Definition of gist
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Examples of gist in a Sentence
… Einstein showed how time intervals depend on the motion of people and clocks doing the measuring. And that's the gist of relativity. —Alan Lightman, Science, January/February 1984
Thus, Poulterers' Case gave rise to a doctrine which survives to this day: the gist of conspiracy is the agreement, and so the agreement is punishable even if its purpose was not achieved. —Wayne R. LaFave & Austin W. Scott, Jr., Criminal Law, (1972) 1986
Dorothea told him that she had seen Lydgate, and recited the gist of her conversation with him about the Hospital. —George Eliot, Middlemarch, 1872
didn't catch every word between them, but heard enough to get the gist of the conversation
Did You Know?
The gist of the conversation was that .... The word gist often appears in such contexts to let us know that what follows will be a statement or summary that in some way encapsulates the main point or overarching theme. The gist of a conversation, argument, story, or what-have-you is what we rely on when the actual words and details are only imperfectly recalled, inessential, or too voluminous to recount in their entirety. Gist was borrowed from the Anglo-French legal phrase "[cest] action gist" ("[this] action lies") in the early 18th century, and was originally used in legal contexts as a term referring to the foundation or grounds for a legal action without which that action would not be legally sustainable.
Origin and Etymology of gist
Anglo-French, it lies, from gisir to lie, ultimately from Latin jacēre — more at adjacent
First Known Use: circa 1711
GIST Defined for Kids
gist
playDefinition of gist for Students
: the main point of a matter He spoke so fast, I only got the gist of the story.
Law Dictionary
gist
playLegal Definition of gist
: the ground or foundation of a legal action without which it would not be sustainable
Origin and Etymology of gist
Anglo-French, in the phrase laccion gist the action lies or is based (on), from gisir to lie (of process), from Old French gesir to lie, ultimately from Latin jacere
Learn More about gist
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See words that rhyme with gist Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for gist Spanish Central: Translation of gist Nglish: Translation of gist for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of gist for Arabic speakers
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