guest

1 of 2

noun

ˈgest 

1

a

: a person entertained in one's house

b

: a person to whom hospitality is extended

c

: a person who pays for the services of an establishment (such as a hotel or restaurant)

2

: an organism (such as an insect) sharing the dwelling of another

especially : inquiline

3

: a substance that is incorporated in a host substance

4

: a usually prominent person not a regular member of a cast or organization who appears in a program or performance

guest

2 of 2

verb

guested; guesting; guests

transitive verb

: to receive as a guest

intransitive verb

: to appear as a guest

Synonyms

Noun

• caller
• drop-in
• frequenter
• visitant
• visitor

Examples of guest in a Sentence

Noun

Our guests should be arriving soon.

Only invited guests are allowed inside the banquet hall.

He played at the country club as a guest of one of the members.

Our guests receive the finest quality service.

Frequent guests receive a discount.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

All invites for Saturday’s inaugural show were free to invited press, guests and workers who had helped design and construct the £365 million, or $465 million, building). —Richard Smirke, Billboard, 22 Apr. 2024

And, many of the musicians and notable guests who performed and spoke throughout the night echoed that perspective. —Lynnette Nicholas, Essence, 22 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English gest, gyst, gust, gist "person to whom hospitality is extended, visitor, stranger," going back to Old English giest, gyst, gest, gæst (with Middle English g probably in part from Old Norse gestr), going back to Germanic *gasti- (whence also Old Frisian jest "guest," Old Saxon & Old High German gast "guest, stranger," Old Norse gestr, Gothic gasts "stranger") going back to dialectal Indo-European *ghost-i- "outsider, guest," whence also Old Church Slavic gostĭ "guest," Latin hostis "foreigner, stranger" (in early use), "enemy"

Note: An etymon limited to three western Indo-European branches. Further analysis of the word has been made on the basis of early use of Latin hostis, taken to mean, on the basis of the Law of the Twelve Tables, "outsider due the same right of ownership as a Roman citizen"; from the same base would be hostus "yield of olive oil from a single pressing" (narrowed from a presumed more general "yield, compensation"), the derived verb hostīre "to recompense, requite," and the noun hostia "sacrificial animal, sacrifice" ("recompense to the gods," perhaps originally feminine of an adjective *hostius, the deleted noun having designated an animal; see host entry 3). Ancestral *ghos-ti- could hypothetically be a derivative of an Indo-European verbal base *ǵhes- "take, give in exchange." With the loss in later Roman practice of the strict legal meaning, Latin hostis became restricted in meaning to "hostile outsider, enemy." This shift is noted by varro, who remarked that hostis was used by "our ancestors" in a sense now covered by peregrīnus (see pilgrim).

Verb

Middle English gesten, derivative of gest guest entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Phrases Containing guest

• be my guest
• guest appearance
• guest bedroom
• guest book
• guest list
• guest of honor
• guest room
• guest speaker
• guest worker
• paying guest

Kids Definition

guest

noun

ˈgest

1

: a person entertained in one's house

2

: a person to whom hospitality is given

guests at a school banquet

3

: a customer at a hotel, motel, inn, or restaurant

4

: a usually well-known person who appears or performs on a program by invitation

guests on a TV show

Biographical Definition

Guest

biographical name

ˈgest 

Edgar Albert 1881–1959 American journalist and poet