# gal

/ˈɡæɫ/ (US) · /ɡˈæl/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/gal
Updated: 2026-08-15

## Senses

### 1. a girl or woman

noun · CEFR B2 · Informal

an informal way to say 'girl' or 'young woman'.

For teachers: an informal, often colloquial term for a girl or young woman; sometimes associated with specific regional dialects.

- She is a smart gal who knows exactly what she wants in life.
- The local shopkeeper described her as a 'tough gal' who had managed the family farm single-handedly for years.

### 3. unit of liquid

noun · CEFR B2 · American English

a short way of writing 'gallon', which is a unit for measuring liquids.

For teachers: a standard abbreviation for 'gallon', a unit of liquid capacity used primarily in the United States.

- The recipe requires 1 gal of water to be mixed with the powder.
- The fuel tank has a total capacity of 20 gal, which is sufficient for the cross-country journey.

Usage: Commonly used in technical manuals, recipes, and on product labels.

## Examples

- She is a smart gal who knows exactly what she wants.
- My grandmother still meets up with the same group of gals she went to school with fifty years ago.
- The marketing campaign was specifically designed to appeal to the 'modern gal' by blending traditional aesthetics with contemporary career-focused messaging.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.