Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A person who is not a believer in Islam.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun An infidel: used by the Turks to designate an adherent of any religion except the Mohammedan, more particularly a Christian, and so commonly that it does not necessarily imply an insult.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun An infidel; -- a term applied by Turks to disbelievers in the Mohammedan religion, especially Christrians.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun derogatory, ethnic slur A non-
Muslim , especially aChristian , aninfidel ; especially as used by Turkish people with particular reference to Christians such as Greeks, Armenians, Bulgarians, Serbs and Assyrians.
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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He spoke apologetically to the holy man, alluded to the "giaour" more than once, and proceeded to give Dick
The Wheel O' Fortune Louis Tracy 1895
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‘Only a Kurdish giaour would fire on the livery of the Kaaba.’
Greenmantle 2005
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"I promised the old infidel that he should have the real stuff, and I'll let him see that a giaour can keep his word."
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The eunuchs were threatened with death, if she were not found; and the horror of all was aroused by the suggestion that she might possibly have eloped with some giaour [10], and several of the slaves were sent to atone for their neglect with the forfeit of their lives.
Journal of a Visit to Constantinople and Some of the Greek Islands in the Spring and Summer of 1833 John Auldjo
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It was obedience to his prophet, who bade him take advantage of the giaour -- quite a different thing!
The Eye of Zeitoon Mundy, Talbot, 1879-1940 1920
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Your good Moslem -- and a Moslem is good in those parts who makes a mountain of observances, regarding mole-hills of mere morals not at all -- affects to despise all giaours; but a giaour, like a gipsy, who has no obvious religion of any kind, he ranks below the pig in order of reverence.
The Eye of Zeitoon Mundy, Talbot, 1879-1940 1920
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It was obedience to his prophet, who bade him take advantage of the giaour -- quite
The Eye of Zeitoon Talbot Mundy 1909
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Your good Moslem -- and a Moslem is good in those parts who makes a mountain of observances, regarding mole-hills of mere morals not at all -- affects to despise all giaours; but a giaour, like a gipsy, who has no obvious religion of any kind, he ranks below the pig in order of reverence.
The Eye of Zeitoon Talbot Mundy 1909
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And now something happened which had hitherto been deemed incredible; the Sultan sued for peace, a true believer and a sovereign, from an unbelieving giaour.
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I will strike this giaour of a Frenchman in his tenderest spot -- his heart!
The Son of Monte-Cristo Jules Lermina 1877
bilby commented on the word giaour
When you're at the Boxing Day sales to buy a vowel.
July 22, 2022