gauntlet en · NOUN · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- /ˈɡɔːnt.lət/
- gônt’lət
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
From Middle English gauntelett, gantlett, a borrowing from Old French gantelet (“gauntlet worn by a knight in armor, a token of one's personality or person, and symbolizing a challenge”), diminutive of gant (“glove”), a borrowing from Frankish *want (“glove; mitten”) and reinforced by Medieval Latin wantus (“glove”) itself borrowed from the former, from Proto-Germanic *wantuz (“glove; mitten”). Cognate with Dutch want (“mitten; shroud”), German Low German Want (“shroud”), Danish vante (“mitten”), Swedish vante (“glove; mitten”), Faroese vøttur (“glove; mitten”).
Meanings
-
Protective armor for the hands, formerly thrown down as a challenge to combat.
The hands were defended by Gauntlets, these were sometimes of chain mail, but oftener of small plates of iron rivetted together, in imitation of the lobster's tail, so as to yield every motion of the hand, some gauntlets inclosed the whole hand, as in a box or case, others were divided into fingers, each finger consisting of eight or ten separate pieces, the inside gloved with buff leather, some of these reached no higher than the wrist, others to the elbow; the latter were stiled long armed gauntlets: many of them are to be seen in the Tower; for a representation of one of them, see plate 26, fig 6.
1786, Francis Grose, A Treatise on Ancient Armour and Weapons, pages 22–23:
-
A long glove covering the wrist.
Solventproof rubber gauntlets under solventproof sleeves closed at the wrists should be worn.
1969, Lance William DeStwolinski, Occupational Health in the Construction Industry, page 235:The hawk no longer darts forth from the gauntlet to soar through the air for his prey.
1961, Norma Lorre Goodrich, “Beowulf”, in The Medieval Myths, New York: The New American Library, page 40:
- A rope on which hammocks or clothes are hung for drying.
- An eruption of pellagra on the hands.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| gauntlets | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| gantlet | US, alternative | lexicographic |
Coordinates
Deriveds
run the gauntlet · take up the gauntlet · demigauntlet · throw down the gauntlet · ungauntlet
Translations (33)
ota قولچاق (protective armor for the hands) · it guanto di armatura (protective armor for the hands) · es guantelete (protective armor for the hands) · de Stulpe (glove covering the wrist) · de Panzerhandschuh (protective armor for the hands) · ka ხელჯაგი (protective armor for the hands) · ga iarndóid (protective armor for the hands) · ru перча́тка (protective armor for the hands) · sv kraghandske (glove covering the wrist) · pt manopla (protective armor for the hands) · da stridshandske (protective armor for the hands) · fr gantelet (protective armor for the hands) · de Fehdehandschuh (protective armor for the hands) · gl manípulo (protective armor for the hands) · fi taisteluhansikas (protective armor for the hands) · de Kampfhandschuh (protective armor for the hands) · gmh Hentze (protective armor for the hands) · mk рака́вица (protective armor for the hands) · bg бронирана ръкавица (protective armor for the hands) · ka ხელთათმანი (protective armor for the hands) · ja 籠手 (protective armor for the hands) · tl guwantelete (protective armor for the hands) · nl pantserhandschoen (protective armor for the hands) · ga lámhainn fhada (protective armor for the hands) · sv stridshandske (protective armor for the hands) · pl rękawica (protective armor for the hands) · ca guantellet (protective armor for the hands) · cs ochranná rukavice (protective armor for the hands) · nl kaphandschoen (protective armor for the hands) · ka თათმანი (protective armor for the hands) · ru рукави́ца (protective armor for the hands) · cmn 鐵手套 /铁手套 (protective armor for the hands) · ru ла́тная рукави́ца (protective armor for the hands)