NYT Dictionary

GELD

/ɡɛld/
NounVerbGELDGrade 8

Accepted in official NYT Spelling Bee puzzle years: 2020, 2021, 2022, 2024, 2025, 2026

Meaning

Money.

Etymology

Origin: Old English

From Middle English geld (and reinforced by Medieval Latin geldum), both from Old English ġeld, ġield (“payment, tribute”) (which regularly yield yield), from Proto-West Germanic *geld, from Proto-Germanic *geldą (“reward, gift, money”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰeldʰ- (“to pay”). Probably reinforced by gelt (which see), see Norwegian Bokmål gjeld (“debt”), Danish gæld (“debt”) (whence apparently the otherwise irregular hard g in Middle English geld and perhaps also in Medieval Latin geldum, as opposed to the regular continuation yield from Old English). Geld is also written gelt or gild, and as such found in wergild, Danegeld, etc. Doublet of yield. Cognates Cognate with North Frisian jild (“money”), Saterland Frisian Jield, Jäild (“money”), Dutch geld (“money”), German Geld (“money”), Old Norse gjald (“payment”), Gothic 𐌲𐌹𐌻𐌳 (gild, “tribute”). Also related to English yield.

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

cutaltercastratechangedemasculinizeeffeminizeemasculatefixdesexualizeeffeminate

NYT Puzzle Appearances

Accepted in 6 recorded puzzles:

Join the Spelling Bee Community

Get solving strategies, rare word lists, and puzzle tips in your inbox every week.