Gel or jell

[Gomer]

Tonight's newsroom debate: gel or jell?

I was certain it was gel but my co-worker says jell when talking about a team coming together.

 

[Chi City 81]

Jell.

 

[Barsuk]

Jell. Look it up.

 

[mike311gd]

Gel = hair product.
Jell = to become cohesive.

Yep. When in doubt, consult your local dictionary:

Jell: to take shape and achieve distinctness; become cohesive.
Gel: a gelatinous preparation used in styling hair.

 

[Gomer]

Much appreciated... three is all I need to realize I'm wrong, especially with deadline looming.

 

[Gomer]

Oh, and I did consult the dictionary on my desk... which didn't have an entry for gel and didn't show jell as anything but gelatinous substances congealing.

SportsJournalists.com to the rescue

 

[Barsuk]

OK, who's the dumbass who voted for "gel"?

 

[Barsuk]

Oh, and I did consult the dictionary on my desk... which didn't have an entry for gel and didn't show jell as anything but gelatinous substances congealing.

SportsJournalists.com to the rescue

Well, that should've tipped you off, huh?

 

[Gomer]

OK, who's the dumbass who voted for "gel"?

Well, me, of course. I honestly never knew that I was wrong all these years. Sad that no editor ever corrected it.

Buck, my dictionary is a 2002 Webster's. I take it m-w.com is the gold standard of online dictionaries?

Thanks again all.

 

[Barsuk]

OK, who's the dumbass who voted for "gel"?

Well, me, of course. I honestly never knew that I was wrong all these years. Sad that no editor ever corrected it.

Buck, my dictionary is a 2002 Webster's. I take it m-w.com is the gold standard of online dictionaries?

Thanks again all.

Oh ... yeah. I guess I'm the dumbass now, huh? You're not the only person who screws this one up, Gomer, so don't sweat it. Now you know, and you won't do it again. But I think you should look into a new dictionary.

 

[Write-brained]

Well, Golllllly.

 

[mike311gd]

Oh, and I did consult the dictionary on my desk... which didn't have an entry for gel and didn't show jell as anything but gelatinous substances congealing.

SportsJournalists.com to the rescue

How old is your dictionary?

Anyway, use m-w.com.

I use that online dictionary several times a day, you know, since I have trouble with big words. It truly is a gift from God, and it beats the hell out of walking to the other side of the room for a dictionary.

 

[PHINJ]

I have never used the word "jell" (or gel) in anything I've written for publication. Not saying anyone else should feel the same way; just personal preference.

 

[Montezuma's Revenge]

Hair gel ...

 

[Left_Coast]

Oh, and I did consult the dictionary on my desk... which didn't have an entry for gel and didn't show jell as anything but gelatinous substances congealing.

SportsJournalists.com to the rescue

How old is your dictionary?

Anyway, use m-w.com.

I use that online dictionary several times a day, you know, since I have trouble with big words. It truly is a gift from God, and it beats the hell out of walking to the other side of the room for a dictionary.

Though according to AP, the online dictionary isn't the final word. It's Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fourth Edition, and there are differences between that one and m-w.com.

 

[John]

I have never used the word "jell" (or gel) in anything I've written for publication. Not saying anyone else should feel the same way; just personal preference.

I haven't either, I guess because I didn't know whether to use gel or jell and because both looked weird to me.

 

[Write-brained]

"You gellin?"
"Gellin' like a felon!"
"What about you, playa?"
"I'm gellin like Magellan, I'm so gellin"
"Anybody for some melon?"

 

[accguy]

I pick none of the above. It's a stupid dumb athlete/coach phrase that I refuse to use. It's right up there with "step up" and "I let the game come to me."

 

[Some Guy]

I pick none of the above. It's a stupid dumb athlete/coach phrase that I refuse to use. It's right up there with "step up" and "I let the game come to me."

Not really. Jell is an actual word with an actual meaning. You can use it. Like any word in the English language, I would avoid overusing it, but it isn't just a coach cliche. If a basketball team has, say, three new starters in starting lineup, writing that they need time to jell is perfectly fine.

 

[Gold]

Without looking it up, I picked gel.

My reasoning was that gel was short for gelatin, which does relate to something getting firm. Jell seems short for Jello. A lot of times the dictionary is based on a survey of what educated people use. There are differences, like employe or employee.