gnu
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GNU¹
- /ˈd͡ʒiːˌɛnˈjuː/
Rhymes with -uː
noun GNUs
- Abbreviation of government of national unity This scenario would hark back to the post-apartheid era when South Africa operated under a GNU to oversee the new constitution, led by Mandela as president and FW de Klerk and Thabo Mbeki as deputy presidents, between April 1994 and February 1997.
GNU²
- /ˈɡnuː/
- /ˈd͡ʒiːˌɛnˈjuː/ uncommon
Sounds like gnu (one pronunciation) · Rhymes with -uː
Where it comes from
Coined by Richard Stallman in 1983 as a recursive acronym for “GNU's Not Unix”, following convention of naming programs similar to or inspired by existing programs as “(New Name) Is Not (Old Name)”; compare Xinu.
Specifically influenced by lack of English words of form ?nu (“?NU is Not Unix”), that gnu is the alphabetically first (and in fact only) English word of the form ?nu (“?’s Not Unix”), that gnu was perceived as a humorous word, and the existence of the song “The Gnu”.
proper noun
- The Free Software Foundation's project to develop a free UNIX-like operating system, including the legal framework, such as the source code and documentation licenses.
gnu³
- /njuː/ UK
- /njuː/ UK
- /ɡəˈnuː/ UK
- /ɡəˈnjuː/ UK
- /nuː/ US
- /njuː/ US
Sounds like new, nu, knew, GNU (UK) · Rhymes with -uː
Where it comes from
From Dutch gnoe, from Khoekhoe ǃnu:, of unknown origin, likely onomatopoeic of the grunt-type noise of the gnu.
noun gnus · gnu
-
A large antelope of the genus Connochaetes, native to Africa, having curved horns.
Similar: wildebeest
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: wildebeest, linux, brindled, hartebeest, gnu/linux, gnome, unix, open source, freebsd, forge, free software, sourceware, bsd license, freedomware, openbsd, framework
Translations
Every language
noun large antelope of the genus Connochaetes
| Español | ñu |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 누 nu |
| 日本語 | ヌー nū, 牛氈鹿 ushikamoshika |
| 中文 | 牛羚 niúlíng, 角馬 /角马 jiǎomǎ |
| हिन्दी | विल्डबीस्ट vilḍabīsṭ |
| Kiswahili | nyumbu, mbogo |
| Português | gnu |
| Français | gnou |
| Deutsch | Gnu |
| Italiano | gnu, kokoon |
| Ελληνικά | γκνου gknou |
| Română | gnu |
| Русский | гну gnu, антило́па-гну antilópa-gnu |
| Tiếng Việt | linh dương đầu bò |
| العربية | نَوّ naww |
| עברית | גנו g'nu |
Talk about this word "gnu." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/gnu. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. gnu. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/gnu "gnu." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/gnu.Cite this
@misc{gnu_2026,
title = {gnu},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/gnu},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
