different between nobleman vs gentleman

English

Etymology

noble +? man

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /?no?bl?m?n/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?n??bl?m?n/
• Hyphenation: no?ble?man

Noun

nobleman (plural noblemen)

1. A peer; an aristocrat; ranks range from baron to king to emperor.

Hyponyms

• See also Thesaurus:nobleman

Translations

See also

• noblewoman

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