† gambeering ironn.

Etymology: < a first element of uncertain origin (perhaps compare French gambier a kind of iron hook used in metallurgy and in the manufacture of sheet glass (1830 or earlier), specific use of gambier : see gambrel n.) + -ing suffix¹ + iron n.¹ I. K. Funk et al. Standard Dict. Eng. Lang. (1893) records a verb gambeer with the sense ‘to gaff (mackerel) when they are swimming in a school beside a vessel’ and with gambeering iron as a derivative; it is not clear whether this reflects an attested verb or is merely an inference from the use of gambeering iron in quot. 1883. No other evidence has been found for either item. N.E.D. (1898) gives the pronunciation as (gæmbī^ə·ɹ) /ɡæmˈbɪə(r)/.