different between gauge vs rule

English

Alternative forms

• gage

Etymology

From Middle English gauge, gaugen, from Anglo-Norman, Old Northern French gauger (compare Modern French jauger from Old French jaugier), from gauge (“gauging rod”), from Frankish *galga (“measuring rod, pole”), from Proto-Germanic *galgô (“pole, stake, cross”), from Proto-Indo-European *??Alg?-, *??Alg- (“perch, long switch”). Cognate with Old High German galgo, Old Frisian galga, Old English ?ealga (“cross-beam, gallows”), Old Norse galgi (“cross-beam, gallows”), Old Norse gelgja (“pole, perch”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: g?j, IPA^(key): /??e?d?/
• Rhymes: -e?d?
• Homophone: gage

Noun

gauge (countable and uncountable, plural gauges)

1. A measure; a standard of measure; an instrument to determine dimensions, distance, or capacity; a standard
   • 1780, Edmund Burke, speech at The Guildhall, in Bristol

     the gauge and dimensions of misery, depression, and contempt
2. An act of measuring.
3. An estimate.
4. Any instrument for ascertaining or regulating the level, state, dimensions or forms of things
5. A thickness of sheet metal or wire designated by any of several numbering schemes.
6. (rail transport) The distance between the rails of a railway.
7. (mathematics, mathematical analysis) A semi-norm; a function that assigns a non-negative size to all vectors in a vector space.
8. (knitting) The number of stitches per inch, centimetre, or other unit of distance.
9. (nautical) Relative positions of two or more vessels with reference to the wind.

   A vessel has the weather gauge of another when on the windward side of it, and the lee gauge when on the lee side of it.

10. (nautical) The depth to which a vessel sinks in the water.

    (Can we find and add a quotation of Totten to this entry?)

11. (plastering) The quantity of plaster of Paris used with common plaster to make it set more quickly.
12. That part of a shingle, slate, or tile, which is exposed to the weather, when laid; also, one course of such shingles, slates, or tiles.
13. (firearms) A unit of measurement which describes how many spheres of bore diameter of a shotgun can be had from one pound of lead; 12 gauge is roughly equivalent to .75 caliber.
14. (US, slang, by extension) A shotgun (synecdoche for 12 gauge shotgun, the most common chambering for combat and hunting shotguns).
15. A tunnel-like ear piercing consisting of a hollow ring embedded in the lobe.
    • 2013, Destiny Patterson, Samantha Beckworth, Jennifer Proctor, Arose (page 150)

      Jenni didn't really look as though she fit in with the rest of the girls here, she had a nose piercing and angel bites, her long curly dark brown hair with red highlights was pulled back exposing gauges and many other ear piercings and a tattoo […]

16. (slang, uncountable) Cannabis.
    • 1971, Black Creation (volumes 3-6, page 53)

      […] smoking gauge was a new phenomenon to Himes: “When I looked up after turning the corner, all the grimy facades seemed to be a blaze of bright colors, gold, scarlet, blue, green, like an array of peacocks. […]

    • 2000, Cynthia Palmer, ?Michael Horowitz, Sisters of the Extreme

      When we settled, he said, “You've been smoking gauge, haven't you?”

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

gauge (third-person singular simple present gauges, present participle gauging, simple past and past participle gauged)

1. (transitive) To measure or determine with a gauge; to measure the capacity of.
2. (transitive) To estimate.
3. (transitive) To appraise the character or ability of; to judge of.
4. (textile, transitive) To draw into equidistant gathers by running a thread through it.
5. (transitive) To mix (a quantity of ordinary plaster) with a quantity of plaster of Paris.
6. (transitive) To chip, hew or polish (stones, bricks, etc) to a standard size and/or shape.

Translations

See also

• gage
• gouge

References

• gauge in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.

Middle English

Alternative forms

• gage

Etymology

From Old Northern French gauge, from Frankish *galga, from Proto-Germanic *galgô. Doublet of galwes.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??au?d?(?)/, /??a?d?(?)/

Noun

gauge

1. A customary measurement or scale.

Related terms

• gaugen
• gauger

Descendants

• English: gauge
• Scots: gauge

References

• “gau?e, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-04-22.

Old French

Noun

gauge f (oblique plural gauges, nominative singular gauge, nominative plural gauges)

1. Alternative form of jauge

English

Pronunciation

• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /?u?l/, [?u??]
• Rhymes: -u?l

Etymology 1

From Middle English reule, rewle, rule, borrowed from Old French riule, reule, itself an early semi-learned borrowing from Latin regula (“straight stick, bar, ruler, pattern”), from reg? (“to keep straight, direct, govern, rule”); see regent.

Noun

rule (countable and uncountable, plural rules)

1. A regulation, law, guideline.
   • a. 1694, John Tillotson, Of The Obligations of Christians to a Holy Life

     We profess to have embraced a religion which contains the most exact rules for the government of our lives.
2. A regulating principle.
   • c. 1604, William Shakespeare, All's well that ends well, Act I, scene I

     There's little can be said in 't; 'Tis against the rule of nature.

3. The act of ruling; administration of law; government; empire; authority; control.
4. A normal condition or state of affairs.

   My rule is to rise at six o'clock.

5. (obsolete) Conduct; behaviour.
6. (law) An order regulating the practice of the courts, or an order made between parties to an action or a suit.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Wharton to this entry?)

7. (mathematics) A determinate method prescribed for performing any operation and producing a certain result.

   a rule for extracting the cube root

8. A ruler; device for measuring, a straightedge, a measure.
   • a. 1716, Robert South, Sermons

     As we may observe in the Works of Art, a Judicious Artist will indeed use his Eye, but he will trust only to his Rule.

9. A straight line (continuous mark, as made by a pen or the like), especially one lying across a paper as a guide for writing.
10. (printing, dated) A thin plate of brass or other metal, of the same height as the type, and used for printing lines, as between columns on the same page, or in tabular work.

Derived terms

Related terms

• regulate
• regent
• regular

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English rulen, borrowed from Old French riuler, from Latin regul?re (“to regulate, rule”), from regula (“a rule”); see regular and regulate.

Verb

rule (third-person singular simple present rules, present participle ruling, simple past and past participle ruled)

1. (transitive) To regulate, be in charge of, make decisions for, reign over.
2. (slang, intransitive) To excel.

3. (intransitive) To decide judicially.
4. (transitive) To establish or settle by, or as by, a rule; to fix by universal or general consent, or by common practice.
   • 1687, Francis Atterbury, An Answer to some Considerations, the Spirit of Martin Luther and the Original of the Reformation

     That's a ruled case with the school-men.

5. (transitive) To mark (paper or the like) with rules (lines).

Synonyms

• (to excel): rock (also slang)

Antonyms

• (to excel): suck (vulgar slang)

Derived terms

Translations

Etymology 3

Related to revel.

Noun

rule

1. (obsolete) Revelry.

Verb

rule (third-person singular simple present rules, present participle ruling, simple past and past participle ruled)

1. (obsolete, intransitive) To revel.

Further reading

• rule in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• rule in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Anagrams

• ReLU, Ruel, lure

Spanish

Verb

rule

1. Formal second-person singular (usted) imperative form of rular.
2. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of rular.
3. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of rular.
4. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted^?) present subjunctive form of rular.