different between gentleman vs chevalier

English

Etymology

Morphologically gentle +? man, calque of French gentilhomme.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?d??n.t?l.m?n/
• (General American) IPA^(key): [?d????.??.m?n]
• Hyphenation: gentle?man

Noun

gentleman (plural gentlemen)

1. (chiefly historical) A man of gentle but not noble birth, particularly a man of means (originally ownership of property) who does not work for a living but has no official status in a peerage; (Britain law) an armiferous man ranking below a knight.
2. Any well-bred, well-mannered, or charming man.
3. (derogatory) An effeminate or oversophisticated man.

   Synonyms: cockney, puss-gentleman, sissy; see also Thesaurus:effeminate man

4. (polite term of address) Any man.

   Synonym: sahib

   Coordinate terms: lady, gentlewoman, (historical) gentlelady

5. (usually historical, sometimes derogatory) An amateur or dabbler in any field, particularly those of independent means.

   Synonym: dilettante
6. (cricket) An amateur player, particularly one whose wealth permits him to forego payment.

   Coordinate terms: professional, (historical) player

Usage notes

• Although gentleman is used in reference to a man and gentlemen is used as a polite form of address to a group of men, it is more common to directly address a single gentleman as sir.
• The singular possesive of the sense "any well-bred, well-mannered, or charming man" can appear in ad hoc compounds to describe a polite way of doing something; e.g. a "gentleman's sweep" when a dominant basketball team allowed the opponent one win in a series[1].

Derived terms

Related terms

• gentlewoman
• gentlelady

Descendants

• Chinese Pidgin English: gentleman
• ? Danish: gentleman
• ? Esperanto: ?entlemano
• ? French: gentleman
• ? Georgian: ????????? (?en?lmeni)
• ? Mohegan-Pequot: gundermon
• ? Polish: d?entelmen
• ? Portuguese: gentleman
• ? Spanish: gentleman

Translations

Chinese Pidgin English

Alternative forms

• ??? (Chinese characters)

Etymology

From English gentleman.

Noun

gentleman

1. A respectful term for a person of either sex: gentleman, lady

References

• Gow, W. S. P. (1924) Gow’s Guide to Shanghai, 1924: A Complete, Concise and Accurate Handbook of the City and District, Especially Compiled for the Use of Tourists and Commercial Visitors to the Far East, Shanghai, page 105: “Gentleman: does not always indicate the male sex. e.g. “outside have got two piece gentleman, one belong missee.” (Lunde.)”

French

Etymology

Borrowed from English gentleman.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /d??n.tl?.man/

Noun

gentleman m (plural gentlemen or gentlemans)

1. gentleman, especially an anglophone one

Further reading

• “gentleman” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Anagrams

• mélangent

Spanish

Noun

gentleman m (plural gentlemen)

1. British gentleman

English

Etymology

From Middle English chivaler or chevaler (also shyvalere while code-switching), from Anglo-Norman chevaler or chivaler, later refashioned after French chevalier, from Late Latin caballarius (“horseman”), from Latin caballus (“horse”). Doublet of cavalier.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /???v??l??/
• Rhymes: -??(?)

Noun

chevalier (plural chevaliers)

1. A cavalier; a knight.
2. In tarot cards, the card between the valet and the dame

References

French

Etymology

From Middle French chevalier, from Old French chevalier, from Late Latin caball?rius, from Latin caballus. Doublet of cavalier.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??.va.lje/
• Rhymes: -je

Noun

chevalier m (plural chevaliers, feminine chevalière)

1. knight
2. sandpiper (bird)

Derived terms

Related terms

• cheval
• chevalerie
• chevalière

Descendants

• Turkish: ?övalye

Further reading

• “chevalier” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Middle French

Alternative forms

• shyvalere

Etymology

From Old French chevalier.

Noun

chevalier m (plural chevaliers)

1. knight

Related terms

• cheval

Descendants

• French: chevalier

Old French

Alternative forms

• cevalier (Picardy)
• chevaler (Anglo-Norman)
• chivaler (Anglo-Norman)

Etymology

From Late Latin caball?rius, from Latin caballus. Compare Old Occitan cavalier.

Noun

chevalier m (oblique plural chevaliers, nominative singular chevaliers, nominative plural chevalier)

1. knight
2. (chess) knight

Descendants

• ? English: chevalier
• Middle French: chevalier
  • French: chevalier
  • Norman: quevalier
  • Picard: cvalier
  • Bourguignon: chevaulei

References