gest

Gest is a term with several distinct uses in English, depending on context. It is primarily known in two modern senses: an archaic literary noun and a practical medical abbreviation.

Historically, gest is an obsolete or specialized English noun meaning a tale or narrative of heroic deeds. In medieval and early modern English literature, a gest or geste referred to a heroic episode or adventure, and the form appears in scholarly discussions of knightly tales and ballads. The phrase The Gest of Robyn Hode is a well-known example from medieval compilations. In contemporary usage, this sense is largely confined to historical or literary study, and gest remains largely outside everyday vocabulary.

In medical contexts, gest is commonly used as an abbreviation for gestation or gestational age. This usage appears on clinical records and in research to indicate the length of pregnancy, usually in weeks. For example, a note might refer to a patient at 34 weeks gestation. In formal writing, the full terms gestation and gestational age are preferred, with gest. or GA serving as shorthand in medical notation and shorthand notes.

Etymology for the historical sense traces back to Middle English geste or gest, related to old Germanic terms for deeds or I narrative deeds. The modern medical sense derives from gestation, the process of bearing a fetus, and shares a common root with related words meaning to carry or bear.

Overall, gestescence in common usage is largely confined to historical-literary discussion and contemporary obstetric shorthand, reflecting its two primary, unrelated senses.