 
Where grace and beautie for the prize doo play : . . . 
(jrace in each part and in each gest, alike. 
Sylvester, tr. of Du Bartas'a Weeks, 11., The Trophies. 
gest 4 t, [A var. of gist*."] 1. A stage, rest, 
or stop in traveling : same as gist*. 
When at Bohemia 
You take my lord, I'll give him my commission, 
To let him there a month, behind the ".-' 
Preflx'd for 's parting. Shale., W. T., i. 2. 
2. A list of the several stages of a journey ; an 
itinerary; specifically, a roll or journal of the 
several days and stages prearranged for a roy- 
al progress in England. Many such gests are 
extant in the heralds' office, 
gestant (jes'tant), a. [< L. gestan(t-)s, ppr. of 
gestare, bear, carry, freq. of gerere, pp. gestus, 
bear, carry: see gerent, gest 2 , gest 3 . 1 Burdened; 
charged; laden; pregnant: as, "clouds gestant 
with heat," Mrs. Browning. [Rare.] 
gestation (jes-ta'shon), n. [= F. gestation = 
It. gestazione, < L. gestatio(n-), a carrying, < 
gestare, bear, carry : see gestant."] If. A bear- 
ing or carrying ; exercise by being carried. 
Gestation in a carriage or wagon. 
Sir T. Elyot, Castle of Health, ii. 34. 
But nothing is there more holesome than walking and 
gestation ; which is an exercise performed many waies. 
Holland, tr. of Pliny, xxviii. 4. 
The gestation of rings upon this hand and finger. 
Sir T. Browne, Vulg. Err., iv. 4. 
2. The act or condition of carrying young in 
the womb from conception to delivery ; preg- 
nancy. 
The symptoms of spurious pregnancy are occasionally so 
close an imitation of those of true gestation as to present 
great difficulties in their diagnosis. Quain, Med. Diet. 
Dorsal gestation, the carrying of eggs or embryos in 
brood-pouches on the back, as is done by many batra- 
chians, as of the genera Pipa, Nototrema, and others. 
Extra-uterine gestation, pregnancy in which the fetus 
lies outside of the uterus, as in the Fallopian tube or in 
the peritoneal cavity. Mammary or pouch gestation, 
the carrying of prematurely bom young in the mammary 
pouch or marsupium, where they adhere to the nipples, as 
is usual with marsupial mammals. Oral gestation, the 
carrying of eggs in the mouth till they hatch, as is done 
by many fishes. Uterine gestation, the ordinary gesta- 
tion or pregnancy of mammals, 
gestatorium (jes-ta-to'ri-um), n. ; pi. gestatoria 
(-a). [ML., < L. gestare, bear, carry: see ges- 
tant."] In the middle ages, a portable object 
or utensil, specifically an ecclesiastical utensil, 
such as a portable shrine, a feretory for relics, 
or the like. 
gestour 
gestatory (jes'ta-to-ri), a. [< L. gestatorius, 
that serves for carrying, < gestare, carry: see 
gestant."] If. Capable of being carried or worn. 
The crowns and garlands of the ancients were either 
ytitaturi/, such as they wore about their heads and necks, 
etc. Sir T. Browne, Misc., p. 90. 
2. Pertaining to gestation or pregnancy. 
gestic 1 ! (jes'tik), a. [< gest 2 + -ic.'] Pertain- 
ing to gests ; legendary ; romantic. 
gestic 2 (jes'tik), a. [< gest* + -ic.] Pertaining 
to action or motion, specifically to dancing : as, 
"the gestic art," Scott. [Rare.] 
And the gay grandsire, skill'd in gestic lore, 
Has frisk'd beneath the burthen of threescore. 
Goldsmith, Traveller, 1. 253. 
gesticular (jes-tik'u-lar), a. [< L. gesticiilus, a 
gesture, + -or 2 .] Full of or .characterized by 
varied action or motion; gesticulatory. [Rare.] 
Electricity ... is passing, glancing, gesticular. 
Emerson, Eng. Traits, xiii. 
gesticulate (jes-tik'u-lat), ., pret. and pp. 
gesticulated, ppr. gesticulating. [< L. gesticula- 
tus, pp. of gesticulari (> It. gesticolare = Pg. Sp. 
gesticular = F. gesticuler), make mimic ges- 
tures, < gesticulus (found first in LL.), a mimic 
gesture, dim. of gestus, a gesture : see gest 3 .'] 
1. intrans. To make gestures ; express thoughts 
or desires, or emphasize or illustrate speech, 
by motions of the body or any part of it, espe- 
cially the hands and arms. 
They [the Spaniards] talk louder, and argue with more 
vehemence than even the French or Italians, and gesticu- 
late with equal, if not superior, eagerness. 
//. Swinburne, Travels through Spain, illi. 
H. trans. To express or represent by ges- 
tures ; imitate ; enact. [Rare.] 
To act the crimes these whippers reprehend, 
Or what their servile apes gesticulate. 
B. Jonson, Poetaster, To the Header. 
The whole day passed in shouting and gesticulating our 
peaceful Intentions to the crowd assembled on the heights 
on the opposite side of the river. 
Sir S. W. Baker, Heart of Africa, p. 227. 
gesticulation (jes-tik-u-la'shon), n. [= F. ges- 
ticulation = Sp. gestieuUicion = Pg. gestieulac So 
= It. gesticulazione, gesticolazione, ( L. gesttcu- 
latio(u-), < gesticulari, gesticulate : see gesticu- 
late."] 1. The act or practice of gesticulating 
or making gestures: as, his gesticulation is awk- 
ward. 
Gesticulation, which is an emotional manifestation, 
must be distinguished from pantomime, which is part of 
intellectual language. Pop. Sci. Mo., XXV. 176. 
2. A gesture ; an expressive motion of the head, 
body, or limbs. 
At which [a strange and sudden music], they fell into a 
magical dance, full of preposterous change and gesticula- 
tions. B. Jonson, Masque of Queens. 
Indeed, that standing is not so simple a business as we 
imagine it to be is evident from the gesticulations of a 
drunken man, who has lost the government of the centre 
of gravity. Paley, Nat. Theol., xi. 
= Sv_n. See gesture. 
gesticulator (jes-tik'u-la-tpr), n. [= F. gestictt- 
lateur = Pg. gesticulador = ft. gesticolatore, < LL. 
gesticulator, < L. gesticulari, gesticulate: seeges- 
ticula te."] One who gesticulates, or makes ges- 
tures or postures. 
The word minstrel had had a separate history before It 
became synonymous (as in the Catholicon Anglicum of 
1843) with gesticulator, histrio, joculator, and other names 
for strolling entertainers. Encyc. Brit., XVI. 480. 
He was a violent partisan of the Conservatives, and 
being a good stutterer, an excitable character, and a vio- 
lent gesticulator, it soon became evident that he was in 
some measure the butt of his companions. 
Harper's Mag., LXXVI. 552. 
gesticulatory (jes-tik'u-la-to-ri), a. [< gesticu- 
late + -ory.~] Of or pertaining to gesticulation ; 
representing by gestures. 
gestiont, n. [< F. gestion, < L. gestio(n-), a man- 
aging, doing, performing, < gerere, pp. gestus, 
bear, carry, manage : see gest 2 , gest 3 .] 1 . Oper- 
ation ; orderly process. 
Is she a woman that objects this sight, able to worke 
the chaos of the world into geMion ? 
Chapman, Humorous Day's Mirth, p. 79. 
2. In French law, administration in office. 
gestningt, . [< ME. gestning, an entertain- 
ment, Cgest, guest: see guest.] Lodging; en- 
tertainment ; hospitality. 
The Admiral haueth to his gestninge 
Other half hundred of riche kinges. 
King Horn (E. E. T. S.), p. 57. 
gestourt, n. [ME., also gestiour, now jester, q. v.] 
A story-teller; a narrator of exploits or adven- 
tures. 
Mynestralles, 
And gestiourx, that tellen tales 
Both of wepinge and of game. 
Chaucer, House of Fame, 1. 1198. 
