See gremlin in All languages combined, or Wiktionary
{
"derived": [
{
"_dis1": "0 0 0 0 0",
"word": "gremmie"
},
{
"_dis1": "0 0 0 0 0",
"word": "gremmy"
},
{
"_dis1": "0 0 0 0 0",
"word": "gremlinesque"
},
{
"_dis1": "0 0 0 0 0",
"word": "gremlinology"
},
{
"_dis1": "0 0 0 0 0",
"word": "gremlinologist"
},
{
"_dis1": "0 0 0 0 0",
"word": "gremlinous"
}
],
"etymology_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "en"
},
"expansion": "Uncertain",
"name": "uncertain"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "ga",
"3": "gruaimín",
"t": "gloomy little person"
},
"expansion": "Irish gruaimín (“gloomy little person”)",
"name": "der"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "nl",
"3": "gremmelen",
"t": "to soil, stain; to spoil"
},
"expansion": "Dutch gremmelen (“to soil, stain; to spoil”)",
"name": "der"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "obsolete"
},
"expansion": "(obsolete)",
"name": "q"
}
],
"etymology_text": "Uncertain; the following etymologies have been suggested:\n* A variant of goblin.\n* From Irish gruaimín (“gloomy little person”); or from Dutch gremmelen (“to soil, stain; to spoil”), or griemelen, grimmelen (“(obsolete) to abound, teem; to swarm”), but according to the Oxford English Dictionary there is little evidence for such derivations.\nThe word was popularized, especially in the United States, by the children’s novel The Gremlins (1943) by the British author Roald Dahl (1916–1990), in which gremlins sabotage Royal Air Force aircraft in revenge for the destruction of their forest home to make way for an aircraft factory; the creatures later join forces with the British to fight the Nazis.",
"forms": [
{
"form": "gremlins",
"tags": [
"plural"
]
}
],
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{
"args": {},
"expansion": "gremlin (plural gremlins)",
"name": "en-noun"
}
],
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{
"parts": [
"grem",
"lin"
]
}
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "noun",
"related": [
{
"_dis1": "0 0 0 0 0",
"word": "ghost in the machine"
},
{
"_dis1": "0 0 0 0 0",
"word": "ghost"
}
],
"senses": [
{
"attestations": [
{
"date": "from 1920s",
"references": []
}
],
"categories": [
{
"kind": "other",
"name": "British English",
"parents": [],
"source": "w"
},
{
"kind": "other",
"langcode": "en",
"name": "Aviation",
"orig": "en:Aviation",
"parents": [],
"source": "w"
},
{
"_dis": "55 19 12 10 4",
"kind": "other",
"name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "44 32 11 9 4",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Entries with translation boxes",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "59 20 12 6 3",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Pages with 1 entry",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "57 17 13 10 2",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Pages with entries",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "56 14 10 16 4",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with Bulgarian translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "55 20 10 9 5",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with Finnish translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "57 17 11 10 5",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with German translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "55 21 14 7 4",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with Greek translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "59 17 10 9 4",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with Japanese translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "57 17 11 10 5",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with Korean translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "53 13 9 8 17",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with Lithuanian translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "62 20 9 6 3",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with Mandarin translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "53 13 9 8 17",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with Marathi translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
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{
"_dis": "59 17 10 9 4",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with Russian translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
},
{
"_dis": "57 17 11 10 5",
"kind": "other",
"name": "Terms with Ukrainian translations",
"parents": [],
"source": "w+disamb"
}
],
"glosses": [
"A contemptible person."
],
"id": "en-gremlin-en-noun-ojqcM~SG",
"links": [
[
"aviation",
"aviation"
],
[
"Royal Air Force",
"Royal Air Force"
],
[
"contemptible",
"contemptible"
],
[
"person",
"person#Noun"
]
],
"qualifier": "Royal Air Force slang",
"raw_glosses": [
"(originally British, aviation, Royal Air Force slang)",
"(obsolete) A contemptible person."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "absolute zero"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "also-ran"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"humorous",
"informal"
],
"word": "chopped liver"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "cipher"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"slang"
],
"word": "crumb"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "Joe Nobody"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "little guy"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "minnow"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "nebbish"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "nobody"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "no one"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "nothing"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "nothingburger"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "nonentity"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"US",
"informal"
],
"word": "picayune"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"US"
],
"word": "pip-squeak"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "pleb"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "peon"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "prole"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"archaic"
],
"word": "puny"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"obsolete"
],
"word": "quidam"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"US",
"informal"
],
"word": "rinky-dink"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "shrimp"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"UK"
],
"word": "wankstain"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"US"
],
"word": "zero"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"US"
],
"word": "zilch"
}
],
"tags": [
"obsolete"
],
"topics": [
"aeronautics",
"aerospace",
"aviation",
"business",
"engineering",
"natural-sciences",
"physical-sciences"
]
},
{
"attestations": [
{
"date": "from 1920s",
"references": []
}
],
"categories": [
{
"kind": "other",
"name": "British English",
"parents": [],
"source": "w"
},
{
"kind": "other",
"langcode": "en",
"name": "Aviation",
"orig": "en:Aviation",
"parents": [],
"source": "w"
}
],
"examples": [
{
"bold_text_offsets": [
[
25,
33
]
],
"ref": "1963, Arthur C Clarke, chapter 8, in Glidepath, New York: Simon and Schuster, pages 72-73:",
"text": "Like Abominable Snowmen, gremlins have never actually been seen; but nobody who works with electronic gear doubts the existence of these mischievous and elusive entities. There are too many malfunctions and failures that can have no other explanation.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"bold_text_offsets": [
[
101,
109
]
],
"ref": "2023 November 29, Richard Foster, “Tyne & Wear Metro goes with the flow”, in RAIL, number 997, page 34:",
"text": "Crucial time was saved by the fact Nexus didn't require a Transport & Works Act. Nevertheless, other gremlins kept raising their heads.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"An imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined, for example, to damage or dismantle machinery."
],
"id": "en-gremlin-en-noun-YxhIbYAI",
"links": [
[
"aviation",
"aviation"
],
[
"Royal Air Force",
"Royal Air Force"
],
[
"imaginary",
"imaginary"
],
[
"creature",
"creature"
],
[
"reputed",
"repute#Verb"
],
[
"mischievously",
"mischievously"
],
[
"inclined",
"inclined#Adjective"
],
[
"damage",
"damage#Verb"
],
[
"dismantle",
"dismantle"
],
[
"machinery",
"machinery"
]
],
"qualifier": "Royal Air Force slang",
"raw_glosses": [
"(originally British, aviation, Royal Air Force slang)",
"An imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined, for example, to damage or dismantle machinery."
],
"topics": [
"aeronautics",
"aerospace",
"aviation",
"business",
"engineering",
"natural-sciences",
"physical-sciences"
],
"translations": [
{
"_dis1": "10 82 4 2 2",
"code": "bg",
"lang": "Bulgarian",
"lang_code": "bg",
"roman": "gremlin",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "гремлин"
},
{
"_dis1": "10 82 4 2 2",
"code": "bg",
"lang": "Bulgarian",
"lang_code": "bg",
"roman": "gnom",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "гном"
},
{
"_dis1": "10 82 4 2 2",
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"lang_code": "cmn",
"roman": "géléimǔlín",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "葛雷姆林"
},
{
"_dis1": "10 82 4 2 2",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"lang_code": "fi",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "riiviö"
},
{
"_dis1": "10 82 4 2 2",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"lang_code": "fi",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "pikkupiru"
},
{
"_dis1": "10 82 4 2 2",
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"lang_code": "el",
"roman": "kalikántzaros",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "καλικάντζαρος"
},
{
"_dis1": "10 82 4 2 2",
"code": "ja",
"lang": "Japanese",
"lang_code": "ja",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "グレムリン"
},
{
"_dis1": "10 82 4 2 2",
"code": "ko",
"lang": "Korean",
"lang_code": "ko",
"roman": "geuremnin",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "그렘린"
},
{
"_dis1": "10 82 4 2 2",
"code": "lt",
"lang": "Lithuanian",
"lang_code": "lt",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "gremlinas"
},
{
"_dis1": "10 82 4 2 2",
"code": "mr",
"lang": "Marathi",
"lang_code": "mr",
"roman": "gremlin",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "ग्रेमलिन"
},
{
"_dis1": "10 82 4 2 2",
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"lang_code": "ru",
"roman": "gremlin",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "гремлин"
},
{
"_dis1": "10 82 4 2 2",
"code": "uk",
"lang": "Ukrainian",
"lang_code": "uk",
"roman": "hrémlin",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "гре́млін"
}
]
},
{
"categories": [],
"examples": [
{
"bold_text_offsets": [
[
40,
48
]
],
"text": "We rechecked everything, and we suspect gremlins in the database.",
"type": "example"
}
],
"glosses": [
"Any mysterious, unknown source of mischief or trouble, or the problem created thereby."
],
"id": "en-gremlin-en-noun-O~s7dqd6",
"links": [
[
"mysterious",
"mysterious"
],
[
"unknown",
"unknown#Adjective"
],
[
"source",
"source#Noun"
],
[
"mischief",
"mischief"
],
[
"trouble",
"trouble#Noun"
],
[
"problem",
"problem#Noun"
],
[
"create",
"create"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(by extension)",
"Any mysterious, unknown source of mischief or trouble, or the problem created thereby."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "bug"
},
{
"word": "glitch"
},
{
"word": "hitch"
}
],
"tags": [
"broadly"
],
"translations": [
{
"_dis1": "11 3 81 2 2",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"lang_code": "fi",
"sense": "any mysterious, unknown source of mischief or trouble, or the problem created thereby",
"word": "häikkä"
},
{
"_dis1": "11 3 81 2 2",
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"lang_code": "de",
"sense": "any mysterious, unknown source of mischief or trouble, or the problem created thereby",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "Fehlerteufel"
},
{
"_dis1": "11 3 81 2 2",
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"lang_code": "de",
"sense": "any mysterious, unknown source of mischief or trouble, or the problem created thereby",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "Kobold"
}
]
},
{
"attestations": [
{
"date": "from 1960s",
"references": []
}
],
"categories": [
{
"kind": "other",
"langcode": "en",
"name": "Skateboarding",
"orig": "en:Skateboarding",
"parents": [],
"source": "w"
},
{
"kind": "other",
"langcode": "en",
"name": "Surfing",
"orig": "en:Surfing",
"parents": [],
"source": "w"
}
],
"glosses": [
"A young, inexperienced surfer or skateboarder, regarded as a nuisance."
],
"id": "en-gremlin-en-noun-yFni0i4E",
"links": [
[
"surfing",
"surfing#Noun"
],
[
"skateboarding",
"skateboarding#Noun"
],
[
"young",
"young#Adjective"
],
[
"inexperienced",
"inexperienced"
],
[
"surfer",
"surfer"
],
[
"skateboarder",
"skateboarder"
],
[
"nuisance",
"nuisance"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(by extension)",
"(surfing, skateboarding, slang) A young, inexperienced surfer or skateboarder, regarded as a nuisance."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "grem"
},
{
"word": "gremmie"
},
{
"word": "gremmy"
},
{
"word": "grommet"
}
],
"tags": [
"broadly",
"slang"
],
"topics": [
"hobbies",
"lifestyle",
"skateboarding",
"sports",
"surfing"
],
"translations": [
{
"_dis1": "15 3 6 64 11",
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"lang_code": "fi",
"sense": "young, inexperienced surfer, seen as being a nuisance",
"word": "keltanokka"
}
]
},
{
"categories": [],
"examples": [
{
"bold_text_offsets": [
[
226,
233
]
],
"ref": "2023 May 3, Jenni Lada, “Honkai: Star Rail’s Trailblazer Avatar Is a Gremlin and It’s Great”, in Siliconera:",
"text": "Rosa, the main character in Tears of Themis, is also very smart, justice-driven, and willing to help. Meanwhile, the Honkai: Star Rail Trailblazer […] can often be a sarcastic, pessimistic, lazy, self-serving, dumpster-diving gremlin.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"A person regarded as similar to a fictional gremlin, in particular: mischievous, troublesome, short, or annoying."
],
"id": "en-gremlin-en-noun-GN1luLuf",
"raw_glosses": [
"(by extension)",
"A person regarded as similar to a fictional gremlin, in particular: mischievous, troublesome, short, or annoying."
],
"tags": [
"broadly"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"ipa": "/ˈɡɹɛmlɪn/",
"tags": [
"Received-Pronunciation"
]
},
{
"ipa": "/ˈɡɹɛmlən/",
"tags": [
"General-American"
]
},
{
"audio": "En-us-gremlin.ogg",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/c/ce/En-us-gremlin.ogg/En-us-gremlin.ogg.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/En-us-gremlin.ogg"
},
{
"rhymes": "-ɛmlɪn"
}
],
"wikipedia": [
"Oxford English Dictionary",
"Roald Dahl",
"The Gremlins"
],
"word": "gremlin"
}
{
"categories": [
"English countable nouns",
"English entries with incorrect language header",
"English lemmas",
"English military slang",
"English nouns",
"English terms with unknown etymologies",
"Entries with translation boxes",
"Pages with 1 entry",
"Pages with entries",
"Rhymes:English/ɛmlɪn",
"Rhymes:English/ɛmlɪn/2 syllables",
"Terms with Bulgarian translations",
"Terms with Finnish translations",
"Terms with German translations",
"Terms with Greek translations",
"Terms with Japanese translations",
"Terms with Korean translations",
"Terms with Lithuanian translations",
"Terms with Mandarin translations",
"Terms with Marathi translations",
"Terms with Russian translations",
"Terms with Ukrainian translations"
],
"derived": [
{
"word": "gremmie"
},
{
"word": "gremmy"
},
{
"word": "gremlinesque"
},
{
"word": "gremlinology"
},
{
"word": "gremlinologist"
},
{
"word": "gremlinous"
}
],
"etymology_templates": [
{
"args": {
"1": "en"
},
"expansion": "Uncertain",
"name": "uncertain"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "ga",
"3": "gruaimín",
"t": "gloomy little person"
},
"expansion": "Irish gruaimín (“gloomy little person”)",
"name": "der"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "en",
"2": "nl",
"3": "gremmelen",
"t": "to soil, stain; to spoil"
},
"expansion": "Dutch gremmelen (“to soil, stain; to spoil”)",
"name": "der"
},
{
"args": {
"1": "obsolete"
},
"expansion": "(obsolete)",
"name": "q"
}
],
"etymology_text": "Uncertain; the following etymologies have been suggested:\n* A variant of goblin.\n* From Irish gruaimín (“gloomy little person”); or from Dutch gremmelen (“to soil, stain; to spoil”), or griemelen, grimmelen (“(obsolete) to abound, teem; to swarm”), but according to the Oxford English Dictionary there is little evidence for such derivations.\nThe word was popularized, especially in the United States, by the children’s novel The Gremlins (1943) by the British author Roald Dahl (1916–1990), in which gremlins sabotage Royal Air Force aircraft in revenge for the destruction of their forest home to make way for an aircraft factory; the creatures later join forces with the British to fight the Nazis.",
"forms": [
{
"form": "gremlins",
"tags": [
"plural"
]
}
],
"head_templates": [
{
"args": {},
"expansion": "gremlin (plural gremlins)",
"name": "en-noun"
}
],
"hyphenations": [
{
"parts": [
"grem",
"lin"
]
}
],
"lang": "English",
"lang_code": "en",
"pos": "noun",
"related": [
{
"word": "ghost in the machine"
},
{
"word": "ghost"
}
],
"senses": [
{
"attestations": [
{
"date": "from 1920s",
"references": []
}
],
"categories": [
"British English",
"English slang",
"English terms with obsolete senses",
"en:Aviation"
],
"glosses": [
"A contemptible person."
],
"links": [
[
"aviation",
"aviation"
],
[
"Royal Air Force",
"Royal Air Force"
],
[
"contemptible",
"contemptible"
],
[
"person",
"person#Noun"
]
],
"qualifier": "Royal Air Force slang",
"raw_glosses": [
"(originally British, aviation, Royal Air Force slang)",
"(obsolete) A contemptible person."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "absolute zero"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "also-ran"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"humorous",
"informal"
],
"word": "chopped liver"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "cipher"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"slang"
],
"word": "crumb"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "Joe Nobody"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "little guy"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "minnow"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "nebbish"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "nobody"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "no one"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "nothing"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "nothingburger"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "nonentity"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"US",
"informal"
],
"word": "picayune"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"US"
],
"word": "pip-squeak"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "pleb"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "peon"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "prole"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"archaic"
],
"word": "puny"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"obsolete"
],
"word": "quidam"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"US",
"informal"
],
"word": "rinky-dink"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"word": "shrimp"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"UK"
],
"word": "wankstain"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"US"
],
"word": "zero"
},
{
"source": "Thesaurus:nonentity",
"tags": [
"US"
],
"word": "zilch"
}
],
"tags": [
"obsolete"
],
"topics": [
"aeronautics",
"aerospace",
"aviation",
"business",
"engineering",
"natural-sciences",
"physical-sciences"
]
},
{
"attestations": [
{
"date": "from 1920s",
"references": []
}
],
"categories": [
"British English",
"English slang",
"English terms with quotations",
"en:Aviation"
],
"examples": [
{
"bold_text_offsets": [
[
25,
33
]
],
"ref": "1963, Arthur C Clarke, chapter 8, in Glidepath, New York: Simon and Schuster, pages 72-73:",
"text": "Like Abominable Snowmen, gremlins have never actually been seen; but nobody who works with electronic gear doubts the existence of these mischievous and elusive entities. There are too many malfunctions and failures that can have no other explanation.",
"type": "quote"
},
{
"bold_text_offsets": [
[
101,
109
]
],
"ref": "2023 November 29, Richard Foster, “Tyne & Wear Metro goes with the flow”, in RAIL, number 997, page 34:",
"text": "Crucial time was saved by the fact Nexus didn't require a Transport & Works Act. Nevertheless, other gremlins kept raising their heads.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"An imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined, for example, to damage or dismantle machinery."
],
"links": [
[
"aviation",
"aviation"
],
[
"Royal Air Force",
"Royal Air Force"
],
[
"imaginary",
"imaginary"
],
[
"creature",
"creature"
],
[
"reputed",
"repute#Verb"
],
[
"mischievously",
"mischievously"
],
[
"inclined",
"inclined#Adjective"
],
[
"damage",
"damage#Verb"
],
[
"dismantle",
"dismantle"
],
[
"machinery",
"machinery"
]
],
"qualifier": "Royal Air Force slang",
"raw_glosses": [
"(originally British, aviation, Royal Air Force slang)",
"An imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined, for example, to damage or dismantle machinery."
],
"topics": [
"aeronautics",
"aerospace",
"aviation",
"business",
"engineering",
"natural-sciences",
"physical-sciences"
]
},
{
"categories": [
"English terms with usage examples"
],
"examples": [
{
"bold_text_offsets": [
[
40,
48
]
],
"text": "We rechecked everything, and we suspect gremlins in the database.",
"type": "example"
}
],
"glosses": [
"Any mysterious, unknown source of mischief or trouble, or the problem created thereby."
],
"links": [
[
"mysterious",
"mysterious"
],
[
"unknown",
"unknown#Adjective"
],
[
"source",
"source#Noun"
],
[
"mischief",
"mischief"
],
[
"trouble",
"trouble#Noun"
],
[
"problem",
"problem#Noun"
],
[
"create",
"create"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(by extension)",
"Any mysterious, unknown source of mischief or trouble, or the problem created thereby."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "bug"
},
{
"word": "glitch"
},
{
"word": "hitch"
}
],
"tags": [
"broadly"
]
},
{
"attestations": [
{
"date": "from 1960s",
"references": []
}
],
"categories": [
"English slang",
"en:Skateboarding",
"en:Surfing"
],
"glosses": [
"A young, inexperienced surfer or skateboarder, regarded as a nuisance."
],
"links": [
[
"surfing",
"surfing#Noun"
],
[
"skateboarding",
"skateboarding#Noun"
],
[
"young",
"young#Adjective"
],
[
"inexperienced",
"inexperienced"
],
[
"surfer",
"surfer"
],
[
"skateboarder",
"skateboarder"
],
[
"nuisance",
"nuisance"
]
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(by extension)",
"(surfing, skateboarding, slang) A young, inexperienced surfer or skateboarder, regarded as a nuisance."
],
"synonyms": [
{
"word": "grem"
},
{
"word": "gremmie"
},
{
"word": "gremmy"
},
{
"word": "grommet"
}
],
"tags": [
"broadly",
"slang"
],
"topics": [
"hobbies",
"lifestyle",
"skateboarding",
"sports",
"surfing"
]
},
{
"categories": [
"English terms with quotations"
],
"examples": [
{
"bold_text_offsets": [
[
226,
233
]
],
"ref": "2023 May 3, Jenni Lada, “Honkai: Star Rail’s Trailblazer Avatar Is a Gremlin and It’s Great”, in Siliconera:",
"text": "Rosa, the main character in Tears of Themis, is also very smart, justice-driven, and willing to help. Meanwhile, the Honkai: Star Rail Trailblazer […] can often be a sarcastic, pessimistic, lazy, self-serving, dumpster-diving gremlin.",
"type": "quote"
}
],
"glosses": [
"A person regarded as similar to a fictional gremlin, in particular: mischievous, troublesome, short, or annoying."
],
"raw_glosses": [
"(by extension)",
"A person regarded as similar to a fictional gremlin, in particular: mischievous, troublesome, short, or annoying."
],
"tags": [
"broadly"
]
}
],
"sounds": [
{
"ipa": "/ˈɡɹɛmlɪn/",
"tags": [
"Received-Pronunciation"
]
},
{
"ipa": "/ˈɡɹɛmlən/",
"tags": [
"General-American"
]
},
{
"audio": "En-us-gremlin.ogg",
"mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/c/ce/En-us-gremlin.ogg/En-us-gremlin.ogg.mp3",
"ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/En-us-gremlin.ogg"
},
{
"rhymes": "-ɛmlɪn"
}
],
"translations": [
{
"code": "bg",
"lang": "Bulgarian",
"lang_code": "bg",
"roman": "gremlin",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "гремлин"
},
{
"code": "bg",
"lang": "Bulgarian",
"lang_code": "bg",
"roman": "gnom",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "гном"
},
{
"code": "cmn",
"lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
"lang_code": "cmn",
"roman": "géléimǔlín",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "葛雷姆林"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"lang_code": "fi",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "riiviö"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"lang_code": "fi",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "pikkupiru"
},
{
"code": "el",
"lang": "Greek",
"lang_code": "el",
"roman": "kalikántzaros",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "καλικάντζαρος"
},
{
"code": "ja",
"lang": "Japanese",
"lang_code": "ja",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "グレムリン"
},
{
"code": "ko",
"lang": "Korean",
"lang_code": "ko",
"roman": "geuremnin",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "그렘린"
},
{
"code": "lt",
"lang": "Lithuanian",
"lang_code": "lt",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "gremlinas"
},
{
"code": "mr",
"lang": "Marathi",
"lang_code": "mr",
"roman": "gremlin",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "ग्रेमलिन"
},
{
"code": "ru",
"lang": "Russian",
"lang_code": "ru",
"roman": "gremlin",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "гремлин"
},
{
"code": "uk",
"lang": "Ukrainian",
"lang_code": "uk",
"roman": "hrémlin",
"sense": "imaginary creature reputed to be mischievously inclined to damage or dismantle machinery",
"word": "гре́млін"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"lang_code": "fi",
"sense": "any mysterious, unknown source of mischief or trouble, or the problem created thereby",
"word": "häikkä"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"lang_code": "de",
"sense": "any mysterious, unknown source of mischief or trouble, or the problem created thereby",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "Fehlerteufel"
},
{
"code": "de",
"lang": "German",
"lang_code": "de",
"sense": "any mysterious, unknown source of mischief or trouble, or the problem created thereby",
"tags": [
"masculine"
],
"word": "Kobold"
},
{
"code": "fi",
"lang": "Finnish",
"lang_code": "fi",
"sense": "young, inexperienced surfer, seen as being a nuisance",
"word": "keltanokka"
}
],
"wikipedia": [
"Oxford English Dictionary",
"Roald Dahl",
"The Gremlins"
],
"word": "gremlin"
}
Download raw JSONL data for gremlin meaning in English (12.1kB)
This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2025-12-23 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2025-12-02 using wiktextract (6fdc867 and 9905b1f). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.
If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.