Other forms: gallants
Gallant means brave in a way people admire and remember, and — of a man — elaborately polite to women. A gallant defence of a bridge; the gallant who is out of his seat holding the door before you get near it.
The word carries an old shine, and a whiff of another century comes with it. 'A gallant effort' or 'a gallant loser' praises someone who fought well and lost anyway, which is the commonest use now. British speakers move the stress for the two senses: GAL-lant for brave, ga-LANT for the courtly one, where a gallant is also a noun — a fashionable young man paying court. The noun gallantry covers both halves: medals are awarded for gallantry in battle, and gallantry is what old novels call a man's attention to women. Said of manners today, gallant sounds charming or mocking depending entirely on who says it.
1adjectivebraveBrave and noble, especially against the odds.
“A gallant attempt to reach the crew ended in the dark.”
2adjectivegallant(of a man) attentive and courteous towards women, in an old-fashioned way.
“He was gallant enough to walk her right to the door.”
dated in this meaning — an editor’s judgement
3nounfashionableA fashionable young man who pays court to women.
“The novel is full of gallants in silk waistcoats.”
dated in this meaning — an editor’s judgement
Gallant began at a party. Old French galant was the present participle of galer, 'to rejoice, make merry', from gale — 'pomp, show, festivity, mirth' — so a gallant was first of all a man having a splendid time. The Frankish root behind it points either to wala, 'good, well', or to gail, 'merry, mirthful, proud'. Bravery and fine manners came later; the showing-off never left.
Proto-Indo-European
*welh₁-
Frankish
*gail — merry; mirthful; proud; luxuriant
Proto-Indo-European
*welh₁- — to choose, wish
Proto-Germanic
*wela
Old French
galant — courteous; dashing; brave
Middle English
galant
English, today
gallant
Built from
From Middle English galant, galaunt, from Old French galant (“courteous; dashing; brave”), present participle of galer (“to rejoice; make merry”), from gale (“pomp; show; festivity; mirth”); either from Frankish wala (“good, well”), a variant form of wela, from Proto-Germanic wela (whence well), from Proto-Indo-European welh₁- (“to choose, wish”); or alternatively from Frankish gail (“merry; mirthful; proud; luxuriant”), from Proto-Germanic gailaz (“merry; excited; luxurious”), related to Dutch geil (“horny; lascivious; salacious; lecherous”), German geil (“randy; horny; lecherous; wicked”), Old English gāl (“wanton; wicked; bad”).
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA