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gauge

If you ask your friend, "How do you feel, generally, about loaning your car to people?" your intention might be to gauge his reaction before you flat-out ask if you can borrow his car. To gauge is to measure or test.

The verb gauge means to estimate or measure, while the noun gauge is a tool you can use to make such a measurement. If you've ever seen someone check the air pressure in a tire, the instrument she used was called a tire gauge. The thickness, or diameter, of an item like wire (or the barrel of a gun) is another meaning of gauge.

PRIMARY MEANINGS OF: gauge

1
 n
a measuring instrument for measuring and indicating a quantity such as the thickness of wire or the amount of rain etc.
2
 nv
accepted or approved instance or example of a quantity or quality against which others are judged or measured or compared
determine the capacity, volume, or contents of by measurement and calculation
3
 v
adapt to a specified measurement
FULL DEFINITIONS OF: gauge
1

n a measuring instrument for measuring and indicating a quantity such as the thickness of wire or the amount of rain etc.

Synonyms:
gage
Types:
show 14 types...
hide 14 types...
anemometer, wind gage, wind gauge
a gauge for recording the speed and direction of wind
depth gage, depth gauge
a gauge for measuring the depth of grooves or holes or other concavities
dipstick
a graduated rod dipped into a container to indicate the fluid level
gas gage, gas gauge, gasoline gage, gasoline gauge, petrol gage, petrol gauge
gauge that indicates the amount of gasoline left in the gasoline tank of a vehicle
pressure gage, pressure gauge
gauge for measuring and indicating fluid pressure
pluviometer, rain gage, rain gauge, udometer
gauge consisting of an instrument to measure the quantity of precipitation
strain gage, strain gauge
a gauge for measuring strain in a surface
scribing block, surface gage, surface gauge
gauge consisting of a scriber mounted on an adjustable stand; used to test the accuracy of plane surfaces
vacuum gage, vacuum gauge
a gauge for indicating negative atmospheric pressure
water gage, water gauge, water glass
gauge for indicating the level of water in e.g. a tank or boiler or reservoir
wire gage, wire gauge
gauge for measuring the diameter of wire
manometer
a pressure gauge for comparing pressures of a gas
sphygmomanometer
a pressure gauge for measuring blood pressure
water level
a water gauge that shows the level by showing the surface of the water in a trough or U-shaped tube
Type of:
measuring device, measuring instrument, measuring system
instrument that shows the extent or amount or quantity or degree of something

n the distance between the rails of a railway or between the wheels of a train

Types:
broad gauge
a railroad track (or its width) broader than the standard 56.5 inches
narrow gauge
a railroad track (or its width) narrower than the standard 56.5 inches
standard gauge
railroad track having the standard width of 56.5 inches
Type of:
distance, length
size of the gap between two places

n the thickness of wire

Type of:
thickness
the dimension through an object as opposed to its length or width

n diameter of a tube or gun barrel

Synonyms:
bore, caliber, calibre
Type of:
diam, diameter
the length of a straight line passing through the center of a circle and connecting two points on the circumference
2

n accepted or approved instance or example of a quantity or quality against which others are judged or measured or compared

Synonyms:
standard of measurement
Type of:
criterion, measure, standard, touchstone
a basis for comparison; a reference point against which other things can be evaluated

v determine the capacity, volume, or contents of by measurement and calculation

“gauge the wine barrels”
Type of:
ascertain, determine, find, find out
establish after a calculation, investigation, experiment, survey, or study

v measure precisely and against a standard

“the wire is gauged”
Type of:
measure, quantify
express as a number or measure or quantity

v judge tentatively or form an estimate of (quantities or time)

Synonyms:
approximate, estimate, guess, judge
Types:
show 10 types...
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quantise, quantize
approximate (a signal varying continuously in amplitude) by one whose amplitude is restricted to a prescribed set of discrete values
misgauge
gauge something incorrectly or improperly
place, put, set
estimate
give
estimate the duration or outcome of something
lowball, underestimate
make a deliberately low estimate
assess
estimate the value of (property) for taxation
make
calculate as being
count, reckon
take account of
truncate
approximate by ignoring all terms beyond a chosen one
guesstimate
estimate based on a calculation
Type of:
calculate, cipher, compute, cypher, figure, reckon, work out
make a mathematical calculation or computation
3

v adapt to a specified measurement

“gauge the instruments”
Type of:
standardise, standardize
cause to conform to standard or norm

v rub to a uniform size

“gauge bricks”
Type of:
rub
move over something with pressure

v mix in specific proportions

“gauge plaster”
Type of:
blend, coalesce, combine, commingle, conflate, flux, fuse, immix, meld, merge, mix
mix together different elements
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