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In my native language, we have a single verb for what you do in the gym – "gymma" – so I was thinking perhaps one could say "to gym" in English, but after having checked "gym" in a number of dictionaries, I'm convinced this is not possible in English. So, my question now is: is there another verb I could use in English for this exact meaning, or do I have to paraphrase, saying, for instance, "go to the gym"? (Annoyingly, "gymma" isn't listed in any of the bilingual dictionaries I've checked...)

Lillatanten
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    I was looking at some translations for "gymma"... Does "Det är inget gym jag går till för att gymma men däremot att träna Bodycombat, Bodypump, Crosstraining eller Yoga." translated to "It's not a gym I go to for a gym, but instead to train Bodycombat, Bodypump, Crosstraining or Yoga." capture the sort of usage you are asking about? I assume gymma translating to "for a gym" means the sort of exercises you would do on gym equipment like treadmills but not exercises like Yoga? – ColleenV Apr 25 '22 at 15:40
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    @ColleenV Cool – so, in line with "go for a walk" then :) I can absolutely use that; it's better than "go to the gym" in the specific context I need it for, so thanks!! – Lillatanten Apr 25 '22 at 17:00
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    No, I didn't mean that as an answer. We would not say "go for a gym". I just wanted to make sure that was the type of thing you were looking for. – ColleenV Apr 25 '22 at 17:13
  • @ColleenV Haha, ah, ok – pity. Oh well, thanks anyway :) – Lillatanten Apr 25 '22 at 17:46
  • Generally, we define the type of exercise and not the place where the exercise is done. – Lambie Apr 26 '22 at 18:21
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    "go the the gym" is very widely used, and understood to mean going there to exercise. You're trying to avoid using that? – Peter Cordes Apr 28 '22 at 01:04
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    Perhaps "lift": Do you even lift? – user2121 Apr 28 '22 at 08:59
  • @Lambie Haha, yeah, the Swedish verb "gymma" refers to the kind of exercise, it's just that we've derived it from the noun denoting the place where you typically do just that kind of exercise. – Lillatanten Apr 29 '22 at 15:09
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    @PeterCordes yes, exactly; I have a very strict word limit, so I need to be as concise as possible... – Lillatanten Apr 29 '22 at 15:10
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    In a context where readers understand that there is a word limit (like a poem or a twitter post), that will lead them to accept and try to figure out shortenings, such as understanding the use of "gym" as a verb, even if they weren't aware of existing slang usage. (I wasn't, until seeing one of the answers to this question.) Otherwise if I saw someone write "gym" as a verb, I'd wonder why they didn't just write "go to the gym" like a normal person. (Except as dialogue in a story, where that usage tells you something about the characters being gym enthusiasts.) – Peter Cordes Apr 29 '22 at 20:29
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    I recently heard in a tik tok someone using gym as a verb and I immediately remembered this question. I also just found this definition on urban dictionary so maybe it is a new loanword or expression entering the lexicon. – Cave Johnson Jun 02 '22 at 22:36

6 Answers6

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You are correct; we don't normally use "to gym" as a verb in English. At the gym, we exercise or work out.

Examples:

stangdon
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    It may be worth noting that you can exercise or work out at places that aren't the gym. – Laurel Apr 25 '22 at 14:22
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    The question asks for single verb that means "to exercise in a gym" and English doesn't have one verb for that. Someone might infer from the context where we are going to be exercising when we say we're going to go work out, but as Laurel pointed out, we have to explicitly say "in a gym" or "at the gym" in English. We can work out in park, or in our offices, or at home with or without gym type equipment. – ColleenV Apr 25 '22 at 15:37
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    also potentially "train" or "lift" (the latter may be more of a Britishism, and afaik, only applies to certain sorts of exercise, whereas the other terms are more general) – Tristan Apr 26 '22 at 10:13
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    @Tristan Just chiming in as an American to confirm that we use "lift" as well. (That's one usage of this word that apparently we do agree on.) – d_b Apr 26 '22 at 15:00
  • In English, we tend to specify the activity but not the place. And if we name the place, it can be different types of exercising. – Lambie Apr 26 '22 at 18:22
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    @d_b When reading the question, I immediately thought about "Bro, do you even lift?" – Eric Duminil Apr 28 '22 at 15:38
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English doesn't have a widely-used single verb for this activity.

There are various verbs for what you might do at the gym, as mentioned in other answers e.g. "exercise" (can apply to pretty much any physical activity you might do at the gym), "work out" (can apply to pretty much any physical activity you might do at the gym), "train" (implies more serious physical activity, and not just to maintain general fitness), or "lift" (referring specifically to weight training, but could include machines rather than just lifting weights), but these actions can also be done outside of the gym, e.g. at home, or in a park.

You can also use a longer phrase if you want to make it clear that what you're doing is taking place at a gym. As you suggest in the OP, "go to the gym" is entirely reasonable here, and probably the best choice. Whilst this does leave the actual exercise implicit, it's such a strong implication that, unless you specifically said otherwise, everyone would assume you were doing some sort of exercise there.

There are also regional differences here. "Work out" is more common in American English, but is still used and well understood by all. "Lift" is more common in British English (especially among "gym-bros"), and I don't know how well it is understood more widely. Interestingly, the verb "to gym" is used in Indian English, but would generally be understood as an error by speakers of other varieties, so is probably best avoided.

Tristan
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    I agree. If you told someone you were "going to the gym" and it turned out you were just going there to have a smoothie in the cafe, that would be classed as a joke based on a language trick, the kind you'd hear in a cheesy sitcom. Assuming the OP doesn't live inside a cheesy sitcom or an academic discussion about language, I'm going to the gym unambiguously means that you are going to the gym to exercise. – Dannie Apr 27 '22 at 15:56
  • @Dannie Haha, I don't... though wouldn't it be fun? Or perhaps not... depends on the sitcom, I suppose – imagine getting stuck in "Married with children" for instance! Oh, horror! – Lillatanten Apr 29 '22 at 15:23
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While not a single word, you can hit the gym. This usage of hit isn't specific to the gym, being defined by MW as

to arrive or appear at, in, or on

  • hit town
  • the best time to hit the stores
  • The newest issue hits newsstands tomorrow.

It's slang, but it seems to be idiomatic in both American and British English.

Laurel
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You might consider "exercise" or "train" as similar meanings for a single verb of "what you do in a gym".

You could do these things outside the gym, but that's typically what you'd do inside the gym.

Brian Tompsett - 汤莱恩
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JNSTabletop
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    I'm not familiar with the word "gymma" or the language it is home to, but just based on its spelling I would guess that it may refer to gyms specifically. The verbs "exercise" and "train" definitely happen in a gym, but also happen outside of a gym just as much. – stjep Apr 26 '22 at 08:23
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    @stjep It's Swedish :) And you're very right that "exercise" and "train" are a bit too vague. – Lillatanten Apr 29 '22 at 15:25
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Just use "gym" as a verb if you want to. I've heard it more than often enough amongst my young native English gym-frequenting friends. I gym a few times per week // I'll be gymming between 8 and 9 this evening. It's definitely informal and new usage though.

Most people would assume "exercise" to be the thing you do at the gym. I go to the gym to exercise. "Train" is even more comprehensive than that, because maybe you are using the gym facilities to practise a sport (which may not be considered exercise but is still normally considered training).

And the most catch-all of all... "I go to the gym". The verb is "go to the gym". Very common and natural, very frequently said and heard, and includes everything you could possibly do at the gym. I'd guess it's the most easily substitutable translation for gymma, will work in every case unlike the more specific words like "exercise" or "work out".

minseong
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    Wiktionary lists the verb form https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/gym#Verb – Mari-Lou A Apr 26 '22 at 19:30
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    Interestingly, it seems to have originated in India "The only thing that can make you susceptible to this condition pre-marriage is crash dieting or mindless gymming* and exercise*" Rujuta Diwekar, Women and the weight loss tamasha – Mari-Lou A Apr 26 '22 at 19:32
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    @Mari-LouA wiktionary lists it as Indian English. The entry there does not suggest the word is widely accepted in other varieties of English – Tristan Apr 27 '22 at 16:01
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    @Tristan Is Indian English a less relevant dialect than American or British English? Verbing, making nouns into verbs, is a well-documented phenomena and current in all English varieties. The OP, a native speaker, has attested to hearing "I gym a few times a week" but also acknowledges it is a recent coinage. I don't see where the problem lies. The link is a reference which supported the OP's assertion and personal experience. – Mari-Lou A Apr 29 '22 at 05:40
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    Indian English is generally less well known by speakers of other dialects. From a non-native speaker, British or American English speakers are likely to perceive this as an error (they'd probably also perceive it as an error from native Indian English speakers, due to the racist assumption that they must all be L2 speakers), whereas from a native speaker they'd likely perceive it as language play – Tristan Apr 29 '22 at 08:32
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You can say, attend the gym, or use the gym. These are less specific than exercise or work out, but they are both transitive verbs that take the location as the direct object.

Examples:

Davislor
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    Me, I go to the gym to train. As in weight-training. – RedSonja Apr 26 '22 at 09:58
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    "attend the gym" sounds very odd to my (UK-native) ears. "Use the gym" would seem to imply a gym attached to some other facility (e.g. an office or hotel) rather than a gym operating on its own – Tristan Apr 26 '22 at 10:11
  • @Tristan Interesting! It sounds fine to me (west coast of the U.S.). Where are you from, if you feel like sharing? – Davislor Apr 26 '22 at 14:03
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    SE England, speaking fairly Standard Southern British English – Tristan Apr 26 '22 at 14:44
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    Simply "going to the gym" is better (more natural) than both of these options. – minseong Apr 26 '22 at 18:11
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    attend the gym is not just odd in BrE, it's very odd in AmE as well. – Lambie Apr 26 '22 at 18:19
  • @Lambie According to a Google Ngram search, “attend the gym” is slightly more common than “train at the gym.” – Davislor Apr 26 '22 at 20:50
  • @theonlygusti Go to the gym is indeed a great answer, but someone else already posted it before me. – Davislor Apr 26 '22 at 20:51
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    attend school, attend church, attend clients, attend many things but not a gym. I don't care what Ngrams say. I have never in all my years heard attend a gym. – Lambie Apr 26 '22 at 22:06
  • @Lambie You heard it once at least, when you read my example! But “work out at the gym” turns out to be only eight times more common than “attend the gym.” “Go to the gym” is a lot more frequent than either. – Davislor Apr 26 '22 at 23:07