gulf

name

1. The Persian Gulf, or the region surrounding it.

   “Gulf States”

   “Gulf War”

2. The Gulf of Mexico, or the region surrounding it.

   “Gulf States”

   “Gulf Stream”

3. An epoch constituting a subdivision of the Cretaceous.

noun

Etymology: From Middle English gulf, goulf, golf, from Old French golf, from Italian golfo, from Late Latin colfos, from Ancient Greek κόλπος (kólpos, “bosom, gulf”), of obscure origin, but possibly from Proto-Indo-European *kʷelp- (“to curve, arch”).

1. A hollow place in the earth; an abyss; a deep chasm or basin.

   “He then surveyed / Hell and the gulf between.”

   “Of course, there was no arguing against this, but one thing was clear, we could not attempt that leap in the dark; the only thing to do was to wait for the ray of light which pierced through the gulf at sunset.”

2. That which swallows; the gullet.

   “Witch's mummy, maw and gulf / Of the ravined salt sea shark,”

3. That which swallows irretrievably; a whirlpool; a sucking eddy.

   “[T]here is no such mine, / None; but a gulf of ruin, swallowing gold, not making.”

4. A portion of an ocean or sea extending into the land; a partially landlocked sea

   “the Gulf of Mexico”

   “the Persian Gulf”

5. A large deposit of ore in a lode.
6. A wide interval or gap; a separating space.

   “Between us and you there is a great gulf fixed.”

   “`Behold now, let the Dead and Living meet! Across the gulf of Time they still are one.'”

7. A difference, especially a large difference, between groups.

   “Only the gulf between them was widened still further by the Negro cops in the precinct, bad-mouthing among themselves about their fellow white cops unnecessarily throwing their authority around and singling out Sullivan as a prime example.”

   “England were graphically illustrating the huge gulf in class between the sides and it was no surprise when Lampard added the second just before the half hour. Steven Gerrard found his Liverpool team-mate Glen Johnson and Lampard arrived in the area with perfect timing to glide a header beyond Namasco.”

8. The bottom part of a list of those awarded a degree, for those who have only just passed.

   “Some ten or fifteen men just on the line, not enough to be plucked or good enough to be placed, are put into the "gulf," as it is popularly called (the Examiners' phrase is "Degrees allowed"), and have their degrees given to them but are not printed in the calendar, nor were they at this time allowed to try for the Classical Tripos.”

verb

Etymology: From Middle English gulf, goulf, golf, from Old French golf, from Italian golfo, from Late Latin colfos, from Ancient Greek κόλπος (kólpos, “bosom, gulf”), of obscure origin, but possibly from Proto-Indo-European *kʷelp- (“to curve, arch”).

1. To engulf.

   “[…] if with thee the roaring wells ⁠Should gulf him fathom-deep in brine; ⁠And hands so often clasp’d in mine, Should toss with tangle and with shells.”

2. To award a degree to somebody who has only just passed sufficiently.

   “The mention of gulfed and plucked men brings me back to myself.”

   “The good Professor scolded, predicted that they would all be either gulfed or ploughed.”