Adjacent Words

Gaffer definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

GAF'FER, n. [Heb. gebar, a man, vir.] A word or respect, which seems to have degenerated into a term of familiarity or contempt. [Little used.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: an elderly man [syn: old-timer, oldtimer, gaffer, old geezer, antique]
2: an electrician responsible for lighting on a movie or tv set
3: a person who exercises control over workers; "if you want to leave early you have to ask the foreman" [syn: foreman, chief, gaffer, honcho, boss]

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: alteration of godfather Date: 1589 1. an old man — compare gammer 2. British a. foreman, overseer b. employer 3. a head glassblower 4. a lighting electrician on a motion-picture or television set

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 an old fellow; an elderly rustic. 2 Brit. colloq. a foreman or boss. 3 colloq. the chief electrician in a film or television production unit. Etymology: prob. contr. of GODFATHER

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Gaffer Gaf"fer, n. [Possibly contr. fr. godfather; but prob. fr. gramfer for grandfather. Cf. Gammer.] 1. An old fellow; an aged rustic. Go to each gaffer and each goody. --Fawkes. Note: Gaffer was originally a respectful title, now degenerated into a term of familiarity or contempt when addressed to an aged man in humble life. 2. A foreman or overseer of a gang of laborers. [Prov. Eng.]

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(gaffers) People use gaffer to refer to the the person in charge of the workers at a place of work such as a factory. (BRIT INFORMAL) The gaffer said he'd been fined for not doing the contract on time. = boss N-COUNT; N-VOC: usu the N in sing; N-VOC

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. 1. Goodman. 2. Old rustic, old fellow. 3. Foreman (of navvies), overseer.

Moby Thesaurus

Big Brother, Father Time, Methuselah, Nestor, Old Paar, auditor, boatswain, boss, centenarian, chief, comptroller, controller, dotard, duffer, elder, floor manager, floorman, floorwalker, foreman, ganger, geezer, golden-ager, gramps, grandfather, grandsire, graybeard, head, headman, inspector, monitor, nonagenarian, noncommissioned officer, octogenarian, old boy, old chap, old codger, old dog, old duffer, old geezer, old gent, old gentleman, old man, old party, old-timer, older, oldster, overman, overseer, pantaloon, patriarch, presbyter, proctor, senior citizen, septuagenarian, sexagenarian, sirdar, slave driver, straw boss, subforeman, super, superintendent, supervisor, surveyor, taskmaster, the quiet-voiced elders, venerable sir, veteran, visitor