Illustration of gable
- 1 gable 1a
gable
noun
ga·ble ˈgā-bəl 
1
a
: the vertical triangular end of a building from cornice or eaves to ridge
b
: the similar end of a gambrel roof
c
: the end wall of a building
2
: a triangular part or structure
gabled
ˈgā-bəld
adjective 
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web Floor-to-ceiling screens and a louvered gable let more sun pour in. 
Grace Haynes, Southern Living, 25 Apr. 2020 Wochit With its wide shingled body, its base made of stone and a dozen roof gables, this handsome house looks like it was lifted from the Nantucket seashore. Judy Rose, Detroit Free Press, 28 Mar. 2020 The home’s dozens of gables, stone chimneys, and pinnacles suggest a small English village. BostonGlobe.com, 13 Feb. 2020 The home’s dozens of gables, stone chimneys and pinnacles suggest a small English village. New York Times, 13 Feb. 2020 The rebuilt roof’s dormers and gables give quirky angles to some rooms, and its original arched windows are now double-pane insulated. Judy Rose, Detroit Free Press, 30 Nov. 2019 Its front face blends traditional styles — the shingle cladding of Nantucket, the pillars of classical Greece, the gables and dormers of Tudor. Judy Rose, Detroit Free Press, 25 Jan. 2020 The facade used on TV is blah, a collection of nonsensical gables fronting the road, and the back aims for a faux-Cape Cod look, all cedar shingles and white trim applied to a rambling collection of rooms. Alexandra Lange, Curbed, 1 Aug. 2019 At the Mason Street Townhouses, Richard Cawley’s art has butterflies springing from a metal frame and sprays of cherry blossoms coming from the buildings’ gables. oregonlive, 19 Sep. 2019 See More
Grace Haynes, Southern Living, 25 Apr. 2020 Wochit With its wide shingled body, its base made of stone and a dozen roof gables, this handsome house looks like it was lifted from the Nantucket seashore. Judy Rose, Detroit Free Press, 28 Mar. 2020 The home’s dozens of gables, stone chimneys, and pinnacles suggest a small English village. BostonGlobe.com, 13 Feb. 2020 The home’s dozens of gables, stone chimneys and pinnacles suggest a small English village. New York Times, 13 Feb. 2020 The rebuilt roof’s dormers and gables give quirky angles to some rooms, and its original arched windows are now double-pane insulated. Judy Rose, Detroit Free Press, 30 Nov. 2019 Its front face blends traditional styles — the shingle cladding of Nantucket, the pillars of classical Greece, the gables and dormers of Tudor. Judy Rose, Detroit Free Press, 25 Jan. 2020 The facade used on TV is blah, a collection of nonsensical gables fronting the road, and the back aims for a faux-Cape Cod look, all cedar shingles and white trim applied to a rambling collection of rooms. Alexandra Lange, Curbed, 1 Aug. 2019 At the Mason Street Townhouses, Richard Cawley’s art has butterflies springing from a metal frame and sprays of cherry blossoms coming from the buildings’ gables. oregonlive, 19 Sep. 2019 See More Word History
Etymology
Middle English, borrowed from Anglo-French, going back to Latin gabulus, gabulum "gibbet" (borrowed from Celtic *gablo- "fork," whence Old Irish gabul "fork, gibbet, groin," Welsh gafl "fork, groin"), perhaps influenced in sense by northern Middle English and Scots gavel "triangular end of a building," borrowed from Old Norse gafl
Note: The word gable, attested only in Anglo-French and the French of Normandy, is unlikely to be a loan from Old Norse, which would have resulted in *gavle. Old Norse gafl appears to correspond to Old High German gibil "gable," Middle Dutch and Middle Low German gevel, and Gothic gibla, though the divergence in vocalism is unexplained.
First Known Use
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Phrases Containing gable
Kids Definition
gable
noun
ga·ble ˈgā-bəl
: the triangular part of an outside wall of a building formed by the sides of a sloping roof
Biographical Definition
Gable
biographical name
Ga·ble ˈgā-bəl
(William) Clark 1901–1960 American actor