gaffer
See also: Gaffer
English
Etymology 1
From gaff (“hook”) + -er. The natural lighting on early film sets was adjusted by opening and closing flaps in the tent cloths, called gaff cloths or gaff flaps.
Pronunciation
- Lua error in Module:parameters at line 303: Parameter 1 should be a valid language or etymology language code; the value "GenAm" is not valid. See WT:LOL and WT:LOL/E. IPA(key): /ɡæfɚ/
- Lua error in Module:parameters at line 303: Parameter 1 should be a valid language or etymology language code; the value "RP" is not valid. See WT:LOL and WT:LOL/E. IPA(key): /ɡæfə/
- Rhymes: -æfə(ɹ)
Noun
gaffer (plural gaffers)
- (film) A chief lighting technician for a motion-picture or television production.
- A glassblower.
- 2003, Jennifer Bosveld, Glass Works, page 18:
- The apprentice carries a gather of glass on the blowpipe to the gaffer's bench […]
Related terms
Translations
chief lighting technician
|
glassblower — see glassblower
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
|
Etymology 2
Likely a contraction of godfather, but with the vowels influenced by grandfather. Compare French compère, German Gevatter.
Noun
gaffer (plural gaffers)
- (colloquial) An old man.
- 1845, Thomas Cooper, The Purgatory of Suicides, Book the Fourth, Stanza IX:
- If thou return not, Gammer o'er her pail
- Will sing in sorrow, 'neath the brinded cow,
- And Gaffer sigh over his nut-brown ale […]
- 1845, Thomas Cooper, The Purgatory of Suicides, Book the Fourth, Stanza IX:
- (British) A foreman.
- A sailor.
- (in Maritime regions) The baby in the house.
Synonyms
- See also Thesaurus:old man
Related terms
Translations
old man
|
foreman
|
sailor
|
baby — see baby
References
- “gaffer”, in OED Online
, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, 1989.
Anagrams
French
Etymology
Verb
gaffer
- to make a gaffe; to mess up; botch up
- to gaffer tape
Conjugation
Conjugation of gaffer (see also Appendix:French verbs)
infinitive | simple | gaffer | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
compound | avoir + past participle | ||||||
present participle or gerund1 | simple | gaffant /ɡa.fɑ̃/ | |||||
compound | ayant + past participle | ||||||
past participle | gaffé /ɡa.fe/ | ||||||
singular | plural | ||||||
first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
indicative | je (j’) | tu | il, elle, on | nous | vous | ils, elles | |
(simple tenses) |
present | gaffe /ɡaf/ |
gaffes /ɡaf/ |
gaffe /ɡaf/ |
gaffons /ɡa.fɔ̃/ |
gaffez /ɡa.fe/ |
gaffent /ɡaf/ |
imperfect | gaffais /ɡa.fɛ/ |
gaffais /ɡa.fɛ/ |
gaffait /ɡa.fɛ/ |
gaffions /ɡa.fjɔ̃/ |
gaffiez /ɡa.fje/ |
gaffaient /ɡa.fɛ/ | |
past historic2 | gaffai /ɡa.fe/ |
gaffas /ɡa.fa/ |
gaffa /ɡa.fa/ |
gaffâmes /ɡa.fam/ |
gaffâtes /ɡa.fat/ |
gaffèrent /ɡa.fɛʁ/ | |
future | gafferai /ɡa.fʁe/ |
gafferas /ɡa.fʁa/ |
gaffera /ɡa.fʁa/ |
gafferons /ɡa.fʁɔ̃/ |
gafferez /ɡa.fʁe/ |
gafferont /ɡa.fʁɔ̃/ | |
conditional | gafferais /ɡa.fʁɛ/ |
gafferais /ɡa.fʁɛ/ |
gafferait /ɡa.fʁɛ/ |
gafferions /ɡa.fə.ʁjɔ̃/ |
gafferiez /ɡa.fə.ʁje/ |
gafferaient /ɡa.fʁɛ/ | |
(compound tenses) |
present perfect | present indicative of avoir + past participle | |||||
pluperfect | imperfect indicative of avoir + past participle | ||||||
past anterior2 | past historic of avoir + past participle | ||||||
future perfect | future of avoir + past participle | ||||||
conditional perfect | conditional of avoir + past participle | ||||||
subjunctive | que je (j’) | que tu | qu’il, qu’elle | que nous | que vous | qu’ils, qu’elles | |
(simple tenses) |
present | gaffe /ɡaf/ |
gaffes /ɡaf/ |
gaffe /ɡaf/ |
gaffions /ɡa.fjɔ̃/ |
gaffiez /ɡa.fje/ |
gaffent /ɡaf/ |
imperfect2 | gaffasse /ɡa.fas/ |
gaffasses /ɡa.fas/ |
gaffât /ɡa.fa/ |
gaffassions /ɡa.fa.sjɔ̃/ |
gaffassiez /ɡa.fa.sje/ |
gaffassent /ɡa.fas/ | |
(compound tenses) |
past | present subjunctive of avoir + past participle | |||||
pluperfect2 | imperfect subjunctive of avoir + past participle | ||||||
imperative | – | – | – | ||||
simple | — | gaffe /ɡaf/ |
— | gaffons /ɡa.fɔ̃/ |
gaffez /ɡa.fe/ |
— | |
compound | — | simple imperative of avoir + past participle | — | simple imperative of avoir + past participle | simple imperative of avoir + past participle | — | |
1 The French gerund is usable only with the preposition en. | |||||||
2 In less formal writing or speech, these tenses may be found to have been replaced in the following way:
(Christopher Kendris [1995], Master the Basics: French, pp. 77, 78, 79, 81). |
Further reading
- “gaffer”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Norman
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Pronunciation
Audio (Jersey): (file)
Verb
gaffer
Welsh
Pronunciation
Verb
gaffer
- Soft mutation of caffer.
Mutation
Categories:
- English terms suffixed with -er (agent noun)
- English 2-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- Rhymes:English/æfə(ɹ)
- English lemmas
- English nouns
- English countable nouns
- en:Film
- English terms with quotations
- English colloquialisms
- British English
- en:Occupations
- en:People
- French terms suffixed with -er
- French lemmas
- French verbs
- French verbs with conjugation -er
- French first group verbs
- Norman terms with audio links
- Norman lemmas
- Norman verbs
- Jersey Norman
- Welsh terms with IPA pronunciation
- Welsh non-lemma forms
- Welsh mutated verbs
- Welsh soft-mutation forms