gird

Etymology 1

From Middle English girden, gerden, gürden, from Old English gyrdan (“to put a belt around, to put a girdle around”), from Proto-Germanic *gurdijaną (“to gird”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰerdʰ-. Cognate with West Frisian gurdzje, girdzje, Dutch gorden, German gürten, Swedish gjorda, Icelandic gyrða, Albanian ngërthej (“to tie together by weaving, to bind”).

verb

1. (transitive) To bind with a flexible rope or cord.
   The fasces were girt about with twine in bundles large.
2. (transitive) To encircle with, or as if with a belt.
   The lady girt herself with silver chain, from which she hung a golden shear.
   Australia's sons, let us rejoice, / For we are young and free / We've golden soil and wealth for toil / Our home is girt by sea 1878, Peter Dodds McCormick (lyrics and music), “Advance Australia Fair”
3. (transitive, reflexive) To prepare (oneself) for an action.
   […] I was intrigued by the notion of ‘virtual beating’, so I entered the words in the Mamma search engine. I girded myself for the sleaziest sites on the net, the kind that advertise the video of Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee uncut, […] 2000-04-15, Tanya Millbank, “The net addict”, in The Guardian
   The remarks came just days after Putin appeared to be girding Russians for a protracted war in Ukraine, saying that his military operation could be a “long-term process”. 2022-12-09, Andrew Roth, “Putin suggests possibility of settlement to end war in Ukraine”, in The Guardian

Etymology 2

noun

1. A sarcastic remark.
2. A stroke with a rod or switch.
3. A severe spasm; a twinge; a pang.

verb

1. (transitive) To jeer at.
2. (intransitive) To jeer.