gypsy

== English == === Alternative forms === gipsy, gipsey, gypsey, gypsie (archaic) gyptian === Etymology === See Gypsy. Compare bohemian, from Bohemia. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ˈd͡ʒɪp.si/ Rhymes: -ɪpsi === Noun === gypsy (plural gypsies) (sometimes offensive) Alternative form of Gypsy (“member of the Romani people”). (colloquial) An itinerant person or any person, not necessarily Romani; a tinker, a traveller or a carny. (sometimes offensive) A move in contra dancing in which two dancers walk in a circle around each other while maintaining eye contact (but not touching as in a swing). (Compare whole gyp, half gyp, and gypsy meltdown, in which this step precedes a swing.) (theater) A member of a Broadway musical chorus line. (dated) A person with a dark complexion. (dated) A sly, roguish woman. (dated, colloquial) A fortune teller. (Can we verify(+) this sense?) (sometimes offensive) A whitewashed South Asian. ==== Usage notes ==== See notes at Gypsy. ==== Synonyms ==== (contra dancing): gyre, gyp, gip ==== Derived terms ==== ==== Translations ==== === Adjective === gypsy (not comparable) Alternative form of Gypsy: of or belonging to the Rom, Dom or Lom people. (offensive) Of or having the qualities of an itinerant person or group with qualities traditionally ascribed to Romani people; making a living from dishonest practices or theft etc. ==== Usage notes ==== See the notes about Gypsy. ==== Derived terms ==== === Verb === gypsy (third-person singular simple present gypsies, present participle gypsying, simple past and past participle gypsied) (intransitive) To roam around the country like a gypsy. To perform the gypsy step in contra dancing. === See also === Gypsy on Wikipedia.Wikipedia === References === “gypsy”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.