n. 1. A person who eats or consumes immoderate amounts of food and drink. 2. A person with an inordinate capacity to receive or withstand something: a glutton for punishment. 3. See wolverine. [Middle English glotoun, from Old French gloton, from Latin gluttō, gluttōn-. Sense 3, ultimately (perhaps via French glouton and German Vielfrass, glutton, wolverine) from translation of Middle Low German vilvraz, glutton, wolverine : vil, much + vraz, eater (the word vilvraz, glutton, perhaps being applied to the wolverine partly in reference to its reputation for voraciousness and partly as a folk-etymological loan translation of Old Swedish filfras, wolverine : fil, hill in the wilderness + fras, tomcat).] glutton·ous (glŭtn-əs) adj. glutton·ous·ly adv. |
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