giftn.¹

Brit.

/ɡɪft/, U.S.

/ɡɪft/

Forms: α. Old English gift, gyft, Middle English ȝift(e, (Middle English ȝiefte), Middle English ȝeft, Middle English ȝyft(e, Middle English–1500s yeft(e, (Middle English ȝefft, yeffe, yhifte, yifte, yyft, yft(e, 1500s yeffte). β. Middle English yefþe, -the, Middle English ȝyfth. γ. Middle English–1500s gifte, gyft(e, 1500s gyfft, (Middle English giuete, Middle English gifit, giftt, 1500s gefte, gieft), Middle English, 1500s, 1600s guift(e, Middle English– gift.

Etymology: Common Germanic: Old English gift strong feminine (recorded only in the sense ‘payment for a wife’, and in the plural with the sense ‘wedding’) corresponds to Old Frisian jeft (feminine), gift, Middle Dutch gift(e (Dutch gift (feminine), gift, gift neuter, now more commonly gif , poison), Old High German gift (feminine), gift, poison (Middle High German, modern German gift (feminine), gift, neuter, poison), Old Norse gift , usually written gipt gift (Swedish, Danish -gift in compounds), plural giptar a wedding, Gothic -gifts in compounds < Old Germanic *gifti-z (feminine), < root *geƀ- give v.The Old English sense does not appear to have survived into Middle English; the α and β forms are perhaps new formations from the verb, while the γ type, to which the modern English form belongs, is probably (as the guttural seems to show) adopted < Old Norse.

I. Giving.

a. The action of giving, an instance of the same; a giving, bestowal. †of gift: as a gift, gratuitously, for nothing; also of free gift. (I would not have it) at a gift (colloquial): at the price of nothing; even as a gift. †of a person's gift: of his giving, as his gift. Also, the power or right of giving, in in (also †of) a person's gift.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > possession > giving > [noun]

givec1275

gifta1300

giving13..

donationc1425

gifture1503

rendering1523

donature1629

α.

c1300 K. Alis. (Laud) 4682 What wiþ ȝifte what wiþ queyntise Alle he wan hem to his seruyse.

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 5090 Ȝoure sackes shal I fille of ȝift [Vesp. o gift].

c1400 Rom. Rose 3663 I wolde gladly..Have a cos therof freely Of your yeft.

1475 Bk. Noblesse (1860) 22 William..was righte duke of Normandie by yeft of Charlys the symple, king of Fraunce.

1503 in E. Hobhouse Church-wardens' Accts. (1890) 28 Of the yefte of Alsun Abbot a payr of beds of jett.

γ. a1300 Cursor Mundi 28760 Þe thrid almus es gift of hand, or elles in word or werk helpand.1357 Lay Folks Catech. 25 Thai had it of goddes giftt at thaire begynnyng.1523 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Surueyeng xvi. f. 29 It is to be enquered of all y^e churches that belong to the lordes gyft, how many there be & where they be, & what they be worthe.1583 C. Hollyband Campo di Fior 109 But canst thou not haue of gifte the filth which is painted on thy handes and necke?1589 C. Ockland in H. Ellis Orig. Lett. Eminent Literary Men (1843) (Camden) 71 For thei be of my Lorde of Warwikes gyfte.1596 E. Spenser Second Pt. Faerie Queene v. x. sig. V6 Therefore these two, her eldest sonnes she sent, To seeke for succour of this Ladies gieft . 1650 T. Fuller Pisgah-sight of Palestine iii. 359 This floor David bought of Araunah the Jebusite, from whom he would not take it of gift.1651 T. Hobbes Leviathan ii. xxi. 108 When we say a Guift is Free, there is not meant any Liberty of the Guift, but of the Giver.1679–88 in J. Y. Akerman Moneys Secret Services Charles II & James II (1851) (Camden) 27 To Lieu^t Anthony Heyford, as of free guift 30li. os. od.1692 R. South 12 Serm. I. 547 No man has any Antecedent Right or Claim to that which comes to him by free gift.1785 W. Cowper Let. 31 Dec. (1981) II. 438 A gift of Bedding to the Poor of Olney.1837 B. Disraeli Venetia I. 26 The rich living was in the gift of the Herberts.a1854 H. Reed Lect. Eng. Lit. (1878) iv. 126 Language always makes gift of its best wealth to a great poet.1857 T. Hughes Tom Brown's School Days i. ix. 216 Wouldn't have'em at a gift.1888 J. Bryce Amer. Commonw. II. lxv. 486 The minor appointive offices which lie in his own gift.proverbial.1583 W. Fulke Def. Transl. Script. xv. 403 The prouerb is, what is so free as gift?

†b. to give a gift (= earlier to give a give): to give assurance that. Obsolete. (See give v.)

2. Law.

a. The transference of property in a thing by one person to another, voluntarily and without any valuable consideration.

ΘΚΠ

society > law > transfer of property > types of transfer > [noun] > transference without consideration

giftc1471

donation1651

α.

1480–1 in Hist. MSS Comm.: 10th Rep.: App. Pt. V: MSS Marquis of Ormonde &c. (1885) 314 in Parl. Papers (C. 4576-I) XLII. 1 The saide feftments, yefts, graunts, and lesses.

1483 Act 1 Rich. III c. i. §1 Every astate feoffement yeft relesse graunte lesis and confirmacion of landys.

γ. c1471 Inventory of Papers in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 444 A box wyth the dede off gyfft off J.P.1558 in J. Stuart Extracts Council Reg. Aberdeen (1844) I. 314 Be this our letter of gyft and donatioune.1590 H. Swinburne Briefe Treat. Test. & Willes i. f. 16 Of gifts in case of death there be three sortes.c1590 C. Marlowe Faustus v. 35 And write a deed of gift with thine own blood.1613 in S. Tymms Wills & Inventories Bury St. Edmunds (1850) 162 As I and the said Edmond longe agoe did give vnto her by a jointe deede of guift.1767 W. Blackstone Comm. Laws Eng. (new ed.) II. 440 Gifts are always gratuitous, grants are upon some consideration or equivalent.1838 Penny Cycl. XI. 217/2 To complete a gift of goods and chattels delivery is absolutely necessary.figurative.1729 E. Erskine in Agnew Theol. Consolat. (1881) 109 There is a deed of gift or grant made by the Father to all the hearers of the Gospel.

b. (See quots. 1804, 1875.)

ΘΚΠ

society > law > transfer of property > types of transfer > [noun] > conveyance of an estate tail

gift1804

1804 W. Cruise Digest Laws Eng. Real Prop. IV. 111 A gift, donatio, is properly applied to the creation of an estate tail, as a feoffment is to that of an estate in fee-simple.

1827 T. Jarman Powell's Ess. Learning of Devises (ed. 3) II. 295 The word ‘against’ was construed without, to make it alternative to the other gift.

1875 K. E. Digby Introd. Hist. Law Real Prop. x. 331 A feoffment was technically confined to an estate in fee simple, the conveyance of an estate tail by the same process was technically called a gift.

II. The thing given.

a. Something, the possession of which is transferred to another without the expectation or receipt of an equivalent; a donation, present. Also preceded by qualifying words, as Christmas-gift, Easter-gift, New Year's gift, etc. Grecian gift (see Virgil's Æneid ii. 49): some seeming favour or concession on the part of an enemy, suspected to be offered with sinister motive.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > possession > giving > gift or present > [noun]

givec888

lakeOE

presentc1230

giftc1275

garrison1297

benefit1377

beneficec1380

givinga1382

handsela1393

donativec1430

oblation1433

propine1448

presentationc1460

don1524

sportule1538

premie?1548

first penny1557

donation1577

exhibition1579

donary1582

fairing1584

merced1589

gifture1592

meed1613

recado1615

regalo1622

regale1649

dation1656

compliment1702

dashee1705

dash1788

cadeau1808

bestowment1837

potlatch1844

prez.1919

Harry Freeman's1925

pressie1933

α.

c1275 Laȝamon Brut 1790 Þo hafde Brutus þe ȝeft: þat Dyanne him bi-hehte.

a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 1416 Ðe broðer and de moder oc Riche giftes eliezer ð[o] toc.

a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 5357 Sterne stedes & strong, & oþer stoute ȝiftes.

1401 Pol. Poems (Rolls) II. 27 Why make ye not your feasts to poore men, and yeveth him yefts, as yee done to the rich.

1422 J. Yonge tr. Secreta Secret. xxxi. 173 A wyse and a worthy man þat lowid not yftis to rescewe.

c1450 Godstow Reg. 177 Þ^e yfte þat Raf þ^e sone of wayfere & hys heyrys made.

1484 W. Caxton tr. G. de la Tour-Landry Bk. Knight of Tower (1971) xxiii. 43 I praye yow alle that it plese yow to graunte me a bone & a yefte.

1486 in E. Hobhouse Church-wardens' Accts. (1890) 15 John a Dene owth for the yfte of hys syster iij selver sponys..xxs.

β. 1447 O. Bokenham Lyvys Seyntys (1835) 46 Be nathan david sone also ȝyfth or thynge ȝoven is signyfyed.γ. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 3339 Ilkan gaue he giftes sere.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 3319 He hir gaue a gift onan, A gold ring.c1460 Launfal 67 The quene yaf gyftes for the nones..Her curtasye to kythe.1539 R. Taverner tr. Erasmus Prouerbes sig. D.ij The mynde of gyftes is best.1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry VIII f. lxvij Also that you..shall confesse that you receiue the citie as a gift, and not rendred as a right to the kyng your Master.1585 T. Washington tr. N. de Nicolay Nauigations Turkie iii. xxii. 112 [They] went through the city demanding their new yeres gifts of al those they met.1632 R. Sanderson 12 Serm. 491 The one eye vpon the guift and the other vpon the Giver.1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iv. 735 Both when we wake, And when we seek, as now, thy gift of sleep. 1782 W. Cowper Hope in Poems 147 Life is his gift, from whom whate'er life needs, And ev'ry good and perfect gift proceeds.1832 S. R. Maitland Albigenses & Waldenses iii. 66 The candour of Gibbon is..so remarkable that I wonder Milner did not reject the Grecian gift.1884 R. Browning Ferishtah's Fancies (1885) 38 Giving is giving, gift claims gift's return.Proverbs.c1460 How Gd. Wif taught hir Dau. 70 in W. C. Hazlitt Remains Early Pop. Poetry Eng. I. 185 Bounden he is that ȝifte takithe, my dere childe.1546 J. Heywood Dialogue Prouerbes Eng. Tongue i. xi. sig. Div^v Throwe no gyft agayne at the giuers head.

b. Something of value proceeding from a specified source, quasi-personified as a giver.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > possession > giving > gift or present > [noun] > something of value received as

gooda1375

gift1796

1796 H. Hunter tr. J.-H. B. de Saint-Pierre Stud. Nature (1799) I. 252 These precious gifts of the Waters [fisheries] are presented to all Nations.

1872 J. Morley Voltaire i. 3 The ever-living gifts of Grecian art and architecture and letters.

†c. A fee for services rendered. Obsolete. rare.

ΘΚΠ

society > trade and finance > fees and taxes > payment for labour or service > fee for services rendered > [noun]

salaryc1440

gift1477

fee1599

1477 W. Pecock in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) II. 423 Hery Cook wold goo with youre swanys, for his yefte chuld be vj s. viij d., and there-fore he wold yeffe you his labore be so ye payd for his costys.

†d. plural. Applied to almshouses founded by a specified person. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > dwelling place or abode > institutional homes > [noun] > for the poor, infirm, etc.

bead-housec1160

spittle?c1225

spittle-housec1315

maison dieu1354

almshouse1395

hospital14..

God's house1425

hospitality1571

townhouse1597

guest house1600

gifts1651

college1694

asylum1776

hospice1818

group home1873

pogey1891

1651 T. Barker Art of Angling Epist. I live in Henry the 7th's Gifts.

e. In kindergartens: one of a series of educative toys designed to develop the child's powers of observation, etc.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > entertainment > toy or plaything > [noun] > educational toy

gift1855

1855 E. von Wickerode tr. Von Marenholtz Woman's Educ. Mission 19 The little gymnastic games for the hands and fingers connected with the ‘First Gift’, answer the triple end of amusing, occupying, and educating the infant.

1892 C. M. Yonge That Stick II. xxxix. 195 The elder children..were busied..in building up coloured cubes, ‘gifts’ in Kindergarten parlance.

1892 C. M. Yonge Old Woman's Outlook 80 Children are supposed to learn multiplication rationally by proof on the abacus frame, or by the ‘gifts’ of the Kindergarten.

1905 J. H. Boardman Educ. Ideas of Froebel & Pestalozzi iv. 48 According to the general definition of the term, there are altogether twenty Gifts, although most Kindergartners now limit the name to the first six or seven.

4. An offering to God or to a heathen deity.

ΚΠ

α.

c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Matt. v. 24 Leeue there thi ȝift before the auter.

1490 W. Caxton tr. Foure Sonnes of Aymon (1885) xvii. 390 He..offred a riche yefte vpon the awter.

γ. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 10218 Ilkan þan to þe temple broght Sirekin gift after þai moght.1597 R. Hooker Of Lawes Eccl. Politie v. xxxiv. 70 Gifts are offered vnto God not as supplies of his want.1611 Bible (King James) Matt. v. 23, 24. 1895 Daily News 30 Oct. 4/7 The Deodand, or gift to God.

5. Something given with a corrupting intention; a bribe. Obsolete as a specific sense.The existence of this sense seems to be implied in:

a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 17464 Þai war for gifte [read forgifte, bribed] þe soth to hele.

ΘΚΠ

society > trade and finance > fees and taxes > illegal payment or exaction > [noun]

gift1382

juice1935

mordida1940

society > trade and finance > fees and taxes > illegal payment or exaction > [noun] > bribe

gift1382

handy-dandyc1390

pricec1400

bud1436

bribe?a1439

golden (also silver) keyc1450

fee1549

golden shower1589

oil of angels1592

sugar-plum1608

bribera1616

palm oil1625

greasinga1661

sop1665

sweetbreada1670

vail1687

douceur1739

sweetener1741

bonus1759

buckshee1773

smear-gelt1785

grease1823

boodle?1856

soap1860

ice1887

palm-grease1897

poultice1902

fix1929

dropsy1930

pay-off1930

drop1931

oil1935

squeeze-pidgin1946

sling1948

bung1958

back-hander1960

α.

1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) Deut. xvi. 19 Thou shalt not accept persone, ne ȝiftis, for ȝiftis blynden eyen of wise men.

c1390 (a1376) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Vernon) (1867) A. iii. 90 Fuir schal falle and brenne atte laste Þe houses and þe homes of hem þat desyreþ For to haue ȝiftes.

γ. 1549 H. Latimer 2nd Serm. before Kynges Maiestie 3rd Serm. sig. Gvi Wo worth these giftes, they subuert iustyce euerye where.1594 Willobie his Auisa xlvii. f. 43^v For giftes the wysest will deceaue.1611 Bible (King James) 2 Chron. xix. 7 There is no iniquitie with the Lord our God..nor taking of gifts .

a. A faculty, power, or quality miraculously bestowed, e.g. upon the apostles and other early Christians; a Christian virtue looked upon as an emanation from the Holy Ghost; extended further to endowments bestowed by heathen deities or some supernatural agent; occasionally in sense of inspiration. the gift of tongues: see tongue n. 8c.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > ability > [noun] > ability or talent > a talent or special ability > miraculously bestowed

giftc1175

α.

c1175 Lamb. Hom. 69 We ne maȝen þe fond from us driue, ne mid sworde ne mid kniue, bute hit beo þurh godes ȝifte.

c1230 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Corpus Cambr.) (1962) 17 For þe seoue ȝiftes of þe hali gast þet ich ham mote habben.

c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Deeds viii. 20 Thou gessidist the ȝifte of God for to be had..by money.

c1449 R. Pecock Repressor (1860) 181 The ȝiftis of gracis, the glories of heuen bihiȝt ben to alle Cristene passyng greete benefetis.

a1500 in Bernardus de Cura Rei Fam. 36 Of all yhiftes þat gode yevith to man.

β. 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 200 Nou we willeþ zigge uerst of þe yefþe of onderstondinge be þan þet þe holy gost wile ous teche.γ. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 19007 Of haligast þe giftes sere, Gin us he has als yee se here.c1515 Ld. Berners tr. Bk. Duke Huon of Burdeux (1882–7) lxxxiv. 265 Amonge other [ladyes of y^e fayrye] there was one that gaue me y^e gyft to be suche one as ye se that I am.1605 W. Camden Remaines i. 4 That admirable gift hereditary to the annoynted Princes of this Realme, in curing the Kings Evil.1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iv. 715 Pandora, whom the Gods Endowd with all thir gifts . 1704 R. Nelson Compan. Festivals & Fasts i. xii. 127 Having a Power to impart the same Gift to others.1709 J. Strype Ann. Reformation xxv. 254 He did begin to write, but he could bring nothing to pass: his Gift was not come to him.1732 G. Berkeley Serm. to Soc. Propagation Gospel in Wks. (1871) III. 241 We have not the gift of miracles.1834 J. H. Newman Parochial Serm. I. i. 13 To obtain the gift of holiness is the work of a life.1875 H. E. Manning Internal Mission of Holy Ghost xiii. 359 Now the gift of intellect or understanding is precisely that gift of the Holy Spirit which enables us to understand the meaning of what we believe.1876 J. B. Mozley Univ. Serm. (1877) xi. 216 Faith is not only an excellent gift, a sublime gift, but it is a gift full of present happiness.

b. A natural endowment, faculty, ability, or talent. Also natural gift, gift of God (also nature). gift of the gab (colloquial): see gab n.¹ 1a.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > ability > [noun] > ability or talent > a talent or special ability

gifta1300

dowerc1375

dowryc1440

faculty1490

indument1527

dote1546

furniture1561

vein1568

talent1602

acquirement1607

enduement1609

endowmentc1610

genius1611

congruity1659

feeling1808

feel1891

a1300 Cursor Mundi 23892 Sum for mar and sum for less, Efter þat vr giftes ess.

?1504 W. Atkinson tr. Thomas à Kempis Ful Treat. Imytacyon Cryste (Pynson) iii. lx. 252 Gyftes of nature be gyuen Indyfferentlye to good folke and euyll.

1573 J. Sanford tr. L. Guicciardini Hours Recreat. (1576) Ep. Ded. sig. A 5 Hir vertues and giftes of minde.

1588 J. Udall Demonstr. Trueth of Discipline xi. 49 For some hath an excellent gift in doctrine, and not in application.

1597 T. Morley Plaine & Easie Introd. Musicke 115 Imagining that all the guiftes of God should die in themselues, if they should bee taken out of the worlde.

1647 N. Bacon Hist. Disc. Govt. 19 Austen had also a gift or trick of working miracles.

1693 S. Harvey in J. Dryden tr. Juvenal Satires ix. 179 The Gifts of Nature, what will they avail?

1710 S. Sewall Diary 2 Dec. (1973) II. 648 I have heard he had a good Gift in Prayer.

1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 128. ¶1 As Vivacity is the Gift of Women, Gravity is that of Men.

1769 ‘Junius’ Stat Nominis Umbra (1772) I. i. 13 Nature has been sparing of her gifts to this noble lord.

1814 W. Wordsworth Excursion i. 7 Endowed with highest gifts, The vision and the faculty divine.

1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. II. vii. 229 He was in the habit of exercising his spiritual gifts at their meetings.

1856 B. Brodie Psychol. Inq. (ed. 3) I. i. 29 The faculty of reasoning correctly..is for the most part a natural gift.

1871 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest (1876) IV. xvii. 99 He was displaying in Normandy the gifts of the wise lawgiver and firm administrator.

1882 C. Pebody Eng. Journalism xix. 144 The precise gifts that are needed in a special correspondent.

1888 J. Bryce Amer. Commonw. II. liii. 328 His [sc. A. Hamilton's] countrymen seem to have never..duly recognized his splendid gifts.

7. slang. (See quots.)

ΚΠ

1832 Examiner 187/2 [They] asked him if he would join them in a good thing, which was to carry away a landlord's till of money, and that it would be a ‘gift’ (an easy task).

1859 J. C. Hotten Dict. Slang Gift, any article which has been stolen and afterwards sold at a low price.

8. A white speck on the finger-nails, supposed to portend a gift.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > mental capacity > expectation > foresight, foreknowledge > prediction, foretelling > an omen, sign, portent > [noun] > a good omen > speck on fingernail

gift1708

1708 Brit. Apollo 7–9 Apr. Q. What is the Cause of little white Spots, which sometimes grow under the Nails of the Fingers? And what is the reason they say they are Gifts? A. The reason of their being call'd Gifts is as Wise an one as that of Letters, Winding Sheets, &c. in a Candle.

1796 Grose's Classical Dict. Vulgar Tongue (ed. 3)

1854 C. Knight Once upon a Time II. 269 We showed each other the gifts on our nails.

1886 in R. Holland Gloss. Words County of Chester Suppl.

Compounds

C1. General attributive.

gift-copy n.

ΚΠ

1832 Mrs. Trollope in A. G. L'Estrange Friendships M. R. Mitford (1882) I. 238 Mr. Howe told him that all the gift copies were already sent.

gift-money n.

ΚΠ

1548 N. Udall et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. I. Mark i. f. 12–15 Thou haste receyued the holy ghoste as it were gifte money, a bond, and an earnest penye of thy salarye.

gift-package n.

ΚΠ

1897 L. H. Bailey Princ. Fruit-growing 416 In all the finest fruits the grower should use nothing but a gift-package, that is, one which is given away with the fruit when it is sold.

gift-picture n.

ΚΠ

1862 G. W. Thornbury Life J. M. W. Turner II. 128 Men never valued gift pictures so much as those in which they had invested money.

C2. Objective.

gift-bearer n.

ΚΠ

1483 Cath. Angl. 155/2 A Gift berer, doniferus, munifer.

gift-giving n.

ΚΠ

1937 M. Mead Cooperation & Competition among Primitive Peoples i. 22 All this importation is phrased as gift giving between devoted friends.

1949 M. Mead Male & Female 408 The fish were then exchanged in a gift-giving context.

1959 I. Opie & P. Opie Lore & Lang. Schoolchildren xii. 236 Sometimes..the older children take advantage of the gift-giving and play tricks.

gift-taker n.

ΚΠ

1549 H. Latimer 2nd Serm. before Kynges Maiestie 3rd Serm. sig. Hv^v He was no gyfte taker, he was no wynker, he was no bywalker.

† gift-greedy adj. Obsolete

ΚΠ

?1611 G. Chapman tr. Homer Iliads iv. 118 With this, the mad- gift-greedie man, Minerua did perswade.

C3. Instrumental.

gift-laden adj.

ΚΠ

1895 Daily News 27 Dec. 2/5 A giant Christmas tree, constituted of some hundreds of the gift-laden firs of the nursery.

C4.

gift-book n. a book given as a present; a book published in an attractive form, such as is suitable for a present, a school prize, etc.

ΘΚΠ

society > communication > book > kind of book > [noun] > books intended as gifts or prizes

presentation copy1753

prize book1798

souvenir1798

reward book1801

leaving book1829

gift-book1834

1834 Knickerbocker 3 113 It is, I believe, your standing gift-book.

1842 (title) The royal gift book for the young.

1848 D. Vedder (title) The pictorial giftbook of lays and lithography.

1868 Publisher's Pref. to Watts' Improv. Mind As a gift-book to advanced scholars it is most appropriate.

1886 T. Frost Reminisc. Country Journalist viii. 94 They..wished to use them [engravings] in the production of a gift-book.

gift bookstore n. U.S. a bookshop conducted as a ‘gift enterprise’.

ΚΠ

1873 W. Mathews Getting on in World vii. 100 To-day some shrewd Yankee starts a ‘gift’ bookstore, and immediately all the newspapers in the land are flooded with advertisements of gift enterprises.

gift coupon n. a coupon issued with certain commodities, a specified number of which entitles the holder to a free gift.

ΚΠ

1931 Morning Post 18 Feb. 6/5 The ‘Gift’ Coupon system.

1933 D. L. Sayers Murder must Advertise iv. 54 It only needed the alteration of a sentence and the introduction of a panel about gift-coupons.

gift-deed n. U.S. a deed of gift.

ΚΠ

1855 P. T. Barnum Life 10 My delighted ancestor..handed to my mother a gift-deed in my behalf, of five acres of land.

gift-enterprise n. U.S. (see quot. 1893).

ΚΠ

1893 I. K. Funk et al. Standard Dict. Eng. Lang. I Gift-enterprise, a business that offers gifts to secure patrons or purchasers.

gift-exchange n. (see quot. 1963).

ΚΠ

1936 R. Linton Study of Man 144 All trade was phrased in terms of gift exchange.

1951 R. Firth Elements Social Organization i. 21 Such diverse social relations as buying and selling, gift-exchange, [etc.].

1963 Brit. Jrnl. Sociol. 14 26 Gift exchange..describes a type of transaction which formally consists in the making of a gift and its repayment by another.

gift-food n. food given in charity.

ΚΠ

1865 Daily Tel. 6 Dec. 4/5 The danger was..that the dangerous habit of living upon gift-food would demoralise the recipients.

gift-horse n. a horse given as a present: see also horse n. 21.

ΚΠ

1663 S. Butler Hudibras: First Pt. i. i. 37 He ne'er consider'd it, as loath To look a gift-horse in the mouth.

1837 W. Irving Adventures Capt. Bonneville II. 249 The Captain..put spurs to his very fine gift-horse.

gift-house n. (see quot.).

ΚΠ

1893 J. S. Farmer Slang Gift-house (or Gift), (printers'), a club; a house of call; specifically for the purpose of finding employment, or providing allowances for members.

† gift-sermon n. Obsolete a sermon that is paid for by an endowment.

ΘΚΠ

society > faith > worship > preaching > [noun] > instance of > paid for by endowment

gift-sermon1766

1766 J. Entick Surv. London in New Hist. London IV. 64 Here is a gift-sermon every Tuesday..well endowed by lady Cambden.

gift shop n. originally U.S. a shop dealing in articles suitable for gifts; also with pseudo-archaic spelling, gifte-shoppe.

ΘΚΠ

society > trade and finance > trading place > place where retail transactions made > [noun] > shop > shop selling fancy goods or curios

gaudy-shopa1627

toy shop1691

knick-knackatory1702

knackatory1709

bazaar1807

curiosity-shop1818

bric-a-brac shop1840

novelty store1874

novelty shop1893

odditorium1914

gift shop1918

curio-shop1920

1918 C. Wells Vicky Van i. 10 Little faddly prize bags of gift-shop novelties are her stakes.

1929 Amer. Mag. Jan. 127/2 The general arting up they have done, with regard to cottages, tea rooms, gift shops..must have had its effect.

1932 E. Bowen To North xxi. 229 There are too many shops... Especially gift shops.

1948 J. Cannan Little I Understood xi. 136 Expensive and financially unstable gifte shoppes.

gift store n. U.S. = gift-enterprise n.

ΚΠ

1872 T. De W. Talmage Abominations of Mod. Soc. 177 In this class of gambler-makers I also put the ‘gift stores’.

gift-token n. a voucher (intended to serve as a gift) for a sum of money to pay for the purchase of an article.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > possession > giving > gift or present > [noun] > gift token or voucher

gift certificate1900

gift-token1963

gift card1990

1963 She Dec. 51 Best leg forward in 1964 with a gift token for nylon stockings.

gift-tree n. U.S. a tree on which gifts for distribution are hung; a Christmas tree.

ΚΠ

1898 H. S. Canfield Maid of Frontier 117 The little church where the gift-tree festivities were in progress.

gift-voucher n. = gift-token n.

ΚΠ

1963 She Dec. 51 Make life easier for a hard-working house-wife whose feet are killing her with a Scholl Gift Voucher entitling her to one or a set of foot massaging sessions.

1969 Times 17 Dec. 18/5 (advt.) Who's lucky? Everybody who gets a gift voucher for two tickets.

gift-wrap v. originally U.S. transitive to wrap (an article intended as a gift) attractively; also absol. and figurative.

ΚΠ

1936 Amer. Speech 11 101/1 During the holiday season many department stores advertised, ‘We Gift-Wrap Here.’

1948 in Amer. Speech (1956) 31 210 Ready to gift-wrap your package.

1958 Economist 20 Dec. 1083/2 Whatever he buys will be professionally gift-wrapped for him.

1969 New Yorker 11 Oct. 146/3 (advt.) We gift wrap and ship everywhere.

gift-wrapped adj.

1964 Punch 16 Dec. 936/3 People..pile them [sc. cars] up with gift-wrapped presents.

gift-wrapping n. (also attributive)

1949 Word Study May 8/1 (caption to cartoon) Gift Wrapping.

1963 M. McCarthy Group xi. 240 They also sold..Valentines and gift-wrapping paper.

Draft additions June 2016

gift certificate n. a voucher given as a present and exchangeable for goods to a specified value, often at a particular store; a gift token.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > possession > giving > gift or present > [noun] > gift token or voucher

gift certificate1900

gift-token1963

gift card1990

1900 Indianapolis Sun 3 Dec. (advt.) A superb assortment of jewelry and fancy goods... When in doubt buy a gift certificate.

1936 Quill & Quire Oct. 14/1 Book Tokens are gift certificates, resembling a folding greeting card in appearance, to be bought by the sender and sent to the intended recipient; so that the latter may select any book desired at the price indicated on the Token.

2005 J. MacGregor Sunday Money i. 8 Of these last things we cherished two above all: $100 worth of McDonald's gift certificates tied up in a white satin ribbon, and an ‘I heart NY’ bumper sticker.

Draft additions 1993

gift wrap n. a gift-wrapping, (originally U.S.) wrapping-paper for a gift.

ΚΠ

1971 Woman 4 Dec. 78 (advt.) This Christmas you can buy her Miss Lenthéric [toiletries] in special gift wraps from 57p.

1980 Christian Sci. Monitor 4 Dec. (Midwestern ed.) b8/3 (advt.) We also have Hallmark gift wrap.

1985 Company Dec. 51/1 As for giftwrap and all that time wasted pulling the ends of shiny ribbon with the scissor blades..that is decidedly out.

Draft additions September 2012

gift aid n. (a) U.S. financial aid which is not required to be repaid; (b) British (with capital initials) a scheme enabling registered charities to reclaim the basic rate tax on a donation made by a U.K. taxpayer (with authorization from the donor), effectively increasing the amount of the donation.

ΚΠ

1933 Chicago Tribune 31 Mar. 2/2 (heading) Senate passes bill for gift aid for states.

1990 PR Newswire (Nexis) 20 Mar. New income tax relief for single donations by individuals equal to or more than the payroll giving limit of 600 pounds (Gift Aid).

1995 Which? Tax Saving Guide 65/4 If your husband or wife pays tax but you don't, it would be better if they made the family's charitable donations using covenants or Gift Aid.

2003 R. H. Miller & K. F. Koegler Business School Confidential vii. 84 Gift aid, such as grants or scholarships, is clearly the best type of financial aid to receive, for, as the name implies, it does not require you to pay it back.

Draft additions March 2021

gift card n. a card or token that can be exchanged for a specified cash value of goods or services from a particular business, given as a gift.Now often issued digitally.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > possession > giving > gift or present > [noun] > gift token or voucher

gift certificate1900

gift-token1963

gift card1990

1990 Jerusalem Post 14 Sept. (Gifts suppl.) C/2 (advt.) Present her with the shocking-pink gift card, which will entitle her to whatever your budget can stand.

2001 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 24 Dec. a3/2 (advt.) With the Lord & Taylor gift card, you can give any amount from $10 to $500.

2018 @outlawjj2000 12 July in twitter.com (accessed 30 Sept. 2020) Happy Birthday! I just emailed a gift card to you. I hope you enjoy it.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1899; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	gift
释义	giftn.¹ Brit. /ɡɪft/, U.S. /ɡɪft/ Forms: α. Old English gift, gyft, Middle English ȝift(e, (Middle English ȝiefte), Middle English ȝeft, Middle English ȝyft(e, Middle English–1500s yeft(e, (Middle English ȝefft, yeffe, yhifte, yifte, yyft, yft(e, 1500s yeffte). β. Middle English yefþe, -the, Middle English ȝyfth. γ. Middle English–1500s gifte, gyft(e, 1500s gyfft, (Middle English giuete, Middle English gifit, giftt, 1500s gefte, gieft), Middle English, 1500s, 1600s guift(e, Middle English– gift. Etymology: Common Germanic: Old English gift strong feminine (recorded only in the sense ‘payment for a wife’, and in the plural with the sense ‘wedding’) corresponds to Old Frisian jeft (feminine), gift, Middle Dutch gift(e (Dutch gift (feminine), gift, gift neuter, now more commonly gif , poison), Old High German gift (feminine), gift, poison (Middle High German, modern German gift (feminine), gift, neuter, poison), Old Norse gift , usually written gipt gift (Swedish, Danish -gift in compounds), plural giptar a wedding, Gothic -gifts in compounds < Old Germanic gifti-z (feminine), < root geƀ- give v.The Old English sense does not appear to have survived into Middle English; the α and β forms are perhaps new formations from the verb, while the γ type, to which the modern English form belongs, is probably (as the guttural seems to show) adopted < Old Norse. I. Giving. 1. a. The action of giving, an instance of the same; a giving, bestowal. †of gift: as a gift, gratuitously, for nothing; also of free gift. (I would not have it) at a gift (colloquial): at the price of nothing; even as a gift. †of a person's gift: of his giving, as his gift. Also, the power or right of giving, in in (also †of) a person's gift. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > giving > [noun] givec1275 gifta1300 giving13.. donationc1425 gifture1503 rendering1523 donature1629 α. c1300 K. Alis. (Laud) 4682 What wiþ ȝifte what wiþ queyntise Alle he wan hem to his seruyse. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 5090 Ȝoure sackes shal I fille of ȝift [Vesp. o gift]. c1400 Rom. Rose 3663 I wolde gladly..Have a cos therof freely Of your yeft. 1475 Bk. Noblesse (1860) 22 William..was righte duke of Normandie by yeft of Charlys the symple, king of Fraunce. 1503 in E. Hobhouse Church-wardens' Accts. (1890) 28 Of the yefte of Alsun Abbot a payr of beds of jett. γ. a1300 Cursor Mundi 28760 Þe thrid almus es gift of hand, or elles in word or werk helpand.1357 Lay Folks Catech. 25 Thai had it of goddes giftt at thaire begynnyng.1523 J. Fitzherbert Bk. Surueyeng xvi. f. 29 It is to be enquered of all y^e churches that belong to the lordes gyft, how many there be & where they be, & what they be worthe.1583 C. Hollyband Campo di Fior 109 But canst thou not haue of gifte the filth which is painted on thy handes and necke?1589 C. Ockland in H. Ellis Orig. Lett. Eminent Literary Men (1843) (Camden) 71 For thei be of my Lorde of Warwikes gyfte.1596 E. Spenser Second Pt. Faerie Queene v. x. sig. V6 Therefore these two, her eldest sonnes she sent, To seeke for succour of this Ladies gieft . View more context for this quotation1650 T. Fuller Pisgah-sight of Palestine iii. 359 This floor David bought of Araunah the Jebusite, from whom he would not take it of gift.1651 T. Hobbes Leviathan ii. xxi. 108 When we say a Guift is Free, there is not meant any Liberty of the Guift, but of the Giver.1679–88 in J. Y. Akerman Moneys Secret Services Charles II & James II (1851) (Camden) 27 To Lieu^t Anthony Heyford, as of free guift 30li. os. od.1692 R. South 12 Serm. I. 547 No man has any Antecedent Right or Claim to that which comes to him by free gift.1785 W. Cowper Let. 31 Dec. (1981) II. 438 A gift of Bedding to the Poor of Olney.1837 B. Disraeli Venetia I. 26 The rich living was in the gift of the Herberts.a1854 H. Reed Lect. Eng. Lit. (1878) iv. 126 Language always makes gift of its best wealth to a great poet.1857 T. Hughes Tom Brown's School Days i. ix. 216 Wouldn't have'em at a gift.1888 J. Bryce Amer. Commonw. II. lxv. 486 The minor appointive offices which lie in his own gift.proverbial.1583 W. Fulke Def. Transl. Script. xv. 403 The prouerb is, what is so free as gift? †b. to give a gift (= earlier to give a give): to give assurance that. Obsolete. (See give v.) 2. Law. a. The transference of property in a thing by one person to another, voluntarily and without any valuable consideration. ΘΚΠ society > law > transfer of property > types of transfer > [noun] > transference without consideration giftc1471 donation1651 α. 1480–1 in Hist. MSS Comm.: 10th Rep.: App. Pt. V: MSS Marquis of Ormonde &c. (1885) 314 in Parl. Papers (C. 4576-I) XLII. 1 The saide feftments, yefts, graunts, and lesses. 1483 Act 1 Rich. III c. i. §1 Every astate feoffement yeft relesse graunte lesis and confirmacion of landys. γ. c1471 Inventory of Papers in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 444 A box wyth the dede off gyfft off J.P.1558 in J. Stuart Extracts Council Reg. Aberdeen (1844) I. 314 Be this our letter of gyft and donatioune.1590 H. Swinburne Briefe Treat. Test. & Willes i. f. 16 Of gifts in case of death there be three sortes.c1590 C. Marlowe Faustus v. 35 And write a deed of gift with thine own blood.1613 in S. Tymms Wills & Inventories Bury St. Edmunds (1850) 162 As I and the said Edmond longe agoe did give vnto her by a jointe deede of guift.1767 W. Blackstone Comm. Laws Eng. (new ed.) II. 440 Gifts are always gratuitous, grants are upon some consideration or equivalent.1838 Penny Cycl. XI. 217/2 To complete a gift of goods and chattels delivery is absolutely necessary.figurative.1729 E. Erskine in Agnew Theol. Consolat. (1881) 109 There is a deed of gift or grant made by the Father to all the hearers of the Gospel. b. (See quots. 1804, 1875.) ΘΚΠ society > law > transfer of property > types of transfer > [noun] > conveyance of an estate tail gift1804 1804 W. Cruise Digest Laws Eng. Real Prop. IV. 111 A gift, donatio, is properly applied to the creation of an estate tail, as a feoffment is to that of an estate in fee-simple. 1827 T. Jarman Powell's Ess. Learning of Devises (ed. 3) II. 295 The word ‘against’ was construed without, to make it alternative to the other gift. 1875 K. E. Digby Introd. Hist. Law Real Prop. x. 331 A feoffment was technically confined to an estate in fee simple, the conveyance of an estate tail by the same process was technically called a gift. II. The thing given. 3. a. Something, the possession of which is transferred to another without the expectation or receipt of an equivalent; a donation, present. Also preceded by qualifying words, as Christmas-gift, Easter-gift, New Year's gift, etc. Grecian gift (see Virgil's Æneid ii. 49): some seeming favour or concession on the part of an enemy, suspected to be offered with sinister motive. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > giving > gift or present > [noun] givec888 lakeOE presentc1230 giftc1275 garrison1297 benefit1377 beneficec1380 givinga1382 handsela1393 donativec1430 oblation1433 propine1448 presentationc1460 don1524 sportule1538 premie?1548 first penny1557 donation1577 exhibition1579 donary1582 fairing1584 merced1589 gifture1592 meed1613 recado1615 regalo1622 regale1649 dation1656 compliment1702 dashee1705 dash1788 cadeau1808 bestowment1837 potlatch1844 prez.1919 Harry Freeman's1925 pressie1933 α. c1275 Laȝamon Brut 1790 Þo hafde Brutus þe ȝeft: þat Dyanne him bi-hehte. a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 1416 Ðe broðer and de moder oc Riche giftes eliezer ð[o] toc. a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 5357 Sterne stedes & strong, & oþer stoute ȝiftes. 1401 Pol. Poems (Rolls) II. 27 Why make ye not your feasts to poore men, and yeveth him yefts, as yee done to the rich. 1422 J. Yonge tr. Secreta Secret. xxxi. 173 A wyse and a worthy man þat lowid not yftis to rescewe. c1450 Godstow Reg. 177 Þ^e yfte þat Raf þ^e sone of wayfere & hys heyrys made. 1484 W. Caxton tr. G. de la Tour-Landry Bk. Knight of Tower (1971) xxiii. 43 I praye yow alle that it plese yow to graunte me a bone & a yefte. 1486 in E. Hobhouse Church-wardens' Accts. (1890) 15 John a Dene owth for the yfte of hys syster iij selver sponys..xxs. β. 1447 O. Bokenham Lyvys Seyntys (1835) 46 Be nathan david sone also ȝyfth or thynge ȝoven is signyfyed.γ. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 3339 Ilkan gaue he giftes sere.a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 3319 He hir gaue a gift onan, A gold ring.c1460 Launfal 67 The quene yaf gyftes for the nones..Her curtasye to kythe.1539 R. Taverner tr. Erasmus Prouerbes sig. D.ij The mynde of gyftes is best.1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry VIII f. lxvij Also that you..shall confesse that you receiue the citie as a gift, and not rendred as a right to the kyng your Master.1585 T. Washington tr. N. de Nicolay Nauigations Turkie iii. xxii. 112 [They] went through the city demanding their new yeres gifts of al those they met.1632 R. Sanderson 12 Serm. 491 The one eye vpon the guift and the other vpon the Giver.1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iv. 735 Both when we wake, And when we seek, as now, thy gift of sleep. View more context for this quotation1782 W. Cowper Hope in Poems 147 Life is his gift, from whom whate'er life needs, And ev'ry good and perfect gift proceeds.1832 S. R. Maitland Albigenses & Waldenses iii. 66 The candour of Gibbon is..so remarkable that I wonder Milner did not reject the Grecian gift.1884 R. Browning Ferishtah's Fancies (1885) 38 Giving is giving, gift claims gift's return.Proverbs.c1460 How Gd. Wif taught hir Dau. 70 in W. C. Hazlitt Remains Early Pop. Poetry Eng. I. 185 Bounden he is that ȝifte takithe, my dere childe.1546 J. Heywood Dialogue Prouerbes Eng. Tongue i. xi. sig. Div^v Throwe no gyft agayne at the giuers head. b. Something of value proceeding from a specified source, quasi-personified as a giver. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > giving > gift or present > [noun] > something of value received as gooda1375 gift1796 1796 H. Hunter tr. J.-H. B. de Saint-Pierre Stud. Nature (1799) I. 252 These precious gifts of the Waters [fisheries] are presented to all Nations. 1872 J. Morley Voltaire i. 3 The ever-living gifts of Grecian art and architecture and letters. †c. A fee for services rendered. Obsolete. rare. ΘΚΠ society > trade and finance > fees and taxes > payment for labour or service > fee for services rendered > [noun] salaryc1440 gift1477 fee1599 1477 W. Pecock in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) II. 423 Hery Cook wold goo with youre swanys, for his yefte chuld be vj s. viij d., and there-fore he wold yeffe you his labore be so ye payd for his costys. †d. plural. Applied to almshouses founded by a specified person. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ society > inhabiting and dwelling > inhabited place > dwelling place or abode > institutional homes > [noun] > for the poor, infirm, etc. bead-housec1160 spittle?c1225 spittle-housec1315 maison dieu1354 almshouse1395 hospital14.. God's house1425 hospitality1571 townhouse1597 guest house1600 gifts1651 college1694 asylum1776 hospice1818 group home1873 pogey1891 1651 T. Barker Art of Angling Epist. I live in Henry the 7th's Gifts. e. In kindergartens: one of a series of educative toys designed to develop the child's powers of observation, etc. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > entertainment > toy or plaything > [noun] > educational toy gift1855 1855 E. von Wickerode tr. Von Marenholtz Woman's Educ. Mission 19 The little gymnastic games for the hands and fingers connected with the ‘First Gift’, answer the triple end of amusing, occupying, and educating the infant. 1892 C. M. Yonge That Stick II. xxxix. 195 The elder children..were busied..in building up coloured cubes, ‘gifts’ in Kindergarten parlance. 1892 C. M. Yonge Old Woman's Outlook 80 Children are supposed to learn multiplication rationally by proof on the abacus frame, or by the ‘gifts’ of the Kindergarten. 1905 J. H. Boardman Educ. Ideas of Froebel & Pestalozzi iv. 48 According to the general definition of the term, there are altogether twenty Gifts, although most Kindergartners now limit the name to the first six or seven. 4. An offering to God or to a heathen deity. ΚΠ α. c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Matt. v. 24 Leeue there thi ȝift before the auter. 1490 W. Caxton tr. Foure Sonnes of Aymon (1885) xvii. 390 He..offred a riche yefte vpon the awter. γ. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 10218 Ilkan þan to þe temple broght Sirekin gift after þai moght.1597 R. Hooker Of Lawes Eccl. Politie v. xxxiv. 70 Gifts are offered vnto God not as supplies of his want.1611 Bible (King James) Matt. v. 23, 24. 1895 Daily News 30 Oct. 4/7 The Deodand, or gift to God. 5. Something given with a corrupting intention; a bribe. Obsolete as a specific sense.The existence of this sense seems to be implied in: a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Gött.) l. 17464 Þai war for gifte [read forgifte, bribed] þe soth to hele. ΘΚΠ society > trade and finance > fees and taxes > illegal payment or exaction > [noun] gift1382 juice1935 mordida1940 society > trade and finance > fees and taxes > illegal payment or exaction > [noun] > bribe gift1382 handy-dandyc1390 pricec1400 bud1436 bribe?a1439 golden (also silver) keyc1450 fee1549 golden shower1589 oil of angels1592 sugar-plum1608 bribera1616 palm oil1625 greasinga1661 sop1665 sweetbreada1670 vail1687 douceur1739 sweetener1741 bonus1759 buckshee1773 smear-gelt1785 grease1823 boodle?1856 soap1860 ice1887 palm-grease1897 poultice1902 fix1929 dropsy1930 pay-off1930 drop1931 oil1935 squeeze-pidgin1946 sling1948 bung1958 back-hander1960 α. 1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) Deut. xvi. 19 Thou shalt not accept persone, ne ȝiftis, for ȝiftis blynden eyen of wise men. c1390 (a1376) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Vernon) (1867) A. iii. 90 Fuir schal falle and brenne atte laste Þe houses and þe homes of hem þat desyreþ For to haue ȝiftes. γ. 1549 H. Latimer 2nd Serm. before Kynges Maiestie 3rd Serm. sig. Gvi Wo worth these giftes, they subuert iustyce euerye where.1594 Willobie his Auisa xlvii. f. 43^v For giftes the wysest will deceaue.1611 Bible (King James) 2 Chron. xix. 7 There is no iniquitie with the Lord our God..nor taking of gifts . View more context for this quotation 6. a. A faculty, power, or quality miraculously bestowed, e.g. upon the apostles and other early Christians; a Christian virtue looked upon as an emanation from the Holy Ghost; extended further to endowments bestowed by heathen deities or some supernatural agent; occasionally in sense of inspiration. the gift of tongues: see tongue n. 8c. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > ability > [noun] > ability or talent > a talent or special ability > miraculously bestowed giftc1175 α. c1175 Lamb. Hom. 69 We ne maȝen þe fond from us driue, ne mid sworde ne mid kniue, bute hit beo þurh godes ȝifte. c1230 (?a1200) Ancrene Riwle (Corpus Cambr.) (1962) 17 For þe seoue ȝiftes of þe hali gast þet ich ham mote habben. c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Deeds viii. 20 Thou gessidist the ȝifte of God for to be had..by money. c1449 R. Pecock Repressor (1860) 181 The ȝiftis of gracis, the glories of heuen bihiȝt ben to alle Cristene passyng greete benefetis. a1500 in Bernardus de Cura Rei Fam. 36 Of all yhiftes þat gode yevith to man. β. 1340 Ayenbite (1866) 200 Nou we willeþ zigge uerst of þe yefþe of onderstondinge be þan þet þe holy gost wile ous teche.γ. a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 19007 Of haligast þe giftes sere, Gin us he has als yee se here.c1515 Ld. Berners tr. Bk. Duke Huon of Burdeux (1882–7) lxxxiv. 265 Amonge other [ladyes of y^e fayrye] there was one that gaue me y^e gyft to be suche one as ye se that I am.1605 W. Camden Remaines i. 4 That admirable gift hereditary to the annoynted Princes of this Realme, in curing the Kings Evil.1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iv. 715 Pandora, whom the Gods Endowd with all thir gifts . View more context for this quotation1704 R. Nelson Compan. Festivals & Fasts i. xii. 127 Having a Power to impart the same Gift to others.1709 J. Strype Ann. Reformation xxv. 254 He did begin to write, but he could bring nothing to pass: his Gift was not come to him.1732 G. Berkeley Serm. to Soc. Propagation Gospel in Wks. (1871) III. 241 We have not the gift of miracles.1834 J. H. Newman Parochial Serm. I. i. 13 To obtain the gift of holiness is the work of a life.1875 H. E. Manning Internal Mission of Holy Ghost xiii. 359 Now the gift of intellect or understanding is precisely that gift of the Holy Spirit which enables us to understand the meaning of what we believe.1876 J. B. Mozley Univ. Serm. (1877) xi. 216 Faith is not only an excellent gift, a sublime gift, but it is a gift full of present happiness. b. A natural endowment, faculty, ability, or talent. Also natural gift, gift of God (also nature). gift of the gab (colloquial): see gab n.¹ 1a. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > ability > [noun] > ability or talent > a talent or special ability gifta1300 dowerc1375 dowryc1440 faculty1490 indument1527 dote1546 furniture1561 vein1568 talent1602 acquirement1607 enduement1609 endowmentc1610 genius1611 congruity1659 feeling1808 feel1891 a1300 Cursor Mundi 23892 Sum for mar and sum for less, Efter þat vr giftes ess. ?1504 W. Atkinson tr. Thomas à Kempis Ful Treat. Imytacyon Cryste (Pynson) iii. lx. 252 Gyftes of nature be gyuen Indyfferentlye to good folke and euyll. 1573 J. Sanford tr. L. Guicciardini Hours Recreat. (1576) Ep. Ded. sig. A 5 Hir vertues and giftes of minde. 1588 J. Udall Demonstr. Trueth of Discipline xi. 49 For some hath an excellent gift in doctrine, and not in application. 1597 T. Morley Plaine & Easie Introd. Musicke 115 Imagining that all the guiftes of God should die in themselues, if they should bee taken out of the worlde. 1647 N. Bacon Hist. Disc. Govt. 19 Austen had also a gift or trick of working miracles. 1693 S. Harvey in J. Dryden tr. Juvenal Satires ix. 179 The Gifts of Nature, what will they avail? 1710 S. Sewall Diary 2 Dec. (1973) II. 648 I have heard he had a good Gift in Prayer. 1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 128. ¶1 As Vivacity is the Gift of Women, Gravity is that of Men. 1769 ‘Junius’ Stat Nominis Umbra (1772) I. i. 13 Nature has been sparing of her gifts to this noble lord. 1814 W. Wordsworth Excursion i. 7 Endowed with highest gifts, The vision and the faculty divine. View more context for this quotation 1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. II. vii. 229 He was in the habit of exercising his spiritual gifts at their meetings. 1856 B. Brodie Psychol. Inq. (ed. 3) I. i. 29 The faculty of reasoning correctly..is for the most part a natural gift. 1871 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest (1876) IV. xvii. 99 He was displaying in Normandy the gifts of the wise lawgiver and firm administrator. 1882 C. Pebody Eng. Journalism xix. 144 The precise gifts that are needed in a special correspondent. 1888 J. Bryce Amer. Commonw. II. liii. 328 His [sc. A. Hamilton's] countrymen seem to have never..duly recognized his splendid gifts. 7. slang. (See quots.) ΚΠ 1832 Examiner 187/2 [They] asked him if he would join them in a good thing, which was to carry away a landlord's till of money, and that it would be a ‘gift’ (an easy task). 1859 J. C. Hotten Dict. Slang Gift, any article which has been stolen and afterwards sold at a low price. 8. A white speck on the finger-nails, supposed to portend a gift. ΘΚΠ the mind > mental capacity > expectation > foresight, foreknowledge > prediction, foretelling > an omen, sign, portent > [noun] > a good omen > speck on fingernail gift1708 1708 Brit. Apollo 7–9 Apr. Q. What is the Cause of little white Spots, which sometimes grow under the Nails of the Fingers? And what is the reason they say they are Gifts? A. The reason of their being call'd Gifts is as Wise an one as that of Letters, Winding Sheets, &c. in a Candle. 1796 Grose's Classical Dict. Vulgar Tongue (ed. 3) 1854 C. Knight Once upon a Time II. 269 We showed each other the gifts on our nails. 1886 in R. Holland Gloss. Words County of Chester Suppl. Compounds C1. General attributive. gift-copy n. ΚΠ 1832 Mrs. Trollope in A. G. L'Estrange Friendships M. R. Mitford (1882) I. 238 Mr. Howe told him that all the gift copies were already sent. gift-money n. ΚΠ 1548 N. Udall et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. I. Mark i. f. 12–15 Thou haste receyued the holy ghoste as it were gifte money, a bond, and an earnest penye of thy salarye. gift-package n. ΚΠ 1897 L. H. Bailey Princ. Fruit-growing 416 In all the finest fruits the grower should use nothing but a gift-package, that is, one which is given away with the fruit when it is sold. gift-picture n. ΚΠ 1862 G. W. Thornbury Life J. M. W. Turner II. 128 Men never valued gift pictures so much as those in which they had invested money. C2. Objective. a. gift-bearer n. ΚΠ 1483 Cath. Angl. 155/2 A Gift berer, doniferus, munifer. gift-giving n. ΚΠ 1937 M. Mead Cooperation & Competition among Primitive Peoples i. 22 All this importation is phrased as gift giving between devoted friends. 1949 M. Mead Male & Female 408 The fish were then exchanged in a gift-giving context. 1959 I. Opie & P. Opie Lore & Lang. Schoolchildren xii. 236 Sometimes..the older children take advantage of the gift-giving and play tricks. gift-taker n. ΚΠ 1549 H. Latimer 2nd Serm. before Kynges Maiestie 3rd Serm. sig. Hv^v He was no gyfte taker, he was no wynker, he was no bywalker. b. † gift-greedy adj. Obsolete ΚΠ ?1611 G. Chapman tr. Homer Iliads iv. 118 With this, the mad- gift-greedie man, Minerua did perswade. C3. Instrumental. gift-laden adj. ΚΠ 1895 Daily News 27 Dec. 2/5 A giant Christmas tree, constituted of some hundreds of the gift-laden firs of the nursery. C4. gift-book n. a book given as a present; a book published in an attractive form, such as is suitable for a present, a school prize, etc. ΘΚΠ society > communication > book > kind of book > [noun] > books intended as gifts or prizes presentation copy1753 prize book1798 souvenir1798 reward book1801 leaving book1829 gift-book1834 1834 Knickerbocker 3 113 It is, I believe, your standing gift-book. 1842 (title) The royal gift book for the young. 1848 D. Vedder (title) The pictorial giftbook of lays and lithography. 1868 Publisher's Pref. to Watts' Improv. Mind As a gift-book to advanced scholars it is most appropriate. 1886 T. Frost Reminisc. Country Journalist viii. 94 They..wished to use them [engravings] in the production of a gift-book. gift bookstore n. U.S. a bookshop conducted as a ‘gift enterprise’. ΚΠ 1873 W. Mathews Getting on in World vii. 100 To-day some shrewd Yankee starts a ‘gift’ bookstore, and immediately all the newspapers in the land are flooded with advertisements of gift enterprises. gift coupon n. a coupon issued with certain commodities, a specified number of which entitles the holder to a free gift. ΚΠ 1931 Morning Post 18 Feb. 6/5 The ‘Gift’ Coupon system. 1933 D. L. Sayers Murder must Advertise iv. 54 It only needed the alteration of a sentence and the introduction of a panel about gift-coupons. gift-deed n. U.S. a deed of gift. ΚΠ 1855 P. T. Barnum Life 10 My delighted ancestor..handed to my mother a gift-deed in my behalf, of five acres of land. gift-enterprise n. U.S. (see quot. 1893). ΚΠ 1873 W. Mathews Getting on in World vii. 100 To-day some shrewd Yankee starts a ‘gift’ bookstore, and immediately all the newspapers in the land are flooded with advertisements of gift enterprises. 1893 I. K. Funk et al. Standard Dict. Eng. Lang. I Gift-enterprise, a business that offers gifts to secure patrons or purchasers. gift-exchange n. (see quot. 1963). ΚΠ 1936 R. Linton Study of Man 144 All trade was phrased in terms of gift exchange. 1951 R. Firth Elements Social Organization i. 21 Such diverse social relations as buying and selling, gift-exchange, [etc.]. 1963 Brit. Jrnl. Sociol. 14 26 Gift exchange..describes a type of transaction which formally consists in the making of a gift and its repayment by another. gift-food n. food given in charity. ΚΠ 1865 Daily Tel. 6 Dec. 4/5 The danger was..that the dangerous habit of living upon gift-food would demoralise the recipients. gift-horse n. a horse given as a present: see also horse n. 21. ΚΠ 1663 S. Butler Hudibras: First Pt. i. i. 37 He ne'er consider'd it, as loath To look a gift-horse in the mouth. 1837 W. Irving Adventures Capt. Bonneville II. 249 The Captain..put spurs to his very fine gift-horse. gift-house n. (see quot.). ΚΠ 1893 J. S. Farmer Slang Gift-house (or Gift), (printers'), a club; a house of call; specifically for the purpose of finding employment, or providing allowances for members. † gift-sermon n. Obsolete a sermon that is paid for by an endowment. ΘΚΠ society > faith > worship > preaching > [noun] > instance of > paid for by endowment gift-sermon1766 1766 J. Entick Surv. London in New Hist. London IV. 64 Here is a gift-sermon every Tuesday..well endowed by lady Cambden. gift shop n. originally U.S. a shop dealing in articles suitable for gifts; also with pseudo-archaic spelling, gifte-shoppe. ΘΚΠ society > trade and finance > trading place > place where retail transactions made > [noun] > shop > shop selling fancy goods or curios gaudy-shopa1627 toy shop1691 knick-knackatory1702 knackatory1709 bazaar1807 curiosity-shop1818 bric-a-brac shop1840 novelty store1874 novelty shop1893 odditorium1914 gift shop1918 curio-shop1920 1918 C. Wells Vicky Van i. 10 Little faddly prize bags of gift-shop novelties are her stakes. 1929 Amer. Mag. Jan. 127/2 The general arting up they have done, with regard to cottages, tea rooms, gift shops..must have had its effect. 1932 E. Bowen To North xxi. 229 There are too many shops... Especially gift shops. 1948 J. Cannan Little I Understood xi. 136 Expensive and financially unstable gifte shoppes. gift store n. U.S. = gift-enterprise n. ΚΠ 1872 T. De W. Talmage Abominations of Mod. Soc. 177 In this class of gambler-makers I also put the ‘gift stores’. gift-token n. a voucher (intended to serve as a gift) for a sum of money to pay for the purchase of an article. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > giving > gift or present > [noun] > gift token or voucher gift certificate1900 gift-token1963 gift card1990 1963 She Dec. 51 Best leg forward in 1964 with a gift token for nylon stockings. gift-tree n. U.S. a tree on which gifts for distribution are hung; a Christmas tree. ΚΠ 1898 H. S. Canfield Maid of Frontier 117 The little church where the gift-tree festivities were in progress. gift-voucher n. = gift-token n. ΚΠ 1963 She Dec. 51 Make life easier for a hard-working house-wife whose feet are killing her with a Scholl Gift Voucher entitling her to one or a set of foot massaging sessions. 1969 Times 17 Dec. 18/5 (advt.) Who's lucky? Everybody who gets a gift voucher for two tickets. gift-wrap v. originally U.S. transitive to wrap (an article intended as a gift) attractively; also absol. and figurative. ΚΠ 1936 Amer. Speech 11 101/1 During the holiday season many department stores advertised, ‘We Gift-Wrap Here.’ 1948 in Amer. Speech (1956) 31 210 Ready to gift-wrap your package. 1958 Economist 20 Dec. 1083/2 Whatever he buys will be professionally gift-wrapped for him. 1969 New Yorker 11 Oct. 146/3 (advt.) We gift wrap and ship everywhere. gift-wrapped adj. Π 1964 Punch 16 Dec. 936/3 People..pile them [sc. cars] up with gift-wrapped presents. gift-wrapping n. (also attributive) Π 1949 Word Study May 8/1 (caption to cartoon) Gift Wrapping. 1963 M. McCarthy Group xi. 240 They also sold..Valentines and gift-wrapping paper. Draft additions June 2016 gift certificate n. a voucher given as a present and exchangeable for goods to a specified value, often at a particular store; a gift token. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > giving > gift or present > [noun] > gift token or voucher gift certificate1900 gift-token1963 gift card1990 1900 Indianapolis Sun 3 Dec. (advt.) A superb assortment of jewelry and fancy goods... When in doubt buy a gift certificate. 1936 Quill & Quire Oct. 14/1 Book Tokens are gift certificates, resembling a folding greeting card in appearance, to be bought by the sender and sent to the intended recipient; so that the latter may select any book desired at the price indicated on the Token. 2005 J. MacGregor Sunday Money i. 8 Of these last things we cherished two above all: $100 worth of McDonald's gift certificates tied up in a white satin ribbon, and an ‘I heart NY’ bumper sticker. Draft additions 1993 gift wrap n. a gift-wrapping, (originally U.S.) wrapping-paper for a gift. ΚΠ 1971 Woman 4 Dec. 78 (advt.) This Christmas you can buy her Miss Lenthéric [toiletries] in special gift wraps from 57p. 1980 Christian Sci. Monitor 4 Dec. (Midwestern ed.) b8/3 (advt.) We also have Hallmark gift wrap. 1985 Company Dec. 51/1 As for giftwrap and all that time wasted pulling the ends of shiny ribbon with the scissor blades..that is decidedly out. Draft additions September 2012 gift aid n. (a) U.S. financial aid which is not required to be repaid; (b) British (with capital initials) a scheme enabling registered charities to reclaim the basic rate tax on a donation made by a U.K. taxpayer (with authorization from the donor), effectively increasing the amount of the donation. ΚΠ 1933 Chicago Tribune 31 Mar. 2/2 (heading) Senate passes bill for gift aid for states. 1990 PR Newswire (Nexis) 20 Mar. New income tax relief for single donations by individuals equal to or more than the payroll giving limit of 600 pounds (Gift Aid). 1995 Which? Tax Saving Guide 65/4 If your husband or wife pays tax but you don't, it would be better if they made the family's charitable donations using covenants or Gift Aid. 2003 R. H. Miller & K. F. Koegler Business School Confidential vii. 84 Gift aid, such as grants or scholarships, is clearly the best type of financial aid to receive, for, as the name implies, it does not require you to pay it back. Draft additions March 2021 gift card n. a card or token that can be exchanged for a specified cash value of goods or services from a particular business, given as a gift.Now often issued digitally. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > giving > gift or present > [noun] > gift token or voucher gift certificate1900 gift-token1963 gift card1990 1990 Jerusalem Post 14 Sept. (Gifts suppl.) C/2 (advt.) Present her with the shocking-pink gift card, which will entitle her to whatever your budget can stand. 2001 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 24 Dec. a3/2 (advt.) With the Lord & Taylor gift card, you can give any amount from $10 to $500. 2018 @outlawjj2000 12 July in twitter.com (accessed 30 Sept. 2020) Happy Birthday! I just emailed a gift card to you. I hope you enjoy it. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1899; most recently modified version published online June 2022). GIFTn.² Brit. /ɡɪft/, U.S. /ɡɪft/ Etymology: Acronym < the initial letters of gamete intra-fallopian transfer ; compare ZIFT n. A technique for facilitating human conception, in which sperm and ova are transferred directly into the Fallopian tubes of the prospective mother. ΘΚΠ the world > life > biology > biological processes > procreation or reproduction > fecundation or impregnation > [noun] > techniques for facilitating IVF1978 gamete intrafallopian transfer1984 GIFT1984 ZIFT1988 1984 R. H. Asch et al. in Lancet 3 Nov. 1034/1 We report here the first pregnancy obtained after translaparoscopic gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT). 1986 Fertility & Sterility 55 366 (heading) Preliminary experiences with gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT). 1990 Sun (Brisbane) 26 Apr. 38/2 Women aged over 40 involved in GIFT (gamete intra-fallopian transfer) pregnancies during 1985–88. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1993; most recently modified version published online March 2022). giftv. Brit. /ɡɪft/, U.S. /ɡɪft/ Etymology: < gift n.¹ 1. a. transitive. To endow or furnish with gifts (see chiefly gift n.¹ 6); to endow, invest, or present with as a gift. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > giving > give [verb (transitive)] > present > present with as a gift gift15.. 15.. Wife in Morel's Skin C j b The friendes that were together met He [printed Be] gyfted them richely with right good speede. a1627 W. Sclater Brief Comm. Malachy (1650) 197 See how the Lord gifted him above his brethren. 1627 R. Sanderson Ten Serm. 451 If God haue not gifted vs for it, he hath not called vs to it. 1677 W. Hubbard Narrative (1865) I. 61 He was better gifted than any other of the Indian Nation. 1749 H. Fielding Tom Jones I. i. v. 25 Nothing but the Inspiration with which we Writers are gifted, can possibly enable any one to make the Discovery. View more context for this quotation 1826 E. Irving Babylon II. viii. 282 When they were gifted with the self same Spirit with which Moses had been gifted. 1834 T. Medwin Angler in Wales I. 290 How admirably Nature had provided..by gifting it [the salmon] with a form of all others the best adapted for [etc.]. 1844 E. B. Barrett Romance of Swan's Nest in Poems II. 256 The world must love and fear him Whom I gift with heart and hand. 1884 J. E. T. Rogers Six Cent. Work & Wages I. 126 Many settlements, which afterwards grew into towns, were gifted subsequently with parliamentary representation. b. To invest with a charm; to impart a fascination to. rare. ΘΚΠ the mind > attention and judgement > good taste > attractive or impressive quality > invest with attractiveness or impressiveness [verb (transitive)] gift1853 1853 G. Johnston Terra Lindisfarnensis I. 141 I may not dwell on scenes and events which the pen of Scott has gifted. 2. To bestow as a gift; to make a present of. Const. with to or dative. Also with away. Chiefly Scottish. ΘΚΠ the mind > possession > giving > give [verb (transitive)] > give as a present or make a present of giveOE putc1330 skink1508 bestow1535 gift1619 donate1845 1619 J. Sempill Sacrilege Sacredly Handled 31 If they object, that tithes, being gifted to Levi, in official inheritance, can stand no longer than Levi [etc.]. a1639 J. Spottiswood Hist. Church Scotl. (1677) v. 278 The recovery of a parcel of ground which the Queen had gifted to Mary Levinston. 1711 in A. McKay Hist. Kilmarnock (1880) 98 This bell was gifted by the Earl of Kilmarnock to the town of Kilmarnock for their Council~house. 1764 J. Erskine Princ. Law Scotl. (ed. 3) v. 48 Where a fund is gifted for the establishment of a second minister, in a parish where the cure is thought too heavy for one [etc.]. 1801 A. Ranken Hist. France I. 301 Parents were prohibited from selling, gifting, or pledging their children. 1829 J. Brown New Deeside Guide (1876) 19 College of Blairs..having been gifted to the Church of Rome by its proprietor. 1836 A. Alison Hist. Europe from French Revol. V. xlii. 697 Thus did Napoleon and D'Oubril..gift away Sicily. 1878 J. C. Lees Abbey of Paisley xix. 201 The Regent Murray gifted all the Church Property to Lord Sempill. Derivatives ˈgifting n. and adj. ΚΠ 1619 J. Sempill Sacrilege Sacredly Handled App. 4 Was Abraham so idle in gifting? Jacob so superstitious in vowing? 1671 R. McWard True Non-conformist 163 Our Lords most gracious gifting. 1796 T. Townshend Poems 32 Where once thy gifting hand did weave Garlands of glory for the poet's head. 1875 W. D. Whitney Life & Growth Lang. xiv. 302 A gifting of man, at his birth, not with capacities alone. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1899; most recently modified version published online March 2022). < n.¹c1175n.²1984v.15..
随便看	receiptable receipted receipter receipting receiptless receiptor receiptors receipts receivability receivable receivableness receivables receival receivals receivant receive receive a call receive a commission receive communion receive in mainprize receive in marriage receive in trust receive light receive one's flannels receive one's jacket

giftn.1

Compounds

Draft additions June 2016

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Draft additions September 2012

Draft additions March 2021

GIFTn.2

giftv.

Derivatives

giftn.¹

GIFTn.²