Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Outward appearance or aspect; semblance.
  • noun False appearance; pretense.
  • noun Mode of dress; garb.
  • noun Obsolete Custom; habit.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To dress as a guiser; assume or act the part of a guiser.
  • To place a guise or garb on; dress.
  • noun Way; manner; mode; fashion; practice; custom.
  • noun Manner of acting; mien; cast or behavior.
  • noun External appearance as determined by costume; dress; garb: as, the guise of a shepherd.
  • noun Hence Appearance or semblance in general; aspect or seeming.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun Customary way of speaking or acting; custom; fashion; manner; behavior; mien; mode; practice; -- often used formerly in such phrases as: .
  • noun External appearance in manner or dress; appropriate indication or expression; garb; shape.
  • noun Cover; cloak.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Customary way of speaking or acting; fashion, manner, practice (often used formerly in such phrases as "at his own guise"; that is, in his own fashion, to suit himself.)
  • noun External appearance in manner or dress; appropriate indication or expression; garb; shape.
  • noun Misleading appearance; cover, cloak
  • noun Internet slang guys.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun an artful or simulated semblance

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, manner, fashion, from Old French, of Germanic origin; see weid- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English guise, gise, gyse, from Old French guisse, guise, vise ("guise, manner, way"), from Old Frankish *wīsa (“manner, way, fashion”), from Proto-Germanic *wīsōn, *manner, way, from Proto-Indo-European *weyd- (“to see, view, behold, perceive”). Cognate with Old High German wīsa ("way, manner"), Old English wīse ("wise, way, fashion, custom, habit, manner"). More at wise.

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Examples

Comments

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  • Scots - to go around in fancy dress on the night of Halloween. A person who goes out guising is a guiser.

    December 5, 2007

  • hi guise, how are YOOOUUUU doing?

    April 10, 2009

  • appearance, disguise. Under the guise of the night the soilders marched forward. (newbury dic.)

    December 6, 2010