GNOME

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does gnome mean? 

• GNOME (noun)
  The noun GNOME has 2 senses:

1. a legendary creature resembling a tiny old man; lives in the depths of the earth and guards buried treasure

2. a short pithy saying expressing a general truth

  Familiarity information: GNOME used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• GNOME (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A legendary creature resembling a tiny old man; lives in the depths of the earth and guards buried treasure

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

dwarf; gnome

Hypernyms ("gnome" is a kind of...):

faerie; faery; fairy; fay; sprite (a small being, human in form, playful and having magical powers)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "gnome"):

Nibelung ((German mythology) any of the group of dwarfs who possessed a treasure hoard that was stolen by Siegfried)

Andvari ((Norse mythology) a dwarf who possessed a treasure that was stolen by Loki)

Derivation:

gnomic (relating to or containing gnomes)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A short pithy saying expressing a general truth

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("gnome" is a kind of...):

axiom; maxim (a saying that is widely accepted on its own merits)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "gnome"):

Murphy's Law; Sod's Law (humorous axiom stating that anything that can go wrong will go wrong)

 Context examples 

"Strikes me you're a bit of star-dust yourself, flung into a world of cowled gnomes who cannot see," was his comment at the end of it.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

And, Miss Eyre, so much was I flattered by this preference of the Gallic sylph for her British gnome, that I installed her in an hotel; gave her a complete establishment of servants, a carriage, cashmeres, diamonds, dentelles, &c.

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)