gleek

See also: Gleek

English

WOTD – 21 October 2010

Pronunciation

• (UK, US) enPR: glēk, IPA^(key): /ɡliːk/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iːk

Etymology 1

From Middle French glic, from Old French glic (“a game of cards”), of Germanic origin from or related to Middle High German glücke, gelücke (“luck”) and Middle Dutch gelīc (“like, alike”). More at luck, like.

Noun

gleek (countable and uncountable, plural gleeks)

1. (uncountable) A once-popular game of cards played by three people.
   • 1640, Ben Jonson, The Magnetick Lady, or, Hvmors Reconcil'd, act 2, scene 4:

     Lady Loadstone: Laugh, and keep company, at gleek or crimp. / Mistress Polish: Your ladyship says right, crimp sure will cure her.

2. (countable) Three of the same cards held in one hand; three of a kind.

Translations

game of cards for three people

• French: brelan (fr) m
• Russian: брелан m (brelan)
• Turkish: üçlü (tr)

three of the same card in a hand

• Finnish: kolmoset
• French: brelan (fr) m
• Swedish: triss (sv) c, tretal (sv) c

See also

• murnival

Etymology 2

Related to Etymology 1. Of North Germanic origin, from Old Norse *gleikr, leikr (“sport, play, game”), from Proto-Germanic *galaikaz (“jump, play”), from Proto-Indo-European *leyg-. Cognate with Old English ġelācan (“to play a trick on, delude”), Scots glaik (“a glance of the eye, deception, trick”, n.), Scots glaik (“to trick, trifle with”, v.). More at lake.

Noun

gleek (plural gleeks)

2. A jest or scoff; trick or deception.
   • 1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Sixt”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii]:

     Where's the Baſtards braues, and Charles his glikes: What all amort?

3. An enticing glance or look.
   • 1623 (first performance), John Fletcher, William Rowley, “The Maid in the Mill”, in Comedies and Tragedies […], London: […] Humphrey Robinson, […], and for Humphrey Moseley […], published 1647, →OCLC, Act II, scene ii:

     A pretty gleek coming from Pallas' eye:

4. (informal) A stream of saliva from a person's mouth.

Synonyms

• (jest or scoff): deception, jest, scoff

Translations

jest or scoff

• Finnish: pila (fi), jekku (fi)
• French: plaisanterie (fr) f
• Russian: насме́шка (ru) f (nasméška)

enticing glance or look

• Finnish: silmäys (fi)
• French: œillade (fr) f
• Italian: occhiata (it)
• Spanish: guiñada (es)

good fortune

• Finnish: säkä (fi)
• French: aubaine (fr) f, bonne fortune (fr), coup de pot (fr), bonne affaire
• Italian: pacchia (it)
• Russian: уда́ча (ru) f (udáča)
• Spanish: ganga (es), bicoca (es), pichincha

informal: stream of saliva

• Finnish: kuola (fi)

Verb

gleek (third-person singular simple present gleeks, present participle gleeking, simple past and past participle gleeked)

1. (obsolete, transitive) To ridicule, or mock; to make sport of.
   • 1599, William Shakespeare, “The Life of Henry the Fift”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i]:

     I have seen you gleeking and / galling at this gentleman twice or thrice.

2. (obsolete, intransitive) To jest.
   • c. 1595–1596 (date written), William Shakespeare, “A Midsommer Nights Dreame”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene i]:

     […] that ſome honeſt neighbours will not make them friends. Nay, I can gleeke vpon occaſion.

3. (obsolete, intransitive) To pass time frivolously.
4. (informal) To discharge a long, thin stream of liquid (including saliva) through the teeth or from under the tongue, sometimes by pressing the tongue against the salivary glands.
   • 1999 October 18, Gem, “what can you wiggle?”, in alt.music.soulcoughing (Usenet):

     i just push the tip of my tongue against the roof of my mouth and saliva squirts out in a groovy little arc. i think you'd really have to see it to know what i am talking about. but you can gleek best right after chewing big red gum.

   • 1999 November 15, THAT antix GUY, “the weird personal info”, in alt.rave (Usenet):

     My buddy can gleek (thats what he called it too) but he used highly pressured spit forced out between two teeth with his tounge to do it.

   • 2002 July 21, Sean Wilkinson, “Can you gleek?”, in rec.sport.pro-wrestling (Usenet):

     I used to be able to gleek "by accident" every now and then, but I couldn't figure out how to do it deliberately.

   The man said he “gleeked” on the woman, but did not intentionally spit on her.

Synonyms

• (to ridicule): gibe, mock, scoff at, sneer at

Translations

to jest, ridicule, or mock

• Finnish: jekuttaa (fi), naruttaa (fi)
• French: dauber (fr), se ficher de (fr), se foutre de (fr)
• Italian: prendere in giro
• Russian: насмехаться (ru) (nasmexatʹsja)
• Spanish: burlarse (es), tomar el pelo (es), huevear (es)

to discharge a long thin stream of liquid through the teeth or from under the tongue

• Finnish: kuolata (fi)

Related terms

• glicke

See also

• gleet

Etymology 3

Blend of glee +‎ geek

Noun

gleek (plural gleeks)

1. (slang) A geek who is involved in a glee club, choir, or singing.

Further reading

• “gleek”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• “gleek”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• Spitting on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Anagrams

• Kegel, kegel

Low German

Verb

gleek

1. first-person singular past of glieken