What does "gander" mean?
A male goose.
Gander
/ˈɡæn.dɚ/ name, noun, verb, slang
name, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A male goose.
- Grammar: gander is listed as name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: adult goose, bantam, banty, barn-door fowl.
- Useful contrasts: delve, female goose, ignore.
- Usage evidence: What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.
How to use "gander"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "gander" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "gander" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "gander" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "gander" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "gander" is acting as name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "adult goose" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "gander", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A male goose.
"Ganders and geese are at their best for stock from two to ten years old. They live to a great age—it is stated to thirty or more years—but after ten years they cannot be reckoned upon as reliable assets on a farm. Two years old is the best age to mate them, making up pens of a gander and two or three geese at the New Year. It is difficult sometimes to distinguish ganders from geese. A practical man is, however, rarely mistaken."
- 2 mature male goose wordnet
- 3 A fool, simpleton.
- 4 A glance, look. informal
"Have a gander at what he’s written."
- 5 A man living apart from his wife. US
Verb
- 1 to ramble, wander dialectal, intransitive
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
- 2 A town in Newfoundland, Newfoundland and Labrador.
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "gander"?
Common synonyms include: adult goose, bantam, banty, barn-door fowl, barnyard fowl, biddy.
How do you use "gander" in a sentence?
What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.
How do you pronounce "gander"?
Pronounced /ˈɡæn.dɚ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English gandre, from Old English gandra, ganra (“gander”), from Proto-West Germanic *ganʀō, from Proto-Germanic *ganzô (“gander”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰh₂éns (“goose”). The meaning "a look" is derived from the image of craning one's neck like a goose. Cognates Cognate with Dutch gander (“gander”), Low German Gander, Ganner (“gander”), dialectal German Gandert (“gander”), German Ganter (“gander”), Norwegian gasse (“gander”), Icelandic gassi (“gander”). Compare also Lithuanian gañdras (“stork”). Related to goose, gannet.
Etymology 2
* As an English surname, from the noun gander. * Also as an English surname, spelling variant of Ganter, itself related to French ganter (“to glove”). * As a north German surname, from Gandern in Brandenburg. * Also as a north German surname, from Ganter (“male goose”). * As a south German and Alemannic German surname, from Gand (“scree”). The town in Newfoundland is named after Gander Bay or Gander Lake, the names of which derive from the noun gander.