gnome

gnome

gnome a legendary dwarfish creature supposed to guard the earth's treasures underground; now popularly represented in a small garden ornament in the form of a bearded man with a pointed hat.

The word is recorded from the mid 17th century, and comes via French from modern Latin gnomus, a word used by Paracelsus as a synonym of Pygmaeus, denoting a mythical race of very small people said to inhabit parts of Ethiopia and India.
gnomes of Zurich an informal term for Swiss financiers, regarded as having a sinister influence; the phrase was popularized by the British Labour statesman Harold Wilson (1916–95).

Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "gnome." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "gnome." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-gnome.html

ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "gnome." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-gnome.html

Learn more about citation styles

gnome

gnome1 / nōm/ • n. a legendary dwarfish creature supposed to guard the earth's treasures underground. ∎ inf. a small ugly person. ∎ inf. a person regarded as having secret or sinister influence, esp. in financial matters: the gnomes of Zurich. ∎  (also garden gnome) a small garden ornament in the form of a bearded man with a pointed hat. DERIVATIVES: gnom·ish adj. gnome2 • n. a short statement encapsulating a general truth; a maxim.

Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

"gnome." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"gnome." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-gnome.html

"gnome." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-gnome.html

Learn more about citation styles

gnome

gnome [L gnomus]. This fabled race of treasure-guarding dwarfs, a concept coined by Paracelsus (16th cent.), has few counterparts in Celtic tradition, only the knocker of Cornwall and the goric of Brittany. International folk motif: F456.

Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

JAMES MacKILLOP. "gnome." A Dictionary of Celtic Mythology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

JAMES MacKILLOP. "gnome." A Dictionary of Celtic Mythology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O70-gnome.html

JAMES MacKILLOP. "gnome." A Dictionary of Celtic Mythology. 2004. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O70-gnome.html

Learn more about citation styles

gnome

gnome , in folklore, tiny subterranean creature associated with mines and quarries. Usually represented as misshapen, frequently as hunchbacked, gnomes are said to be guardians of hidden treasures.

Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

"gnome." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"gnome." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-gnome.html

"gnome." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-gnome.html

Learn more about citation styles

gnome

gnomebrome, chrome, comb, Crome, dome, foam, gnome, holm, Holme, hom, home, Jerome, loam, Nome, ohm, om, roam, Rome, tome •Guillaume • biome • Beerbohm •radome • astrodome • Styrofoam •megohm • Stockholm • Bornholm •motorhome • backcomb • honeycomb •cockscomb, coxcomb •toothcomb • genome • gastronome •metronome • syndrome • palindrome •polychrome • Nichrome •monochrome • velodrome •hippodrome • aerodrome •cyclostome • rhizome

Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

"gnome." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"gnome." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-gnome.html

"gnome." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-gnome.html

Learn more about citation styles

Free newspaper and magazine articles

Roaming gnomes in the news again.(FEATURES)(CURRENTS)
Newspaper article from: The Christian Science Monitor; 1/30/2004
Gnome is where the heart is . . AS THE PRICE OF GARDEN GNOMES ROCKETS, THE...
Newspaper article from: Daily Mail (London); 2/13/1996
GNOME 3.0 UNVEILS MOST SIGNIFICANT REDESIGN IN NINE YEARS.
Newspaper article from: UNIX Update; 5/1/2011

Facts and information from other sites

gnome images
gnome. (Image by Flickr user sarae, CC)