How ‘Gay’ Came to Mean ‘Homosexual’

the etymology of the word gay

GAY Meang: "full of joy, merry; light-hearted, reee;" also "wanton, lewd, lasciv" (late 12c. as a surname,… See orig and meang of gay.

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GAY (ADJ.)

* the etymology of the word gay *

Gay (adj. As a surname, Philipp Gay), om Old French gai "joyful, happy; pleasant, agreeably charmg; forward, pert; light-lored" (12c.

THE HISTORY OF THE WORD “GAY”

; pare Old Spanish gayo, Portugue ga, Italian gajo, probably French loan-words).

WHEN DID "GAY" BEE ASSOCIATED WH HOMOSEXUALY? [DUPLITE]

)) word gay by the 1890s had an overall tge of promiscuy — a gay hoe was a brothel. The suggtn of immoraly the word n be traced back at least to the 1630s, if not to Chcer:But oure bed he was so sh and gay. Whan that he wol han my bele slang meang "homosexual" (adj.

) begs to appear psychologil wrg the late 1940s, evintly picked up om gay slang and not always easily distguished om the olr sense:After discharge A. He was not happy at the farm and went to a Wtern cy where he associated wh a homosexual crowd, beg "gay, " and wearg female cloth and makp.

*BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM* THE ETYMOLOGY OF THE WORD GAY

The history of the word “gay” | The Gayly .

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