E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Gentleman (g soft).
A translation of the French gentilhomme, one who belongs to the gens or stock. According to the Roman law, gens-men, or gentlemen, were those only who had a family name, were born of free parents, had no slave in their ancestral line, and had never been degraded to a lower rank.
1
A gentleman of the four outs. A vulgar upstart, with-out manners, with-out wit, with-out money, and with-out credit.
