n ( pl gentlemen )
1. a formal or polite way of referring to a man. A common way to begin a speech, for example, is ‘Ladies and gentlemen, …’:
There’s a gentleman waiting to see you.
2. ( old-fash ) a man who is kind and polite and behaves well:
He behaved like a perfect gentleman.
3. ( in Britain, especially in the past ) a man who belonged to the gentry, a social class of people who were wealthy and did not need to work.