Gentleman

Gentleman

The term gentleman (from Latin gentilis, belonging to a race or gens, and man, cognate with the French word gentilhomme, the Spanish Caballero, the Italian gentil uomo or gentiluomo and the Portuguese gentil-homem), in its original and strict signification, denoted a man of the lowest rank of the English gentry, standing below an esquire and above a yeoman.

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Famous quotes containing the word gentleman:

    There’s no art
    To find the mind’s construction in the face:
    He was a gentleman on whom I built
    An absolute trust.
    William Shakespeare (1564–1616)

    Believe me, there exists no such dilemma as that in which a gentleman is placed when he is forced to reply to a blackguard.
    Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1845)

    A gentleman opposed to their enfranchisement once said to me, “Women have never produced anything of any value to the world.” I told him the chief product of the women had been the men, and left it to him to decide whether the product was of any value.
    Anna Howard Shaw (1847–1919)