gulf / gəlf/ • n. 1. a deep inlet of the sea almost surrounded by land, with a narrow mouth. ∎  (the Gulf) informal name for Persian Gulf.2. a deep ravine, chasm, or abyss. ∎ fig. a large difference or division between two people or groups, or between viewpoints, concepts, or situations: a wide gulf between theory and practice.

gulf Gulf War the war of January and February 1991 in which an international coalition of forces assembled in Saudi Arabia under the auspices of the United Nations forced the withdrawal of Saddam Hussein's Iraqi forces from Kuwait, which they had invaded and occupied in August 1990.
Gulf War Syndrome is the term used for a medical condition affecting many veterans of the 1991 Gulf War, causing fatigue, chronic headaches, and skin and respiratory disorders. Its origin is uncertain, though it has been attributed to exposure to a combination of pesticides, vaccines, and other chemicals.

See also a great gulf fixed.

Gulf An epoch of the Cretaceous Period, dated at 97–65 Ma ( Harland et al., 1989).

gulf kind of bay; chasm, abyss. XIV. — (O)F. golfe — It. golfo :- Rom. *colp(h)us — Gr. kólpos, (late) kólphos bosom, fold, gulf.