gag
verb/ɡæɡ/
/ɡæɡ/
Verb Forms
Idioms | present simple I / you / we / they gag | /ɡæɡ/ /ɡæɡ/ |
| he / she / it gags | /ɡæɡz/ /ɡæɡz/ |
| past simple gagged | /ɡæɡd/ /ɡæɡd/ |
| past participle gagged | /ɡæɡd/ /ɡæɡd/ |
| -ing form gagging | /ˈɡæɡɪŋ/ /ˈɡæɡɪŋ/ |
- [transitive] gag somebody to put a piece of cloth in or over somebody’s mouth to prevent them from speaking or shouting
- The hostages were bound and gagged.
- The men left the security guards bound and gagged.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryphrases- bind and gag somebody
Definitions on the go
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- [transitive] gag somebody/something to prevent somebody from speaking freely or expressing their opinion
- The new laws are seen as an attempt to gag the press.
- [intransitive] gag (on something) to have the unpleasant feeling in your mouth and stomach as if you are going to vomit synonym retch
- She gagged on the blood that filled her mouth.
- The stench of rotting meat made him gag.
Word Originverb Middle English: perhaps related to Old Norse gagháls ‘with the neck thrown back’, or imitative of a person choking.
Idioms
See gag in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionarybe gagging for something/to do something
- (British English, slang) to want something or want to do something very much
- I’m gagging for another drink.
- Today’s top stars are no longer gagging to play for their country.
be gagging for it
- (British English, slang) to want very much to have sex
Check pronunciation:
gag