gargoyle en · NOUN
Pronunciation
Etymology
From Old French gargouille, from Latin. Doublet of gargle. The Académie Française suggests the first attestation as gargoule in 1294.
Meanings
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A carved grotesque figure on a spout which conveys water away from the gutters.
From between set teeth came now a flow of oaths and imprecations as steady as the flow of water from the gargoyle overhead.
1906, Rafael Sabatini, The Trampling of the Lilies, page 110:As we went, however, I took the precaution of noting our route as well as I could; and this was not so very difficult, owing to the extraordinary and most fantastic shape of the rocks that were strewn about, many of which in that dim light looked more like the grim faces carven upon mediæval gargoyles than ordinary boulders.
1886 October – 1887 January, H[enry] Rider Haggard, She: A History of Adventure, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., published 1887, →OCLC:
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Any decorative carved grotesque figure on a building.
The long-closed G.W.R. station alongside has a decidedly derelict-looking frontage, with eight gargoyles or figureheads still clinging to the portico.
1952 February, R. A. H. Weight, “A Railway Recorder in Wessex”, in Railway Magazine, page 131:
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A fictional winged monster.
Almost immediately one of the gargoyles swept down from the sky and attacked him. The gargoyle's momentum drove them both over the side.
2005, Mel Odom, The Secret Explodes, page 200:
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(derogatory) An ugly woman.
Above all, in what reckless moment had she encouraged that person and her gargoyle of a mother to move to Mayfair, and set up house around the corner?
2011, Emma Donoghue, Life Mask:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| gargoyles | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
gargoylesque · gargoyleish · gargoyle gecko · gargoyley · gargoylism · gargoylish · gargoylelike · gargoyled
Synonyms
hag (ugly woman) · crone (ugly woman) · hunky punk (any decorative carved grotesque figure) · grotesque (any decorative carved grotesque figure)
Translations (68)
ja ガーゴイル (fictional winged creature) · tr çörten (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · pl wiedźma (pejorative slang: an ugly woman) · cmn 石像鬼 (decorative figure on a building) · de Wasserspeier (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · it doccione (decorative figure on a building) · fr gargouille (decorative figure on a building) · ja ガーゴイル (decorative figure on a building) · la silānus (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · ru горгу́лья (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · ka გარგოლია (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · ko 가고일 (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · eo gargojlo (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · gl gárgola (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · cmn 雨漏 (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · ga geargáil (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · es gárgola (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · eo gargojlo (decorative figure on a building) · ru гаргу́лья (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · it gargoyle (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · ru гаргу́лья (fictional winged creature) · hu vízköpő (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · pt gárgula (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · ja ガーゴイル (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · pl rzygacz (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · it grondone (decorative figure on a building) · it gargolla (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · da vandspyer (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · it garguglia (decorative figure on a building) · cmn 石像鬼 (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · it gargoyle (decorative figure on a building) · kk гаргуйль (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · ru карга́ (pejorative slang: an ugly woman) · it gargouille (decorative figure on a building) · th ปนาลี (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · ru гаргу́йль (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · it gargolla (decorative figure on a building) · pl gargulec (decorative figure on a building) · pl czarownica (pejorative slang: an ugly woman) · ru гры́мза (pejorative slang: an ugly woman) · cs chrlič (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · pl gargulec (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · cmn 石像鬼 (fictional winged creature) · ro gargui (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · da gargoil (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · fi gargoili (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · ca gàrgola (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · ca gàrgola (fictional winged creature) · fi gargouille (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · ru горгу́лья (fictional winged creature) · es gárgola (decorative figure on a building) · fi noita (pejorative slang: an ugly woman) · pl gargulec (fictional winged creature) · it garguglia (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · sv vattenkastare (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · ka გარგულია (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · nl waterspuwer (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · ca gàrgola (decorative figure on a building) · ru мы́мра (pejorative slang: an ugly woman) · it gargouille (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · fi gargoili (fictional winged creature) · sv spygatt (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · et veesüliti (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · it grondone (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · it doccione (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · es gárgola (fictional winged creature) · fr gargouille (carved grotesque figure on a spout) · ru кики́мора (pejorative slang: an ugly woman)