gag

Dictionary: gag (găg) pronunciation

Something forced into or put over the mouth to prevent speaking or crying out.
An obstacle to or a censoring of free speech.
A device placed in the mouth to keep it open, as in dentistry.
1. A practical joke.
2. A comic effect or remark. See synonyms at joke.
The act or an instance of gagging or choking.

v., gagged, gag·ging, gags.

v.tr.

To prevent from speaking or crying out by using a gag.
To stop or restrain from exercising free speech: censorship laws aimed at gagging the press.
To cause to choke, retch, or undergo a regurgitative spasm.
To keep (the mouth) open by using a gag.
To block off or obstruct (a pipe or valve, for example).

v.intr.

1. To experience a regurgitative spasm in the throat, as from revulsion to a food or smell or in reflexive response to an introduced object.
2. To retch or choke.
To make jokes or quips.

[From Middle English gaggen, to suffocate, perhaps of imitative origin.]

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Thesaurus: gag

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noun

Informal

Slang

See

verb

Informal

See

restraint/unrestraint

Dental Dictionary: gag

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A surgical device for holding the mouth open.

Veterinary Dictionary: gag

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1. a surgical device for holding the mouth open. See also mouth speculum.
2. to retch, or strive to vomit.

mouth g. (1) — see drinkwater mouth gag, haussman gag, spring gag, varnell gag, probang.
g. (2) reflex — elevation of the soft palate and retching elicited by touching the back of the tongue or the wall of the pharynx; called also pharyngeal reflex.

Wikipedia: Gag

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For other uses, see Gag (disambiguation).

1 Types of gags
2 Other uses of the word
3 In symbolism
4 See also
5 References

A gag is usually a device designed to prevent speech, often as a restraint device to stop the subject from calling for help. This is usually done by blocking the mouth, partially or completely, or attempting to prevent the tongue, lips, or jaw from moving in the normal patterns of speech. They are often less effective in reality than in crime fiction^{[citation needed]}. They carry a strong risk of killing the victim by suffocation^{[citation needed]}. The more "effective" a gag appears to be, the more hazardous it is: for example, duct tape is fairly effective but is hazardous if for some reason (e.g. the common cold) the subject cannot breathe freely through the nose.

The use of gags is commonly depicted in crime fiction, particularly in comics and novels.

Very rarely, courts have been known to gag unruly defendants; Bobby Seale was the most famous case.^[1]

Occasionally a cloth over-the-mouth gag is used not to prevent speech but to keep dust and aerosols out of the lungs^[2].

Types of gags

One familiar type of gag in fiction, particularly in crime comics and novels, is a suitably sized piece of cloth pulled over the subject's mouth (and sometimes also the nose) and tied at the back of his/her head. It is sometimes called the "detective gag" because many of its first appearances were in crime serials. It is sometimes called an "over the mouth" (OTM) gag.

Sometimes a gag is shown pushed back between the victim's front teeth into the mouth ('cleave gag'), or with a hard ball in its middle ('ball gag') or reinforced by pushing small cloth items or even underwear into the mouth ('stuff gag'). This is common in BDSM, but in practice these sorts of gag can usually be got rid of by working the jaws about and/or pushing with the tongue, and they often do not stop the victim from making a loud inarticulate noise to call for help.

Another most common type of gag in working practice is an over the mouth (OTM) gag of duct tape.^{[citation needed]} A tape gag is, as the name suggests, a type of gag that involves the use of sticky tape. The most commonly used types are duct tape, gaffer tape and PVC tape from two to three inches wide. Tape gags are the simplest gags to apply to someone. If the captor doesn't want the gag to fall off, he/she must wrap a long strip of tape around the lower part of the victim's head, covering the victim's mouth while ensuring that the gag will not slip off. A strip from ear to ear under the jaw helps to restrict jaw movement, making the gag more effective. On some occasions, a captor may add a comical touch to the gag by applying two strips in the form of an "X".

Note that a tape gag can cause the skin on the lips to be ripped off. It can also irritate the lips and cause fever blisters in those who have dormant fever blisters or cold sores. Tape gags can also rip hair off when wrapped around the head. The longer the tape is left on, the harder it will be to remove it from the skin.

For the use of gags in a BDSM context, see gag (BDSM).

Other uses of the word

The word "gag" has come to have various extended meanings, for example:

Various sorts of laws and orders preventing or stopping discussion or revealing of information, e.g. a parliamentary procedure to end a debate. See gag order.
A gag rule can be a part of court proceedings and congressional proceedings.
Gag (medical device), to keep the mouth open
The word "gag" has been used for a cloth tied over the mouth and nose when the purpose was not to prevent talking or screaming but to keep harmful dust out of the lungs.
The term "hand gag" is sometimes used for temporarily silencing someone with a hand over the mouth.
A gag bit is a special bit type used with horses.

In symbolism

Sometimes in political cartoons, a character is shown gagged to represent that in the real world some law or rule or order is preventing him/her from speaking about some matter. (see gag order)

References

^ Bobby Seale
^ Described, and called a "gag", in a recorded commentary in the Catalyst chemical industry museum in Runcorn (Cheshire, England), to keep alkali dust out of workers' lungs.

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

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Translations: Gag

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Dansk (Danish)
1.
n. - knebel, mundkurv
v. tr. - give mundkurv på, kneble
v. intr. - kvæles, komme med en halvkvalt lyd

2.
n. - improviseret komisk indslag, spøg
v. intr. - lave gags i, fortælle vittigheder

Nederlands (Dutch)
(mond)prop, mop, bedriegerij, bit, beperking van vrijheid van spreken, muilkorven, voorzien van (mond)prop, kokhalzen, grap maken/ uithalen

Français (French)
1.
n. - bâillon, (Journ) bâillon
v. tr. - (Journ) bâillonner, bâillonner (un otage), museler (un journaliste)
v. intr. - avoir un haut le-c¯ur

2.
n. - blague, plaisanterie
v. intr. - faire des blagues

Deutsch (German)
1.
n. - Knebel, (Med) Mundsperre
v. - knebeln, würgen, einen Maulkorb anlegen, die Mundsperre einlegen, zum Schweigen bringen

2.
n. - Witz, Gag
v. - witzeln, Witze machen, Gags machen

Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - φιμώνω, βάζω φίμωτρο, αναγουλιάζω, αποστομώνω (κν. ρουμπώνω)
n. - φίμωτρο, αυτοσχέδια ατάκα, καλαμπούρι, κασκαρίκα

Italiano (Italian)
imbavagliare, scherzo, bavaglio, gag

Português (Portuguese)
v. - amordaçar
n. - mordaça (f) (Odont.), caco (m) (gír.) (Teat.)

Русский (Russian)
кляп, шутка, , выдумка, затыкать рот, лишать слова, давиться чем-л., хохмить

Español (Spanish)
1.
n. - mordaza, abreboca
v. tr. - tapar la boca, amordazar, cerrar la boca, clausurar, impedir
v. intr. - atorarse

2.
n. - broma, guasa, chiste, morcilla, truco publicitario
v. intr. - contar chistes, meter morcillas

Svenska (Swedish)
v. - lägga munkavle på, sätta munspärr i (med.), lägga in improvisationer (gags, komiska inslag), skämta (teat. el. film.), få kväljningar
n. - munkavle, munspärr (med.), improvisation, komiska inslag (teat. el. film.), skämt (sl.)

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
塞口物, 口衔, 插科打诨, 玩笑, 言论钳制, 使窒息, 压制言论自由, 使呕吐, 窒息, 欺骗, 作呕

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 塞口物, 口銜, 插科打諢, 玩笑, 言論鉗制
v. tr. - 使窒息, 壓制言論自由, 使嘔吐
v. intr. - 窒息, 欺騙, 作嘔

한국어 (Korean)
1.
n. - 재갈, 거짓말
v. tr. - 재갈을 물리다, 입을 막다, 속이다
v. intr. - 목이 막히다, 구역질이 나다, 속이다

2.
n. - 농담, 웃기는 일[상황]
v. intr. - 농담을 하다

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - さるぐつわ, 言論の抑圧, ギャグ, 冗談, 口止め, 開口器
v. - 言論を抑圧する, ギャグを飛ばす, 吐く, ギャグを入れる

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(فعل) يسكت (الاسم) شيء يسد الفم أو يفتحه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮מחסום (לסתימת פה)‬
v. tr. - ‮סתם פה‬
v. intr. - ‮נתקע בגרונו, התחיל להקיא‬
n. - ‮בדיחה, שיבוץ דברים ע"י שחקן בדו/שיח דרמטי, מתיחה לשם הלצה, פעולה מגוחכת, מצב מצחיק, הונאה‬
v. intr. - ‮סיפר בדיחות‬

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Copyrights:

		Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Read more
		Thesaurus. Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary Copyright © 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Read more
		Dental Dictionary. Mosby's Dental Dictionary. Copyright © 2004 by Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
		Veterinary Dictionary. Saunders Comprehensive Veterinary Dictionary 3rd Edition. Copyright © 2007 by D.C. Blood, V.P. Studdert and C.C. Gay, Elsevier. All rights reserved. Read more
		Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Gag". Read more
		Translations. Copyright © 2007, WizCom Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved. Read more

gag

Contents

Types of gags

Other uses of the word

In symbolism

See also

References