What does "gentile" mean?
A non-Jewish person.
Gentile
/ˈd͡ʒɛntaɪl/ adj, noun
adj, noun ·Moderate ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A non-Jewish person.
- Grammar: gentile is listed as adj, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: goy, non-jew, atheist, atheistic.
- Useful contrasts: judaeo, Jew, Jewish.
- Usage evidence: There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
How to use "gentile"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "gentile" 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 "gentile" 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 "gentile" as the right word for your sentence.
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Compare nearby meanings
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- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
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Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "gentile" is acting as adj, noun 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 "goy" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
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Final meaning check
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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 non-Jewish person. Judaism
"And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my seruant to raise vp the tribes of Iacob, and to restore the preserued of Israel: I will also giue thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my saluation, vnto the end of the earth."
- 2 Alternative letter-case form of gentile (a non-Jewish person). alt-of
- 3 a Christian wordnet
- 4 A non-Mormon person. Mormonism
- 5 A non-Mormon person (including Jews). Mormonism
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 a Christian as contrasted with a Jew wordnet
- 7 A noun derived from a proper noun which denotes something belonging to or coming from a particular city, nation, or country.
"Gentiles are denominative nouns denoting belonging to or coming from a particular country, nation, or city. Gentiles are formed from proper nouns by secondary suffixes."
- 8 a person who is not a member of one's own religion; used in this sense by Mormons and Hindus wordnet
- 9 a person who does not acknowledge your god wordnet
Adjective
- 1 Non-Jewish. not-comparable
"This ſhall bring down the Judgment upon Rome, preſently after the Appearance of Antichriſt: and as upon Rome, ſo alſo upon all the Gentile Chriſtians, who have a Name to live but are dead, being fallen away from their Firſt Love and Faith, and ſo having made themſelves Veſſels fit for Deſtruction, when this ſore Judgment ſhall go forth."
- 2 Heathen, pagan. not-comparable
"[John] Bale, following Annius [Annio da Viterbo], argued that druids, bards and other ‘gentile’ (pagan) priests had preserved from Noah’s time the memory of a true religion that believed ‘that there is one God, immortal and incomprehensible’ (‘unum esse Deum immortalem, et incomprehensibilem ...’)."
- 3 Non-Mormon. Mormonism, not-comparable
- 4 Relating to a clan, tribe, or nation; clannish, tribal, national. not-comparable
"As distinct from the old gentile order, the state, first, divides its subjects according to territory. As we have seen, the old gentile associations, built upon and held together by ties of blood, became inadequate, largely because they presupposed that the members were bound to a given territory, a bond which had long ceased to exist. The territory remained, but the people had become mobile. Hence, division according to territory was taken as the point of departure, and citizens were allowed to exercise their public rights and duties wherever they settled, irrespective of gens and tribe."
- 5 Of or pertaining to a gens or several gentes. not-comparable
"The council was the great feature of ancient society, Asiatic, European and American, from the institution of the gens in savagery to civilization. […] As the council sprang from the gentile organization the two institutions have come down together through the ages. The Council of Chiefs represents the ancient method of evolving the wisdom of mankind and applying it to human affairs. Its history, gentile, tribal, and confederate, would express the growth of the idea of government in its whole development, until political society supervened into which the council, changed into a senate, was transmitted."
Show 1 more definition
- 6 Of a part of speech such as an adjective, noun or verb: relating to a particular city, nation or country. not-comparable
"Gentile verbs are so denominated because derived from gentile nouns, or from proper nouns, or adnouns: they relate to countries, and to places generally, or to men: the following are examples: Greecise, Latinise, Anglicise, […] Aristotelise, Sophoclise, Shakesperianise. Gentile verbs in their radical form terminate in ise, with some few exceptions in fy, ate, and in their past participle with ised, being all of the first conjugation: they are formed by annexing ise to a gentile noun or to a proper substantive or to a proper adjective."
Adjective
- 1 belonging to or characteristic of non-Jewish peoples wordnet
Example
"There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "gentile"?
Common synonyms include: goy, non-jew, atheist, atheistic, clannish, disbeliever.
How do you use "gentile" in a sentence?
There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
How do you pronounce "gentile"?
Pronounced /ˈd͡ʒɛntaɪl/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Borrowed from French gentil (“gentile”), from Latin gentīlis (“of or belonging to the same people or nation”), morphologically from gēns (“clan; tribe; people, family”) + adjective suffix -īlis (“-ile”). Doublet of gentle, genteel, jaunty, and Gentoo. See also gens, gender, genus, and generation.
Etymology 2
From French gentil (“gentile”), from Latin gentīlis (“of or belonging to the same people or nation”), from gēns (“clan, tribe”) + adjective suffix -īlis (“-ile”).