gall

Meanings

Plural: galls

Noun

an open sore on the back of a horse caused by ill-fitting or badly adjusted saddle
a skin sore caused by chafing
abnormal swelling of plant tissue caused by insects or microorganisms or injury
a feeling of deep and bitter anger and ill-will
a digestive juice secreted by the liver and stored in the gallbladder; aids in the digestion of fats
the trait of being rude and impertinent; inclined to take liberties
Impudence or brazenness; temerity; chutzpah.
A gallbladder.
Bile, especially that of an animal; the greenish, profoundly bitter-tasting fluid found in bile ducts and gall bladders, structures associated with the liver.
Great misery or physical suffering, likened to the bitterest-tasting of substances.
A sore on a horse caused by an ill-fitted or ill-adjusted saddle; a saddle sore.
A sore or open wound caused by chafing, which may become infected, as with a blister.
A feeling of exasperation.
A pit on a surface being cut caused by the friction between the two surfaces exceeding the bond of the material at a point.
A blister or tumor-like growth found on the surface of plants, caused by various pathogens, especially the burrowing of insect larvae into the living tissues, such as that of the common oak gall wasp (Cynips quercusfolii).
A bump-like imperfection resembling a gall.

Verb

become or make sore by or as if by rubbing
irritate or vex
- "It galls me that we lost the suit"
To chafe, to rub or subject to friction; to create a sore on the skin.
To bother or trouble.
To harass, to harry, often with the intent to cause injury.
To exasperate.
To cause pitting on a surface being cut from the friction between the two surfaces exceeding the bond of the material at a point.
To scoff; to jeer.
To impregnate with a decoction of gallnuts in dyeing.

Origin / Etymology

From Middle English galle, from Old English ġealla, galla, from Proto-West Germanic *gallā, from Proto-Germanic *gallǭ.
The figurative senses (e.g., impudence, brazenness, chutzpah) are related to the literal sense (i.e., bile) via the lasting linguocultural effects of humorism, which governed Western medicine for many centuries before the advent of scientific medicine.
Related to Dutch gal, German Galle, Swedish galle, galla, Ancient Greek χολή (kholḗ). Also remotely related with yellow.

Synonyms

bile, bitterness, chafe, cheekiness, crust, freshness, fret, impertinence, impudence, insolence, irk, nutgall, rancor, rancour, resentment, saddle sore

Scrabble Score: 5

gall is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
gall is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
gall is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 8

gall is a valid Words With Friends word