gander

1 of 2

noun (1)

gan·​der ˈgan-dər 

1

: an adult male goose

2

: simpleton

gander

2 of 2

noun (2)

plural ganders

informal

: look, glance

take a gander

Those intrigued by such oddities … will surely find Stuart Kelly's "Book of Lost Books: An Incomplete History of All the Great Books You'll Never Read" worth a gander.

—Joe Queenan

… trying to step back for a good gander at the art in the Guggenheim.

—Charles Taylor

… had no choice but to push to the front of the horde and through some glass doors to get a gander at what was going on.

—Rick Barrs

Synonyms

Noun (1)

• cast
• eye
• glance
• glimpse
• look
• peek
• peep
• regard
• sight
• view

Noun (2)

• airhead
• birdbrain
• blockhead
• bonehead
• bubblehead
• chowderhead
• chucklehead
• clodpoll
• clodpole
• clot [British]
• cluck
• clunk
• cretin
• cuddy [British dialect]
• cuddie
• deadhead
• dim bulb [slang]
• dimwit
• dip
• dodo
• dolt
• donkey
• doofus [slang]
• dope
• dork [slang]
• dullard
• dum-dum
• dumbbell
• dumbhead
• dummkopf
• dummy
• dunce
• dunderhead
• fathead
• golem
• goof
• goon
• half-wit
• hammerhead
• hardhead
• idiot
• ignoramus
• imbecile
• jackass
• know-nothing
• knucklehead
• lamebrain
• loggerhead [chiefly dialect]
• loon
• lump
• lunkhead
• meathead
• mome [archaic]
• moron
• mug [chiefly British]
• mutt
• natural
• nimrod [slang]
• nincompoop
• ninny
• ninnyhammer
• nit [chiefly British]
• nitwit
• noddy
• noodle
• numskull
• numbskull
• oaf
• pinhead
• prat [British]
• ratbag [chiefly Australian]
• saphead
• schlub [slang]
• shlub
• schnook [slang]
• simpleton
• stock
• stupe
• stupid
• thickhead
• turkey
• woodenhead
• yahoo
• yo-yo

Examples of gander in a Sentence

Noun (1)

suggested that they take a gander at the display of classic cars

Noun (2)

the village's chief of police was an ineffectual albeit pleasant gander

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Golf fans will get to take a gander at the par 71, 7,371-yard Black Desert Resort Course, the centerpiece of a brand new $2 billion project in Southern Utah spanning 630 acres. —Mike Dojc, Forbes, 10 Oct. 2024

Just take a gander at Mill Valley Film Festival’s flashy celebrity guest list: Ralph Fiennes, Amy Adams, Danielle Deadwyler, Jude Law, Mikey Madison, Jharrel Jerome, Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofía Gascón, Adriana Paz and Édgar Ramirez, to name only a few. —Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 1 Oct. 2024

Arthur accompanied Harry on a notorious trip to Las Vegas in 2012, when the prince was secretly photographed half naked, and the public got a gander when the clandestine shutterbug leaked the shots to the tabloids. —Shawn Tully, Fortune, 7 Aug. 2024

Don’t forget to take a gander at the western-facing mural by distinguished street artist and founder of SoCal streetwear brand OBEY, Shepard Fairey. —Krista Simmons, Sunset Magazine, 1 Aug. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English gandre, gander, going back to Old English gandra, ganra, going back to Germanic *gan-ra- (whence Middle Low German ganre "male goose," Upper German dialect Gander, Ganter), derivative from the base of Germanic *gan-s- "goose" — more at goose entry 1

Noun (2)

probably derivative of gander entry 1, from the goose-like appearance of a person stretching to look at something

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

circa 1914, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing gander

• what's good for the goose is good for the gander
• what's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander

Kids Definition

gander

1 of 2 noun

gan·​der ˈgan-dər 

: a male goose

gander

2 of 2 noun

informal

: a look often for judging

take a gander