gild

1 of 4

verb

ˈgild 

gilded ˈgil-dəd  or gilt ˈgilt  ; gilding

transitive verb

1

: to overlay with or as if with a thin covering of gold

2

a

: to give money to

b

: to give an attractive but often deceptive appearance to

was hired to gild the company's image

c

archaic : to make bloody

gilder noun

see also:

gild the lily

gild

2 of 4

noun (1)

less common spelling of guild

1

: an association of people with similar interests or pursuits

especially : a medieval association of merchants or craftsmen

2

: a group of organisms that use the same ecological resource in a similar way

a feeding guild

gilder

3 of 4

noun (2)

gil·​der

ˈgil(d)ə(r)

plural -s

dialectal, England

: snare

especially : one made of horsehair and used to catch birds

gilder

4 of 4

noun (3)

gild·​er

ˈgildə(r)

plural -s

: one that gilds

especially : one whose occupation is to overlay with gold or gilt

Examples of gild in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Advertisement ‘Talent is everything’ In April, Russia’s main TV news channel depicted Moscow State University gilded in futuristic laser lines as the presenter announced a new AI faculty, due to welcome its first cohort of 72 students in September. — Nikita Ostrovsky, Time, 18 June 2026

A lot of the frames are gold gilded, which are incredibly beautiful and historical. — Stephanie Shih june 17, Los Angeles Times, 17 June 2026

Noun

Wario’s gilds the hoagie roll with tomato butter and a ginger-soy drizzle. — Jed Portman, Midwest Living, 25 May 2026

Damaged gilds the lily, casting-wise, with John Hannah, delivering sterling supporting work as a chief suspect whose alibi would seem to clear him. — Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb and Noun (3)

Middle English, from Old English gyldan; akin to Old English gold gold

Noun (2)

Middle English, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Norwegian dialect gilder trap, Old Norse gildra, gildri; akin to Old Norse gilja to entice, Old Swedish gjælskap lewdness and perhaps to Greek thelein to wish, Old Slavic z̆elěti to desire

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing gild

• gild the lily

Rhymes for gild

• billed
• build
• chilled
• drilled
• filled
• frilled
• grilled
• guild
• killed
• milled
• rilled
• shrilled

Kids Definition

gild

1 of 2 verb

ˈgild 

gilded ˈgil-dəd  or gilt ˈgilt  ; gilding

: to cover with or as if with a coating of gold

gilder noun

gild

2 of 2

variant of guild