English Explanatory Dictionary

girth

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A band passed under the belly of an animal, which holds a saddle or a harness saddle in place.
  2. The part of an animal around which the girth fits.
  3. One's waistline circumference, most often a large one.
  4. A small horizontal brace or girder.
  5. The distance measured around an object; the circumference.
  6. The length of the shortest cycle in a graph.
verb
  1. To bind as if with a girth or band.

Pronunciation

/ɡɜːθ/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-girth.wav /ɡɝθ/ [ɡɚθ]

Word forms

girth girths girthing girthed

Etymology

From Middle English girth, gerth, gyrth, from Old Norse gjǫrð, from Proto-Germanic *gerdō, from Proto-Indo-European *gʰerdʰ- (“to encircle, enclose; belt”). Cognate with Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐌹𐍂𐌳𐌰 (gairda), Icelandic gjörð. Also related to German Gurt, English gird, Albanian ngërthej (“to tie, bind, fasten”).

Synonyms

circumference cinch

Derived words

breastgirth breast girth breast-girth digirth girthen girthful girth-galled girthless girthline girthly girthsome girth strap girthy ungirth
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