gemn.1
/dʒɛm/, U.S. /dʒɛm/ 1. † b. slang. (See quots.) Obsolete.
a. A precious stone of any kind, esp. when cut and polished for ornament; a jewel.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > raw material > gem or precious stone > [noun]
gemc825
stonec825
gemstonec1000
perrya1300
precious stonec1300
jewela1400
regalc1426
precious pierc1450
margaritea1500
lapidary1509
hardstone1853
shiner1884
α.
β. c1374 G. Chaucer Former Age 30 And in the Ryverys fyrst gemmys sowhte.c1485 Inventory in J. T. Fowler Acts Church SS. Peter & Wilfrid, Ripon (1875) 366 Duo anuli aurei cum j pro gemys.a1513 W. Dunbar Poems (1998) I. 167 Cum, blowme of ioy, with iemis to be cround.c1540 (?a1400) Destr. Troy 10585 A toure, triedly wroght..With Jemmes, & iuwells, & other ioly stonys.1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World I. 41 See how many sorts of jemmes there be still.a1719 J. Addison Dialogues Medals in Wks. (1721) I. ii. 493 Th' Imperial standard..That Gold embroiders, and that Gemms adorn.1751 T. Gray Elegy xiv. 8 Full many a gem of purest ray serene, The dark unfathom'd caves of ocean bear.1832 G. R. Porter Treat. Manuf. Porcelain & Glass 273 He made artificial rubies..which he sold, in the manner of real gems, according to their weight.1860 C. W. King Antique Gems (1866) 6 The Romans..divided gems into males and females, according to the depth or lightness of their colour.1886 M. F. Sheldon tr. G. Flaubert Salammbô 15 On her neck she wore a collection of luminous gems.c825 Vesp. Psalter cxviii. 127 Forðon ic lufade bibodu ðin ofer gold and gim.
971 Blickl. Hom. 11 He sealde his þone readan gim, þæt wæs his þæt halige blod.
c1000 Ælfric Homilies I. 64 Hi wurdon gehwyrfede to deorwurðum gymmum.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 3031 Heo makeden ane tunne of golde. and of ȝimme [c1300 Otho gimes].
13.. K. Alis. 3152 This koroune he the sent, Of gold and gymmes.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 2700 He carf in two gummes of pris Two likenesses.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > types of ornamentation > jewellery > ring > [noun]
ringOE
beec1300
bague1477
hoop1507
woup1511
famble-cheat1567
famble1688
gem1725
fawney1819
groin1931
1725 New Canting Dict. Jem, a Gold Ring; Rum-Jem, a Diamond one.
1728 Street-robberies, Consider'd 32 Jem, Ring.
2. transferred and figurative.
a. Said of persons; esp. in phrases, †gem of chastity, gem of jollity, gem of virtue, etc. (obsolete).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > excellence > [noun] > excellent person
gemc1275
blooma1300
excellence1447
mirrorc1450
man of mena1470
treasure?1545
paragon1548
shining light1563
Apollo's swan?1592
man of wax1597
rara avis1607
Titan1611
choice spirita1616
excellency1725
inestimable1728
inimitable1751
cock of the walk1781
surpasser1805
shiner1810
swell1816
trump1819
tip-topper1822
star1829
beauty1832
soarer1895
trumph1895
pansy1899
Renaissance man1906
exemplum virtutis1914
museum piece1920
superman1925
flyer1930
pistol1935
all-star1949
c1275 Luve Ron 163 in Old Eng. Misc. 98 Þis ilke ston þat ich þe nemne Mayden-hod icleoped is. Hit is o derewurþe gemme.
c1386 G. Chaucer Prioress's Tale 157 This gemme of chastite, this Emeraude, And eek of martirdom the Ruby bright.
c1410 T. Hoccleve Mother of God 106 Marie and Ion hevenly gemmes tweyne.
a1525 Ballat Our Lady in W. A. Craigie Asloan MS (1925) II. 271 O gem Ioynit in Ioye angelicall In quhom Ihesu reiosit for to duell.
1554 in J. Strype Eccl. Memorials (1721) III. App. xx. 57 It is a most unworthy thing, that that gem of vertues should enlighten foreign nations.
a1577 G. Gascoigne Princelie Pleasures Kenelworth sig. B.iii, in Whole Wks. (1587) Delitefull Dames, and gemmes of iolitie.
1623 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Henry VIII ii. iii. 78 Who knowes..But from this Lady, may proceed a Iemme, To lighten all this Ile.
1678 Young Mans Comf. 384 Spains rod, Romes ruin, Netherlands relief..Englands jem.
1815 W. Scott Lord of Isles iv. xxx. 168 O what a gem lies buried here.
b. of things.
ΚΠ
1619 E. M. Bolton in tr. Florus Rom. Hist. To Rdr. sig. A4 Certaine gemmes as it were, and iewels of wise sentences, inserted by him with good aduisement.
1781 W. Cowper Friendship 7 Every polish'd gem we find, Illuminating heart or mind.
1799 J. Scott tr. Ināyat Allāh Bahar-Danush II. xiii. 89 Shedding the valuable jems of remonstrance on his lap.
1872 H. I. Jenkinson Guide Eng. Lake District (1879) 79 The..vale of Grasmere..is a little gem in the diadem of the Lake District.
1893 R. S. Ball Story of Sun 359 The beautiful star Vega, the most brilliant gem of the northern hemisphere.
c. An object of rare beauty or priceless worth; the choicest part of (anything). Now colloquially often with somewhat playful tone: Something greatly prized, a ‘jewel’, ‘treasure’.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > quality of being good > worth > [noun] > thing of worth
treasurec1200
margaritea1325
druery1340
store1410
relica1425
gemc1560
Jew's eye1593
worthy1598
wealth1650
gold dust1690
nugget1853
white gold1921
c1560 A. Scott Poems (S.T.S.) xxvii. 1 In June the jem Of joy and geme.
a1605 A. Montgomerie Sonnets (1887) xlix The Margarit does merit mekle mare, As jem of jeuels, paragone but peir.
1647 N. Bacon Hist. Disc. Govt. 3 As if..the Lord of all the earth had found out one place that should be to him as the Gemme of the ring of this Terrestriall Globe.
1818 W. Irving in Life & Lett. (1864) I. xxv. 407 A little cabinet picture..which will be quite a gem.
1870 F. M. Müller Sci. Relig. (1873) 384 Among the Hottentots..we find the following gem of a fable.
1875 F. T. Buckland Log-bk. Fisherman 1 The gem of the collection..was a picture representing [etc.].
1895 Pall Mall Mag. Nov. 328 The new man seemed to be a gem.
3. A precious or semi-precious stone, bearing an engraved design either in relief or intaglio.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > types of ornamentation > jewellery > [noun] > piece or article of > carved or incised
cameo1561
camaieu1596
intaglio1654
seal-stone1774
gem1791
1638 F. Junius Painting of Ancients 95 I cannot but remember the royal fame of a gem that same Pyrrhus had..an Agathe wherein [etc.].
1658 Sir T. Browne Hydriotaphia: Urne-buriall ii. 23 Great number of Gemmes with heads of Gods and Goddesses.]
1791 Raspe (title) A descriptive Catalogue of a general Collection of ancient and modern engraved Gems, Cameos, as well as Intaglios..cast..by J. Tassie.
1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. I. iii. 338 The cabinets were filled with a fine collection of gems purchased by that Earl of Arundel whose marbles are now among the ornaments of Oxford.
1860 C. W. King (title) Antique Gems, their Origin, Uses, and Value.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > part of plant > bud > [noun] > leaf-bud
gem1382
leaf bud1658
oculus1728
gemma1770
1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) Num. xvii. 8 Swellynge the gemmes, breken out flowres.
c1420 Pallad. on Husb. iii. 405 A graffes shaft Of vyne or tre with gemmes oon or too.
a1530 W. Bonde Pylgrimage of Perfeccyon (1531) iii. f. CCiiv The rodde of Aaron..brought forth fayre floures, gemmes & almondes..in one daye.
1651 Bp. J. Taylor XXVIII Serm. ii. 13 Like the gem of a vine, or the bud of a rose.
1669 J. Denham Cato Major iii. 35 From the joynts of thy prolifick stemme A swelling knot is raised (call'd a gemme).
1732 A. Bower Historia Litteraria 4 158 Insects which terebrate the Gems of some Branches, and therein deposit their eggs.
1791 E. Darwin Bot. Garden: Pt. I i. 197 If prouder branches with exuberance rude Point their green gems.
1813 C. Marshall Introd. Knowl. & Pract. Gardening (ed. 5) ii. 22 Those flowers that dare to continue above ground all the year have yet their gems carefully locked up.
5. Zoology. = gemma n. 3.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > invertebrates > bodies or parts > [noun] > bud generating individual
gem1832
bud1836
gemmule1844
gemma1851
1832 C. Lyell Princ. Geol. (ed. 2) II. 112 The most frequent mode of transportation..consists in the buoyancy of their eggs or certain small vesicles which are detached and are capable of becoming the foundation of a new colony. These gems, as they have been called, may be swept along by a wave that breaks upon a coral reef.
6. A collector's name for the small geometrid moth Camptogramma fluviata.
ΚΠ
1869 E. Newman Illustr. Nat. Hist. Brit. Moths 172.
7. Printing. (See quot. 1888; the size is little used.)
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > printing > types, blocks, or plates > relating to type > [noun] > height of type > names of type sizes
English1539
great primer1539
long primer1553
pica1553
brevier1598
nonpareil1656
pearl1656
small pica1657
minion1659
canon1683
small body1683
minim1706
paragon1706
bourgeois1755
diamond1778
ruby1778
Trafalgar1807
agate1831
minikinc1870
minionette1871
brilliant1875
gem1888
excelsior1902
1888 C. T. Jacobi Printers' Vocab. 52 Gem, a size of type one size larger than Brilliant and one size smaller than Diamond.
Compounds
C1. Simple attributive.† gem-mint n. Obsolete
ΚΠ
1593 G. Harvey Pierces Supererogation 136 His Gemmemint is not alwayes current.
gem-pit n.
ΚΠ
1889 Ceylon Observer 11 May The find of a valuable sapphire on Rangwelletenne estate by a coolie woman near the mouth of an old gempit.
gem-ring n.
ΚΠ
1864 C. Boutell Heraldry Hist. & Pop. (ed. 3) xix. §5. 312 Holding between the finger and thumb a gem ring.
gem-work n.
ΚΠ
1856 E. K. Kane Arctic Explor. I. iii. 37 Making the ice around us one great resplendency of gem-work.
C2. Objective.
a.
gem-artificer n.
ΚΠ
1870 J. Ruskin Lect. Art v. 136 Drawings of the gem-artificers.
gem-cutting n.
ΚΠ
1839 A. Ure Dict. Arts 738 The operation of gem-cutting.
gem-engraver n.
ΚΠ
1860 C. W. King Antique Gems (1866) 169 The earliest gem-engravers.
gem-engraving n.
ΚΠ
1860 C. W. King Antique Gems (1866) p. xli Under Augustus gem-engraving in all its branches reached its very highest point.
gem-fancier n.
ΚΠ
1877 W. Jones Finger-ring Lore 17 Xerxes, King of Persia, was a great gem-fancier.
gem-polisher n.
ΚΠ
1886 Daily News 28 Dec. 5/4 The lapidaries, or gem-polishers, are in the capital, and not at the mines.
gem-sculpture n.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > types of ornamentation > jewellery > making jewellery or setting with jewels > [noun] > carving or engraving gems
glyptic1818
glyptography1855
gem-sculpture1882
society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > plastic art > sculpture or carving > [noun] > in specific materials or methods
stone-cutting1611
fretting1614
masonry1686
high relief1703
phelloplastic1802
wood-carving1847
photosculpture1861
gem-sculpture1882
chip carving1883
stone-craft1903
soft sculpture1966
earthwork1968
1882 Ogilvie's Imperial Dict. (new ed.) Gem-sculpture, the art of..representing designs upon precious stones, either in raised work or by figures cut into or below the surface.
b.
gem-bearing adj.
ΚΠ
1894 Westm. Gaz. 27 Dec. 6/1 The property comprised 4000 acres of ‘gem-bearing’ land.
gem-yielding adj.
ΚΠ
1887 Pall Mall Gaz. 28 Dec. 5/2 Like most gem-yielding regions..it is less attractive than the yellow sands.
C3. Instrumental.
a.
gem-bedewed adj.
ΚΠ
1820 W. S. Landor Myrtis in Heroic Idylls 2 Her white wrist above it, gem-bedewed.
gem-bedizened adj.
ΚΠ
1832 J. P. Kennedy Swallow Barn iv. (1860) 47 She rests her chin upon her gem-bedizened hand.
gem-bespangled adj.
ΚΠ
a1794 W. Jones Hymn to Surya in Wks. (1799) VI. 349 The churn'd Ocean's gem-be~spangled shore.
gem-bossed adj.
ΚΠ
1879 ‘G. Eliot’ College Breakfast Party in Macmillan's Mag. July 161 In gem-bossed pyx and broidered chasuble.
gem-bright adj.
ΚΠ
1587 T. Hughes Misfortunes Arthur 14 O Cassiopæa, gem-bright signe, Most sacred sight and sweet cælestiall starre.
1838 E. Cook Poet's Wreath iii On his temples a gem-bright rim.
gem-knosped adj.
ΚΠ
1818 H. H. Milman Samor viii. 225 To break the glassy glories of this world? The gem-knosp'd diadem, the ivory ball.
gem-spangled adj.
ΚΠ
1859 E. Cook Poems (new ed.) 300 A gem-spangled crowd.
b.
gem-like adj. and adv.
ΚΠ
1859 Ld. Tennyson Enid in Idylls of King 56 A meadow gemlike chased In the brown wild.
C4. Special combinations.
gem-bed n. (see quot.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > minerals > mineral sources > [noun] > strata containing minerals
fuller's eartha1350
fulling eartha1399
fulling clay1647
second bottom1787
iron pan1811
ledge1847
blue lead1854
oil shale1866
oil sand1875
Cambridge coprolite1881
Cambridge greensand1882
gem-bed1886
1886 Daily News 28 Dec. 5/4 The ‘gem-bed’, as it is called, or strata in which the rubies are found, varies considerably at different points in its depth.
gem-peg n. (corruptly gim-peg) (see quot.).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > types of ornamentation > jewellery > making jewellery or setting with jewels > [noun] > jeweller's tools
muffler1688
polishing mill1757
spit-sticker1837
slitting-mill1850
smoothing-mill1850
gem-peg1853
jewel setter1875
needle file1875
peg1879
stake1884
sharp1903
1853 O. Byrne Handbk. Artisan 210 The support..placed a little to the right and in advance of the lap, is called a gim-peg, or germ-peg..The gim-peg serves as a support for the arm of the workman in grinding the edges of small stones, but its principal use is to serve as a guide for the vertical angle in cutting facets.
1882 Encycl. Brit. XIV. 299/2 A very important substitute for the gim-peg-socket..is the dial.
gem-salt n. rare rock-salt = sal-gem n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the earth > minerals > types of mineral > halides > [noun] > halite group > sodium chloride
salt-stonea1000
saltc1000
sal-gemc1325
salt gem(mea1400
rock salt1562
salt-rock1670
natrum muriaticum1850
gem-salt1852
halite1868
coal salt1877
1852 T. Ross tr. A. von Humboldt Personal Narr. Trav. Amer. III. xxxii. 361 It is enlarged by the spurs of the Rio Beni, rich in gem-salt.
gem-stick n. a stick on the end of which a gem is cemented while being cut.
Derivatives
ˈgemless adj. devoid of gems.
ΚΠ
1818 Blackwood's Mag. 2 533 A casket gemless!
Draft additions June 2015
= gem squash n. at Additions.
ΚΠ
1939 J. C. Slade S. Afr. Cookery Bk. (ed. 7) xiv. 238 Boil gem marrows in salted boiling water.., then drain, cut into halves, and serve with a dab of butter on top of each.]
1965 Monthly Econ. Bull. (Zambia: Ministry Agric. Dept. of Economics & Marketing) Sept. 15 Pumpkins have remained plentiful, but marrows were only in fair supply, and gems and hubbard squash were very scarce.
2014 Argus Weekend (S. Afr.) (Nexis) 23 Feb. e1 There's no need to swamp a gem with a vigorous hand when seasoning in any way.
Draft additions June 2015
gem squash n. any of several varieties of squash, Cucurbita pepo, bearing small, usually round fruit; spec. (more fully little gem squash) one with orange flesh and a dark green skin ripening to orange, grown esp. in South Africa.
ΚΠ
1883 Trans. Mass. Hort. Soc. 1882 ii. 169 The Little Gem squash is valuable for amateurs, but the color is too pale for pies, and it is too small for market.
1889 Trans. Calif. State Agric. Soc. 1888 105 Perfect gem squash.
1958 Bot. Surv. Mem. No. 30 38 The fruits are a little over a pound in weight and four inches in diameter, the size and shape of a gem squash, with the same type of hard rind.
2005 R. Zadok Gem Squash Tokoloshe ii. iv. 194 At the back of the shop I find wire baskets of vegetables,..a few spongy carrots and three hard, dark green gem squash.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1898; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
Gemn.2
/dʒɛm/, U.S. /dʒɛm/ Astronomy.
The constellation Gemini. Chiefly as a postmodifier, designating a star of this constellation.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the universe > constellation > zodiacal constellation > [noun] > Gemini
Geminic1400
Gem1907
1907 Observatory 30 34/4 (table) X Gem.
1922 Trans. Internat. Astron. Union 1 158 The following resolutions were adopted [at the first General Assembly of the IAU]: (1) The exclusive use of the Latin names of the constellations. (2) The adoption of the three-letter abbreviations proposed by Profs. Hertzsprung and Russell for the representation of the 88 principal constellations... Gem Gemini.
1964 D. H. Menzel Field Guide Stars & Planets vi. 166 Castor (α Gem) is one of the most beautiful visual binaries.
2015 Publ. Astron. Soc. Pacific 127 1025/2 Preliminary results from this program give excellent results for the known planet-host Beta Gem.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2018; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
gemv.
/dʒɛm/, U.S. /dʒɛm/ a. intransitive. To put forth buds; to bud. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > part of plant > bud > [verb (intransitive)]
gemc1150
bud1398
buttona1500
embud1603
knot1611
about1725
gemmate1846
c1150 Fragm. Ælfric's Gr. (Phillipps) 2 [Wintreowe] Ȝimmeþ forþ in þe akeres.
b. transitive. To put forth (a blossom, a fruit). Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > part of plant > reproductive part(s) > flower or part containing reproductive organs > flower or flowering plant > be or affect a flowering plant [verb (transitive)] > cause to flower or blossom
blow1635
gem1667
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost vii. 325 The stately Trees..spred Thir branches..or gemm'd Thir Blossoms. View more context for this quotation
1748 J. Hervey Refl. Flower-garden in Medit. & Contempl. (ed. 4) I. 213 The tender Twigs have scarce gemmed their future Blossoms.
2.
a. To adorn with gems.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > types of ornamentation > jewellery > making jewellery or setting with jewels > set or stud (something) with gems [verb (transitive)]
pitchc1300
couchc1330
setc1370
enchasea1533
chasec1540
gem1610
ingem1611
engem?1614
gemmate1623
1610 G. Fletcher Christs Victorie 42 Kings, whose temples wear impal'd In goulden diadems, set here, and thear, With diamounds, and gemmed euery whear.
1741 H. Brooke Constantia in Wks. (1789) I. 289 All gem'd in ornaments of curious mode.
1807 J. Barlow Columbiad i. 23 Cold-hearted Ferdinand his pillow prest, Nor dream'd..Of him who gemm'd his crown.
1876 M. M. Grant Sun-maid I. viii. 261 Gemmed with rubies.
b. transferred and figurative. To adorn as with gems.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > beautification > beautify [verb (transitive)] > ornament
dightc1200
begoa1225
fay?c1225
rustc1275
duba1300
shrouda1300
adorna1325
flourishc1325
apparel1366
depaintc1374
dressa1375
raila1375
anorna1382
orna1382
honourc1390
paintc1390
pare1393
garnisha1400
mensk?a1400
apykec1400
hightlec1400
overfretc1440
exornc1450
embroider1460
repair1484
empare1490
ornate1490
bedo?a1500
purfle?a1500
glorify?1504
betrap1509
broider1509
deck?1521
likelya1522
to set forth1530
exornate1539
grace1548
adornate1550
fardc1550
gaud1554
pink1558
bedeck1559
tight1572
begaud1579
embellish1579
bepounce1582
parela1586
flower1587
ornify1590
illustrate1592
tinsel1594
formalize1595
adore1596
suborn1596
trapper1597
condecorate1599
diamondize1600
furnish1600
enrich1601
mense1602
prank1605
overgreen1609
crown1611
enjewel1611
broocha1616
varnish1641
ornament1650
array1652
bedub1657
bespangle1675
irradiate1717
gem1747
begem1749
redeck1771
blazon1813
aggrace1825
diamond1839
panoply1851
1747 W. Collins Odes 50 Her Buskins gem'd with Morning Dew.
1798 S. Rogers Epist. to Friend 156 When Frost..gems with icicles the sheltering eaves.
1798 Anti-Jacobin 9 July 283/2 The tear-drop gems her eye.
1813 Ld. Byron Giaour 6 A speck of white That gemm'd the tide.
1824 T. K. Hervey Gondola v He looks to the stars Which are gemming the blue.
1835 W. Irving Tour on Prairies 329 The prairies were all gemmed with frost.
1849–53 D. Rock Church of our Fathers III. ix. 341 Gemming..the Virgin's name with every brightest epithet.
1859 Ld. Tennyson Enid in Idylls of King 18 A coppice gemm'd with green and red.
1863 N. Hawthorne Our Old Home II. 123 A ring..thickly gemmed around with faces.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > light > light emitted in particular manner > [verb (intransitive)] > sparkle or glitter > of the eyes or precious stones
gem1652
sparkle1700
glitter1817
1652 T. Pestill For Author in E. Benlowes Theophila Who jemm'st it in Jerusalem Above, Where all is Grace and Glory, Light and Love.
4. transitive. To extract gems from; to excavate for the purpose of obtaining gems.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > industry > mining > mine [verb (transitive)] > for gems
gem1889
1889 Ceylon Observer 7 June Everton estate..has been ‘gemmed’ for over thirty years.
1889 Ceylon Observer 28 June The Government could have no objections to grant the right to gem the whole river.
Derivatives
ˈgemming n.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > industry > mining > [noun] > for other specific substance
gemming1859
gum-digging1871
gouging1902
1859 J. E. Tennent Ceylon I. i. i. 35 The season selected by them for ‘gemming’ is between December and March, when the waters are low.
1887 Chambers's Jrnl. 12 Mar. 166 Gemming has been carried on in that part of Upper Burmah for centuries.
ˈgemmer n. one who seeks or digs for gems.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > worker > workers according to type of work > manual or industrial worker > miner > [noun] > one who mines other specific substances
jetter1614
gum-diggerc1858
chlorider1874
gemmer1889
gouger1898
hardrocker1903
opal gouger1904
1889 Ceylon Observer 8 June Pits dug by ancient and modern gemmers.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1898; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
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n.1c825
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