gawk

gawk
gawk (v.) 1785, Amer.Eng., perhaps from gaw, a survival from M.E. gowen "to stare" (c.1200), from a Scandinavian source akin to O.N. ga "to heed," from P.Gmc. *gawon-, from PIE *ghow-e- "to honor, revere, worship" (see FAVOR (Cf. favor) (n.)); and altered perhaps by gawk hand (see GAWKY (Cf. gawky)). Liberman writes that it "need not have been derived from GOWK (Cf. gowk). It is possibly another independent onomatopoeic formation with the structure g-k. Related: Gawked; gawking.

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • gawk — gawk·ham·mer; gawk·i·ly; gawk·i·ness; gawk·ish; gawk; gawk·ish·ly; gawk·ish·ness; …   English syllables

  • gawk´i|ly — gawk|y «G kee», adjective, gawk|i|er, gawk|i|est, noun, plural gawk|ies. –adj. awkward; clumsy: »A lanky, gawky fellow…tumbles over …   Useful english dictionary

  • gawk|y — «G kee», adjective, gawk|i|er, gawk|i|est, noun, plural gawk|ies. –adj. awkward; clumsy: »A lanky, gawky fellow…tumbles over …   Useful english dictionary

  • gawk — [go:k US go:k] v [Date: 1800 1900; Origin: Perhaps from gawk [i] left, left handed (18 19 centuries)] informal to look at something for a long time, in a way that looks stupid = ↑stare gawk at ▪ Don t just stand there gawking at those girls! …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • Gawk — (g[add]k), n. [OE. gok, gowk, cuckoo, fool, Icel. gaukr cuckoo; akin to OHG. gouh, G. gauch cuckoo, fool, AS. g[ e]ac cuckoo, Sw. g[ o]k, Dan. gi[ o]g] 1. A cuckoo. Johnson. [1913 Webster] 2. A simpleton; a booby; a gawky. Carlyle. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Gawk — Gawk, v. i. 1. To act like a gawky. [1913 Webster] 2. To stare with empty minded fascination; to stare stupidly; to gape; usually used with at. [PJC] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • gawk — /gawk/, v.i. 1. to stare stupidly; gape: The onlookers gawked at arriving celebrities. n. 2. an awkward, foolish person. [1775 85; appar. repr. OE word meaning fool, equiv. to ga(gol) foolish + oc OCK; used attributively in gawk hand, gallock… …   Universalium

  • gawk — [ gɔk ] verb intransitive INFORMAL to look at someone or something for a long time in a rude or stupid way: gawk at: What are you gawking at? …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • gawk — [gôk] n. [prob. var. of GOWK] a clumsy, stupid fellow; simpleton vi. to stare stupidly, like a gawk gawkish adj …   English World dictionary

  • gawk´er — gawk «gk», verb, noun. –v.i. to stare idly, rudely, or stupidly: »Foreign tourists…normally spend freely while gawking at the pyramids (Wall Street Journal). –n. an awkward person; clumsy fool. ╂[perhaps < obsolete gaw stare] –gawk´er, noun …   Useful english dictionary

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