gent

Meanings

1. 1nouncountableinformalold-fashioned

   A man, especially one who is polite and well mannered; a short, casual form of gentleman.

   Grammar: Often used in a friendly way: a gent from the club.

   Patterns

   • a perfect gent
   • a gent from somewhere

   The old gent next door always tips his hat.

   A kind gent helped her carry the suitcase upstairs.

   He's a real gent and never forgets a birthday.

2. 2nounsingularBritishinformal

   A public men's toilet, used with the.

   Grammar: Usually the gents, with the, and takes a singular verb.

   Patterns

   • the gents
   • go to the gents

   The gents is down the corridor on the left.

   He excused himself and went to the gents.

   The pub's gents was freshly painted.

Word forms

Common combinations

a perfect gent

He returned the wallet and refused a reward, a perfect gent.

an old gent

An old gent was feeding the pigeons in the park.

the gents

Where's the gents, please?

a gent's haircut

The barber offered a classic gent's haircut.

gents and ladies

Gents and ladies, the show is about to begin.

Synonyms and how they differ

gentleman

Gentleman is the full, more formal form, whereas gent sounds relaxed and slightly humorous.

chap

Chap is a British, casual word for any man and does not suggest good manners.

fellow

Fellow is a general, slightly dated word for a man, not specifically a polite one.

toilet

For the second sense, gents names a men's room specifically, while toilet is a general word.

Opposites

Word family

gentleman noun

a man with good manners, or any man in polite speech

gentlemanly adjective

polite and well mannered, like a gentleman

gentry noun

people of high social rank, below the nobility

gentle adjective

kind and soft in manner

gentility noun

polite, refined manners and social standing

Commonly confused: gent or gentle?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “gent”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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