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Vault vs Gault - What's the difference?

vault | gault |

As nouns the difference between vault and gault

is that vault is an arched structure of masonry, forming a ceiling or canopy or vault can be an act of vaulting; a leap or jump while gault is a type of stiff, blue clay, sometimes used for making bricks.

As a verb vault

is to build as, or cover with a vault or vault can be (ambitransitive) to jump or leap over.

vault

English

(wikipedia vault)

Etymology 1

From (etyl) volte (modern .

Noun

(en noun)
  • An arched structure of masonry, forming a ceiling or canopy.
  • * Gray
    • the long-drawn aisle and fretted vault
  • A structure resembling a vault, especially (poetic) that formed by the sky.
  • * Shakespeare
    • that heaven's vault should crack
  • * 1985', God said, ‘Let there be a ' vault through the middle of the waters to divide the waters in two.’ — Genesis 1:6 (New Jerusalem Bible)
  • A secure, enclosed area, especially an underground room used for burial, or to store valuables, wine etc.
    • The bank kept their money safe in a large vault .
    Family members had been buried in the vault for centuries.
  • * Sandys
    • the silent vaults of death
  • * Jonathan Swift
    • to banish rats that haunt our vault
    Derived terms
    * barrel vault * cloister vault * compound vault * cross vault * decapartite vault * dodecapartite vault * domical vault * groin vault * oblique vault * octopartite vault * panel vault * polygonal vault * quadripartite vault * quinquepartite vault * ribbed vault * segmental vault * septempartite vault * sexpartite vault * star vault * stilted vault * tripartite vault * Welsh vault

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To build as, or cover with a vault.
  • * Sir Walter Scott
    • The shady arch that vaulted the broad green alley.

    Etymology 2

    From (etyl) frequentative form of (etyl) volvere; later assimilated to Etymology 1, above.

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • (ambitransitive) To jump or leap over.
    • The fugitive vaulted over the fence to escape.
    Derived terms
    * vaulter * vaulting

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • An act of vaulting; a leap or jump.
  • (gymnastics) An event in gymanstics performed on a vaulting horse.

    • See also

    * pole vault * vaulting horse

    gault

    English

    (Gault Clay)

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A type of stiff, blue clay, sometimes used for making bricks.
  • *{{quote-book, year=1901, author=Charles Kingsley, title=Two Years Ago, Volume I, chapter=, edition= citation
    • , passage=As he spoke, they turned off the main line of the rolling clays toward the foot of the chalk hills, and began to brush through short cuttings of blue gault and "green sand," so called by geologists, because its usual colours are bright brown, snow-white, and crimson. }}