26984 words

gnomes

5 definitions • 3 examples
1
an imaginary, very small, old man with a beard and a pointed hat, in traditional children's stories
2
a model of a gnome used as a garden decoration:

Examples:

garden gnome I don't think garden gnomes are in very good taste.
3
a person who works by using their mind, but does not talk to, and is not known by, the public:

Examples:

The gnomes in the back room are putting the finishing touches to the new software.
4
the powerful bankers (= people who own or control banks) from Switzerland who control a lot of money, much of it belonging to foreign governments:

Examples:

He had, perhaps unfairly, blamed the gnomes of Zurich for the sterling crisis.
5
(in children’s stories) an imaginary, very small old man who lives underground and guards gold and other valuable objects

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