Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A medieval itinerant singer; a minstrel.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A singer; specifically, in old use, a strolling minstrel or musician.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun A name anciently given to an itinerant minstrel or musician.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun historical A professional
singer ,bard , or other entertainer.
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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Perhaps Cynewulf was a poet who lived as one of the household of some great lord, and wrote more at his ease than if he had been merely an itinerant singer, a "gleeman," who sang his songs as he went about.
Our Catholic Heritage in English Literature of Pre-Conquest Days Emily Hickey
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Then Sir Irnfried dealt the valiant gleeman such a blow that his coat of mail burst open and his breastplate was enveloped with a bright red flame.
The Nibelungenlied 2007
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Then Hagen, too, bethought him of the gleeman, whom bold
The Nibelungenlied 2007
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This the bold gleeman repaid with might; he smote Wolfhart, so that the sparks flew wide.
The Nibelungenlied 2007
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Anyway I came across a compilation of the first three books in a gleeman train station.
Show #1: Pre-show discussion : The Kick-Ass Mystic Ninjas 2005
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Folker he smote, so that on all sides the clasps flew to the walls of the hall from helmet and shield of the doughty gleeman.
The Nibelungenlied 2007
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"Luca's as good as a gleeman, Thom. but I don't think he's going to sway them."
Knife of Dreams Jordan, Robert, 1948- 2005
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This woman contained more surprises than any gleeman.
The Path of Daggers Jordan, Robert, 1948- 1998
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"The gleeman saw us and hushed him," Areina put in, fingering the quiver at her waist, "but we heard."
A Crown of Swords Jordan, Robert, 1948- 1996
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Thom, seated across the lapis-inlaid table from the thief-catcher, looked as little the gleeman in his finely cut coat of bronze wool, as he did the man who had once been Queen Morgase's lover.
A Crown of Swords Jordan, Robert, 1948- 1996
wytukaze commented on the word gleeman
“The ancient Celts carefully distinguished the poet, who was originally a priest and judge as well and whose person was sacrosanct, from the mere gleeman.�?
— Robert Graves, The White Goddess, 1948
November 14, 2008