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G - Gee

Gas Bag:

(1) The cloth bag in which the respirator was carried, or sometimes the respirator (gas helmet) itself. (2) An airship or barrage balloon.

Gasper:

Cheap cigarette.

Gas Pipe Cavalry:

Army Cyclist Corps.

Gaspirator:

British gas mask incorporating a filter. From a combination of gas and respirator.

Gassed:

Getting gassed, getting drunk.

Gearsman:

Tank crew member responsible for managing the gears.

Geese:

Portuguese. See also Pork and Beans.

Geranium:

Staff officer. So called because of the red cap-band and collar tabs. See also Red Tab.

Gieves, Matthew & Seagrove:

Naval slang for the trio of Great War campaign medals (1914-15 Star, British War Medal, Victory Medal). From the well-known firm of naval outfitters. See also Pip, Squeak & Wilfred.

Glasshouse:

Military prison or detention center.

Glory Hole:

Dug-out.

Go Up:

To go up the line, i.e. into the trenches.

Go West:

(1) To be killed, to die. The most popular euphemism of this type. (2) To go astray or be stolen.

Goer:

Shell passing overhead.

Goggle-Eyed Booger with the Tit:

British gas helmet. The wearer had to breathe in through the nose from inside the helmet and breathe out through a valve held in the teeth.

Gooseberry:

Barbed wire entanglement or reel. From the prickly nature of the gooseberry bush.

Gorblimey:

Peaked canvas service cap, made sloppy in appearance by removing the wire stiffener from the crown, not usually seen until after the end of 1914; generally scruffy or sloppy. A Cockney expression, a corruption of God blind me.

Grass-Cutters:

Small anti-personnel bombs dropped from aircraft on to camps and bivouacs behind the lines. They were designed to burst on impact and scatter shrapnel balls at low-level, with the intention to kill rather than to destroy material things.

Green Cross:

German phosgene gas, from the marking painted on the delivery shell casing.

Greyback:

(1) British army shirt, with sharp-edged tin buttons. From the color. (2) A louse.

Grey Hen:

Rum jar. A grey and brown earthenware jug which contained the rum ration, usually Navy Pusser's rum.

Griffin:

Confidential information or warning of trouble to come. The bottom line.

Grog:

Rum, usually watered down.

Grubber:

Spade or entrenching tool.

Gum Boots:

Rubber boots or waders sometimes worn in wet trenches.

Gunfire:

Strong tea, usually laced with rum.