gilt1

[gilt] /gɪlt/
verb
1.
a simple past tense and past participle of gild1 .
adjective
2.
gilded.
3.
gold in color; golden.
noun
4.
the thin layer of gold or other material applied in gilding.
5.
gilt-edged security.

gilt2

[gilt] /gɪlt/
noun
1.
a young female swine, especially one that has not produced a litter.
Origin
1300-50; Middle English gilte < Old Norse gylta

gild1

[gild] /gɪld/
verb (used with object), gilded or gilt, gilding.
1.
to coat with gold, gold leaf, or a gold-colored substance.
2.
to give a bright, pleasing, or specious aspect to.
3.
Archaic. to make red, as with blood.
Idioms
4.
gild the lily, to add unnecessary ornamentation, a special feature, etc., in an attempt to improve something that is already complete, satisfactory, or ideal:
After that wonderful meal, serving a fancy dessert would be gilding the lily.
Origin
1300-50; Middle English gilden, Old English -gyldan; akin to gold
Related forms
gildable, adjective
Examples from the web for gilt
  • gilt yields were in deflation-worry territory even before the government announced consolidation plans.
  • Two of the three were made of copper and the third was a gilt-covered copper coin with much of the gilt rubbed off.
  • But it has done little, it seems, to scratch the gilt from the corner office.
  • In the main dining room, the walls have been taken down to bare red brick and framed in gilt mirrors.
  • The best choice for the main course is their skillfully prepared fish, such as monkfish or gilt head bream.
  • He had come to my wedding and given me a gilt bracelet.
  • He had a small legacy in the will, a gilt-edged bond and a few words of praise.
  • It survives in a porcelain plush-lined storage and display box with gilt hardware.
British Dictionary definitions for gilt

gilt1

/ɡɪlt/
verb
1.
a past tense and past participle of gild1
noun
2.
gold or a substance simulating it, applied in gilding
3.
another word for gilding (sense 1), gilding (sense 2)
4.
superficial or false appearance of excellence; glamour
5.
a gilt-edged security
6.
take the gilt off the gingerbread, to destroy the part of something that gives it its appeal
adjective
7.
covered with or as if with gold or gilt; gilded

gilt2

/ɡɪlt/
noun
1.
a young female pig, esp one that has not had a litter
Word Origin
C15: from Old Norse gyltr; related to Old English gelte, Old High German gelza, Middle Low German gelte

gild1

/ɡɪld/
verb (transitive) gilds, gilding, gilded, gilt (ɡɪlt)
1.
to cover with or as if with gold
2.
gild the lily
  1. to adorn unnecessarily something already beautiful
  2. to praise someone inordinately
3.
to give a falsely attractive or valuable appearance to
4.
(archaic) to smear with blood
Derived Forms
gilder, noun
Word Origin
Old English gyldan, from goldgold; related to Old Norse gylla, Middle High German vergülden

gild2

/ɡɪld/
noun
1.
a variant spelling of guild (sense 2)
Derived Forms
gildsman, noun
Word Origin and History for gilt
adj.

c.1400, past participle of Middle English gilden, from Old English gyldan (see gild). Also used as a noun with a sense of "gilding" (early 15c.).

gild

v.

Old English gyldan "to gild, to cover with a thin layer of gold," from Proto-Germanic *gulthianan (cf. Old Norse gylla "to gild," Old High German ubergulden "to cover with gold"), from *gulthan "gold" (see gold). Related: Gilded; gilding. Figuratively from 1590s.