/ gɔːl; NAmE / noun , verb
■ noun
1.
rude behaviour showing a lack of respect that is surprising because the person doing it is not embarrassed
SYN impudence :
Then they had the gall to complain!
2.
( formal ) a bitter feeling full of hatred
SYN resentment
3.
a swelling on plants and trees caused by insects, disease, etc.
4.
( old-fashioned ) = bile
■ verb
to make sb feel upset and angry, especially because sth is unfair :
[ vn to inf ]
It galls me to have to apologize to her.
[also vn , vn that ]
—see also galling
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WORD ORIGIN
noun sense 1 and noun sense 4 Old English gealla (denoting bile), of Germanic origin; related to Dutch gal , German Galle gall, from an Indo-European root shared by Greek kholē and Latin fel bile.
verb and noun sense 2 Old English gealle sore on a horse , perhaps related to gall rude behaviour ; superseded in Middle English by forms from Middle Low German or Middle Dutch .
noun sense 3 Middle English : via Old French from Latin galla .