gamergate

gam·er·gate
G2A1M3E1R1G2A1T1E1
UK/ˈɡæm.ə.ɡeɪt/US/ˈɡæm.əɹˌɡeɪt/US/ˈɡeɪməɹˌɡeɪt/

noun

A worker insect that can become capable of reproducing when the queen has died.

OriginAncient Greek γάμος →
Scrabble 13
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Meanings

gamergate1

noungamergate (plural gamergates)

plural gamergates

  1. biologyA worker insect that can become capable of reproducing when the queen has died.

    Recent studies indicate that queenless societies can have either one or several gamergates per colony, which reveals that reproductive inhibition can occur despite the absence of the queen caste.

    1990, Christian Peeters, “Monogyny and Polygyny in Ponerine Ants Without Queens”, in Social Insects and the Environment: Proceedings of the 11th International Congress of IUSSI, 1990, Leiden, Netherlands: E. J. Brill, →ISBN, page 234

Gamergate2

proper noun

alternative GamerGate

  1. A campaign that started in 2014 and happened primarily online, which centered around sexism and anti-progressivism in video game culture and took the form of a harassment campaign against women in the video game industry.

    Those who experienced the harassment firsthand warned that if not taken seriously, the behaviors underlying Gamergate would fester.

    2025 March 23, Harmeet Kaur, “How Gamergate foreshadowed the toxic hellscape that the internet has now become”, in CNN

GamerGate3

proper noun
  1. Alternative letter-case form of Gamergate.

Origin

gamergate · noun

  1. Ancient Greekἐργάτης“workman”
  2. Ancient Greekγάμος“union, marriage”
  3. Englishgamergate

From gam- + ergate, from Ancient Greek γάμος (gámos, “union, marriage”) + Ancient Greek ἐργάτης (ergátēs, “workman”).

More words from Ancient Greek

Full word history & related roots →

Gamergate · proper noun

From gamer + -gate. Coined or popularized by American actor Adam Baldwin.

Full word history & related roots →

GamerGate · proper noun

  1. Proto-Germanic*gamaną
  2. Proto-West Germanic*gaman
  3. Old Englishgamen
  4. Middle Englishgame
  5. Middle Englishgamer
  6. Englishgamer
  7. Proto-Indo-European*wed-
  8. Proto-Indo-European*wódr̥
  9. Proto-Germanic*watōr
  10. Proto-West Germanic*watar
  11. Old Englishwæter
  12. Middle Englishwater
  13. Englishwater
  14. Proto-Indo-European*gʰe(n)d-
  15. Proto-Indo-European*gʰed-eti
  16. Proto-Germanic*getaną
  17. Proto-Germanic*gatą
  18. Proto-West Germanic*gat
  19. Old Englishġeat
  20. Middle Englishgate
  21. Englishgate
  22. Proto-Indo-European*gʰóstis
  23. Proto-Indo-European*pótis
  24. Proto-Indo-European*gʰóstipotis
  25. Proto-Italic*hostipotis
  26. Latinhospes
  27. Proto-Indo-European*h₂el-
  28. Proto-Indo-European*h₂élisder.?
  29. Latinhospitālis
  30. Old Frenchostel
  31. Middle Frenchhostel
  32. Frenchhôte
  33. Englishhotel
  34. EnglishWatergate Hotel
  35. EnglishWatergatebf.
  36. EnglishGamerGate

From gamer + -gate.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

gamergate. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gamergate

MLA

“gamergate.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gamergate. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “gamergate,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/gamergate.

Source: gamergate on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.