Literary notes about gauge (AI summary)
The term "gauge" appears in literature both as a concrete instrument of measurement and as a metaphor for assessing abstract qualities. In technical and scientific descriptions, it often denotes a device such as a pressure gauge measuring steam or water levels ([1], [2], [3]), or it defines the standard by which railway tracks are measured ([4], [5]). Simultaneously, writers employ the term in a metaphorical sense to convey the act of evaluating or appraising—whether it is gauging a person's character or assessing the merits of historical events ([6], [7], [8], [9]). This dual usage underscores the word's versatile capacity to express precise measurement in both physical and abstract domains ([10], [11], [12]).
- The needle on the pressure gauge swerved over its dial.
— from Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas: An Underwater Tour of the World by Jules Verne - The pressure gauge marked ten atmospheres.
— from Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas: An Underwater Tour of the World by Jules Verne - My eyes flew back to the pressure gauge.
— from Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas: An Underwater Tour of the World by Jules Verne - The railroads of North Carolina are four feet eight and one-half inches gauge.
— from Memoirs of General William T. Sherman — Complete by William T. Sherman - On the other hand, as time passed and practical experience was gained, its opponents were able to make an even stronger case against the narrow gauge.
— from The Travels of Marco Polo — Volume 1 by Marco Polo and da Pisa Rusticiano - People who of after years saw the pandemonium of the pit and the doings on the boards must not gauge by them the times and characters I am describing.
— from Complete Prose Works by Walt Whitman - The act of canonization [38] means the verdict of the survivors who from a distance are able to gauge the merits of past deeds.
— from The Declaration of Independence of the United States of America by Thomas Jefferson - I was a connoisseur in love affairs in those days, and could accurately gauge my chances of success.
— from Project Gutenberg Compilation of Short Stories by Chekhov by Anton Pavlovich Chekhov - Upright and a little flushed, she moved her small, shrewd eyes from face to face, trying to gauge the effect of her words.
— from The Forsyte Saga, Volume I. by John Galsworthy - measure, yard measure, standard, rule, foot rule, compass, calipers; gage, gauge; meter, line, rod, check; dividers; velo[obs3].
— from Roget's Thesaurus by Peter Mark Roget - In vain do the abysses of the Infinite open around us, a child does not know the meaning of fear; his weak eyes cannot gauge their depths.
— from Emile by Jean-Jacques Rousseau - The purpose of the mental measurements was to gauge innate mental capacity.
— from Introduction to the Science of Sociology by E. W. Burgess and Robert Ezra Park
