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gest

gest

9.9
A story about brave adventures of heroes from long ago
  • noun
  • /dʒɛst/
  • Archaic
translation icon : gesta
  • In medieval literature, a gest often tells of a knight's valor and chivalry.

Examples

  • The epic poem recounts the gest of Beowulf and his courageous battles with monsters.

  • President Clinton cited a "sea change in public attitude" (Gest 1993, 6).

    Academic text (1995)
  • IT'S WAY MORE THAN GEST--

  • The storyteller captivated the audience with tales of legendary gests from the past.

Synonyms

epic tale
vsgest
  • Literature
1 5.2

A long story about heroes and their great adventures

is an older literary label focusing on historic notable exploits
heroic tale
vsgest
  • Literature
1 4.3

A story about a brave person who faces danger, for example a knight fighting a dragon

is the older or literary term used for historic heroic accounts
geste
vsgest
  • Archaic
9.9

A long old poem that tells of a hero's brave deeds

is the alternate historical form of the same old heroic story term
chanson de geste
vsgest
  • Archaic
9.9

A long Old French poem that tells stories of heroic knights and their deeds

is the more general old story not limited to Old French poems
heroic poem
vsgest
  • Literature
7.4

A long poem that tells the brave deeds of a hero

is the broader old story form not limited to poetic works

How Remarkable

gest
  • Archaic
9.9
feat
108 3.8
deed
281 3.4
incident
2.7

Surface Forms

gest singular
gests plural

Etymology

Gest comes from Old French geste and Latin gesta, words that mean 'deeds' or 'things done'. A gest is an old story about a brave deed or great action—like a song that praises a hero—and you can see the same root in gesture, which is a 'doing' with the body.