guess 
Conspicuous at the centre of tin; Lake 
Their safe retreat, we knew them well, I yuan 
That the whole valley knew them. 
Wordsworth, Recluse. 
[This use is common in English literature from the first 
appearance of the word ; but it is now regarded as collo- 
quial, and, from its frequency in the United States, it is 
generally supposed by Kniilislimen to beau "Americanism." 
By an easy extension guess is used for think, Mirre, or sup- 
pose, even where the meaning is not at all conjectural, but 
positive, and it is then logically superfluous, serving 
merely to make the assertion less abrupt : as, I guest I 
will go now (that is, I am going now); I guess I know 
what Tin about (that is, I know what I am doing). In 
most instances this use probably arises from a desire to 
avoid positive assertion, or from some feeling of hesita- 
tion or uncertainty. ] = Syn. 1. Imagine, Presume, etc. See 
conjecture, 
ll. intrant. To form a conjecture; judge or 
conclude from incomplete or uncertain evi- 
dence : commonly with at or by. 
The Text serves only to guess by ; we must satisfle our 
selves fully out of the Authors that liv'd about those times. 
Selden, Table-Talk, p. 21. 
The best prophet is naturally the best guesser, and the 
best guesser, he that is best versed and studied in the mat- 
ter he guesses at; for he hath most signs to guess by. 
Holibes, Of Man, iii. 
He is so much improved by continual writing that it is 
believed in a short time one may be able to read his letters, 
and find out his meaning without guessing. 
Steele, Tatler, No. 142. 
guess 1 (ges), n. [Early mod. E. also ghess, ghesse, 
gesse; < ME. gesse = MD. ghisse, D. gis = MLG. 
gisse, a guess ; from the verb.] A notion gath- 
ered from mere probability or imperfect in- 
formation ; a judgment or conclusion without 
sufficient or determinate evidence; a conjec- 
ture ; a surmise : as, to act by giicxx. 
For utterly, withouten gesse, 
Alle that ye seyn is but in veyne. 
Rom. of the Rose, 1. 3324. 
The later writers [on Scripture] have generally striven 
to distinguish themselves from the elder by some new 
guess, by saying somewhat that hath not been said before. 
Bp. Alterbury, Sermons, II. ix. 
Newton's guess that the diamond was inflammable, and 
many instances which must occur to the reader, are of the 
true ;u ! snum kind. 
Dr. J. Brown, Spare Hours, 3d ser., p. 202. 
gU6SS 2 t (ges), TO. See another-guess, a. 
guessable (ges'a-bl), a. [< guess 1 + -able.'] Ca- 
pable of being guessed. 
Size of it [Plymouth harbor] guessable at less than I ex- 
pected. Carlyle, The Century, XXIV. 20. 
guesser (ges'er), . [= D. gisser, gister = MLG. 
gisser; < guess 1 + -er 1 .] One who guesses or con- 
jectures ; one who decides or gives an opinion 
without certain means of knowing. 
A man that never hits on the right side cannot be called 
a bad guesser, but must miss out of design, and be notably 
skilful at lighting on the wrong. Bentley, Sermons, iii. 
guessing (ges'ing), n. [Early mod. E. gesslng, 
< ME. gessinge ; verbal n. of guessl, v.] Guess- 
work; conjecture; notion. 
Therefore shall ye saye out no more vanite, nor prophe- 
cie your own gessynges. Bible of 1551, Ezek. xiii. 
guessingly (ges' ing -li), ado. By guesswork; 
by way of conjecture. 
I have a letter guessingly set down. Shak., Lear, iii. 7. 
guessivet (ges'iv), a. [< guess 1 + ice.'] Con- 
jectural. 
In Dreams, and all viary Omens, they are only guessive 
interpretations of dim-eyed man. 
Feltham, Resolves, i. 96. 
guess-rope (ges'rop), n. Same as guess-warp. 
guess-warp (ges'warp), n. 1. Naut., a hawser 
coiled in a boat, and carried from a vessel to 
any distant object for the purpose of warping 
the vessel toward the object: so called from 
the necessity of guessing the distance, and con- 
sequently the length of the hawser. 2. Any 
rope by which a boat is secured astern of or 
alongside a ship. 
The boats are lowered down and made fast astern, or 
out to the swinging beams, by geswarps. 
R. a. Dana, Jr., Before the Mast. 
Also (/Hens-rope, guest-rope, geswarn. 
Guess-warp boom, a spar run out from the side of a 
vessel, with a rope attached near its outer extremity, for 
boats to ride by when the vessel is at her moorings. 
guesswork (ges'werk), n. That which is done 
by or is due to guess; conjectural action or 
opinion; random or haphazard action. 
The pompous rascallion, 
Who don't speak Italian 
Nor French, must have scribbled by guesswork. 
Byron, Epistle to Mr. Murray. 
Balbo reckons (but this is guesswork) that the MS. 
copies of the Divina Commedia made during the fourteenth 
century, and now existing in the libraries of Europe, are 
more numerous than those of all other works, ancient and 
modern, made during the same period. 
Lowell, Among my Books, 2d ser., p. 22. 
guest 1 (gest), n. [Early mod. E. also ghest (the 
or /( being (as also in guess, ghost, etc.) a 
2649 
mod. and erroneous insertion); early mod. E. 
also gest, (jiM.it; < ME. gest, geest, earlier some- 
times gist, < AS. </<est, gest, gist, gieat, gijut, a 
guest, prop, an accidental guest, a chance 
comer, a stranger, = OS. gast = D. MLG. LG. 
OHG. MHG. G. gast= Icel. gcslr = Hw. grist = 
Dan. gjaest (and borrowed gast) = Goth, goats, a 
guest, a stranger, = L. Itostis, in earlier use a 
stranger, in classical use an enemy, pi. liostes, 
the enemy (> tilt. E. host 1 ). Of. L. hospes (hos- 
pit-) (orig. *hosti)>otisi), he who entertains a 
stranger (> ult. E. host*), = OBulg. gosti = Russ. 
goste, a guest, visitor, stranger, alien. Boot 
unknown.] If. A stranger ; a foreigner. 
Ther is right now come into toune a gest, 
A Greek aspie, and telleth newe thynges. 
Chaucer, Troilus, ii. 1111. 
2. A person received into one's house or at one's 
table out of friendship or courtesy ; a person 
entertained gratuitously ; a visitor sojourning 
in the house of, or entertained at table by, an- 
other. 
Also the alderman schal haue, at euery generall day, to 
his drynk and for his geestys, 1. Galone of ale. 
English Gilds (E. E. T. S.X p. 277. 
Goe, soule, the bodies guest, 
Upon a thanklesse arrant ! 
Raleigh, The Lye. 
Mr. Pecksniff . . . received his guests in the best par- 
lour. Dickens, Martin Chuzzlewit, iv. 
3. A person entertained 'for pay, as at an inn 
or in a boarding-house; a boarder or lodger. 
Specifically, in law, any person who is received at an inn, 
hotel, or tavem, upon the general undertaking of the 
keeper of the house, as distinguished from some special 
contract qualifying the relation. 
Not enough account is made of the greater [than mili- 
tary] genius that can organize and carry on a great Amer- 
ican hotel, with a thousand or fifteen hundred guests, in a 
short, sharp, and decisive campaign of two months. 
C. D. Warner, Their Pilgrimage, p. 62. 
4. InzooL, a parasite: as, "a dozen tapeworm 
guests," Coo&oM.-Guestgall-flies. See guest-fly and 
InquiUnai. = Syn. 2. Caller, etc. See vMtor. 
guesl^t (gest), i'. [< ME. gesten (= MHG. gesten 
= Sw. gasta = D&n.ajeste), entertain as a guest; 
from the noun.] IT trans. To entertain as a 
guest; receive with hospitality. 
Hosts, what knowe you, whether, . . . 
When you suppose to feast men at your Table, 
You guest Gods Angels in Men's habit hid '; 
Sylvester, tr. of Du Bartas's Weeks, ii., The Vocation. 
II. intrans. To act the part of a guest; be a 
guest. 
My hope was now 
To guest with him, and see his hand bestow 
Rights of our friendship. Chapman, Odyssey, xxiv. 
guest 2 (gest), n. A dialectal variant of ghost. 
Brockett. Compare larguest. 
guest-chamber (gest'cham"ber), n. An apart- 
ment appropriated to the entertainment of 
guests. Also guest-room. 
The Master sail h, Where is the guestehamber, where I 
shall eat the passover with my disciples? Mark xiv. 14. 
guesten (ges'ten), v. i. [< ME. gestnen, gistnen, 
< gest, a guest : see guest and -ei, 3.] To lodge 
as a guest. [Scotch.] 
Toppet Hob o' the Mains had guesten'd in my house by 
chance. Fray of Suport (Child's Ballads, VI. 117). 
Here have I come this length, trusting the godly Earl 
of Murray would be on his march to the Borders, for he 
was to have guestened with the Baron of Avenel. 
Scott, Monastery, xxxv. 
guest-fly (gest'fli), n. One of certain small hy- 
menopterous or dipterous insects allied to the 
true gall-flies, but inhabiting galls made by 
other species. Also called guest or inquilinc 
gall-flu. 
guest-hallt (gest'hal), . [ME. gesthalle (= G. 
gasthalle) ; < guest 1 + hall 1 .] A hall or room in 
which guests are received. 
guest-houset (gest'hous), . [ME. gesthus, < 
AS. gcesthus (= D. gasthuis, hospital, = LG. gast- 
lius = G. gasthaus), an inn, < g(est, guest, + hus, 
house.] An inn. 
guestingt, [Early mod. E. also ghesling; < 
ME. gesting ; verbal n. of guest, v.~\ Hospita- 
ble entertainment. " 
Pray him for ... ghesting, and two meales meate, 
For his love that was of virgin borne. 
Ballad of King Arthur (Child's Ballads, I. 235). 
guestiyet (ges'tiy), a. [Irreg. < guesfl- + -ire.] 
Pertaining or suitable to a guest. 
If I go home, 
My mother is with two doubts ouercome : 
If she shall stay with me, and take fit care 
For all such guests as there seek guestiue fare. 
Chapman, Odyssey, xvi. 
guest-moth (gest'm&th), . An inquiline moth, 
as the acorn-moth. Guest-moths belong mostly to the 
Pyralidce and Tineidtr, and in the larval state live upon the 
products of other insects, such as the substance of galls, 
gttidable 
wax, or other secretions. The term is best applied to 
those that live inside the domiciles of other insects. See 
cut under acorn-moth. 
guest-room (gest'rom), H. Same as gutst-clidiii- 
Itcr. 
But this I say, there was but one guest-rooine, 
Hangd with a pentice cloath spoke age enough. 
Uist. Albino and Bcllama (1638), p. 131. 
guest-rope (gest'rop), . [A corruption of 
guess-rope.'] Same as guenx-irarp. 
guestwise (gest'wlz), adv. [Early mod. E. also 
geastwisc; < guest 1 + -wise.] In the manner or 
character of a guest. 
But ouer brought he him in geastwise, & as a straunger, 
geulng him none inheritaunce here. J. Udall, On Acts vii. 
My heart to her but as guest-wise sojourn'd, 
And now to Helen it is home return'd. 
Shak., M. N. D., iii. 2. 
gueulette (ge-lef), n. [F.] See annealing-arch. 
Gueux (ge), . pi. [F., pi. of gueux, poor, beg- 
garly, as a noun, beggar, ragamuffin ; origin 
uncertain.] The name adopted by the league 
of Flemish nobles organized in 1566 to resist 
the introduction of the Inquisition into the Low 
Countries by Philip II., previously given to 
them in contempt, and borne by their follow- 
ers in the succeeding war. 
guff(guf), H. [E. dial., var. of 170/1.] 1. An oaf 
or fool. HalliicelLSt. Idle or foolish talk; 
stuff. [Slang.] 
I tell you all this talk is gu/, and it Just comes down to 
the money. Scribner's Mag., IV. 219. 
guffaw (gu-fa'), v. i. [Sc. also guffa, gaffaw, 
and in shorter form gaff, gawf; origin obscure ; 
usually said to be imitative.] To laugh loudly 
and coarsely or rudely. 
I heard Sydney Smith guffawing, other persons prating. 
Carlyle, in Froude. 
guffaw (gu-fa'), H. [Sc. also guffa, gaffaw, and 
in shorter form gaff, gawf; from the verb.] A 
loud, rude burst of laughter; a horse-laugh. 
Young Buttons burst out into a guffaw. 
Thackeray, Lovel the Widower, p. 234. 
guffer (guf'er), n. [Origin obscure.] The vi- 
viparous blenuy or eel-pout, Zoarces vwiparus. 
[Local, Eng.] 
gug (gug), H. [Origin obscure.] In coal-min- 
ing, a self-acting inclined plane under ground. 
Greslci/. [Somersetshire, Eng.] 
gugal (go-gal'), n. [E. Ind.] The resin of the 
salai-tree (Boswellia serrata) of India, where it 
is used for incense. 
gugawt, n. See gewgaw. 
guggle (gug'l), c. ; pret. and pp. guggled, ppr. 
guggling. [Imitative variation of gurgle.] I. 
'intrans. To make a gurgling sound; gurgle. 
[Colloq.] 
Something rose in my throat, I know not what, which 
made me for a moment guggle, as it were, for speech. 
Richardson, Clarissa Harlowe, VI. 305. 
Dobbin . . . exploded among the astonished market- 
people with shrieks of yelling laughter. "Hwat's that 
gawky guggling about?" said Mrs. O'Dowd. 
Thackeray, Vanity Fair, xxviii. 
II. trans. To gargle, as the throat. [Prov. 
Eng.] 
guggle (gug'l), n. [< guggle, v.] A gurgling 
sound. [Colloq.] 
gugglet, guglet (gug'let), . Same as goglet. 
guEr (ger; G. pron. gor), n. [G., fermentation, 
guhr, < gahren, giiren, ferment ; allied to E. yeast, 
q. v.] A loose earthy deposit formed by the in- 
filtration of water and its solvent action on rock 
material. It is an amorphous deposit found in the cavi- 
ties or clefts of rocks, mostly white, but sometimes red or 
yellow, from a mixture of clay or ocher. 
guiac (gwi'ak), n. Same as guaiacum. 
guiacant (gwi'a-kan), n. [W. Ind. (Cuban).] 
The remora or sucking-fish, Echineis naucrates. 
Somewhat further he [Columbus] saw very strange fishes, 
especially of the guiacan. Ogilby, America (1671). 
guiacol (gwl'a-kol), H. [< guiac + -oL] A pro- 
duct of the distillation of gum guaiacum resem- 
bling creosote. It is also a constituent of wood- 
tar. When pure it is a colorless liquid. 
Homer . . . reports that he has used guiacol in phthisis 
for four years. Medical News, LII. 694. 
guiacum (gwl'a-kum), n. Same as guaiacum. 
guibat (gwi'bii), n. [Some native name.] A 
mammal said to resemble a gazel. Goldsmith. 
Guicowar (gi'ko-war), . Same as Gaikwar. 
guid (giid), a. and n. A Scotch form of good. 
Gulds and gear. See gear. 
guida (gwe'da), n.; pi. guide (-de). [It., = E. 
guide, n.] In music, the theme or subject of a 
fugue. 
guidable (gi'da-bl), a. [< guide + -able.'] Ca- 
pable of being guided; tractable. 
A submissive and guidable spirit, a disposition easy to 
all. Bp. Sprat, Sermon before the King, p. 11. 
