The term "hadst gander" is not a commonly used phrase in modern English. It is spelled phonetically as /hædst ˈɡændər/. The first part "hadst" is the archaic second-person singular past tense of "have," meaning "you had" in modern English. The second part "gander" means to take a quick look or glance. When combined, the phrase means "you took a quick look." It may be encountered in historical texts or old literature but is not widely used today.
The phrase "hadst gander" does not have a specific etymology because it is not a standard word or phrase in common usage. It seems to be a combination of two separate words:
1. "Hadst": This is the second-person singular past tense of the verb "to have" in archaic English. It was commonly used in the past and now appears in works such as Shakespearean plays or Old English literature.
2. "Gander": This is a noun referring to a male goose. It can also be used informally to mean taking a quick look or glance at something.
It seems that "hadst gander" is an attempt to combine these two separate elements, but there is no established or widely recognized meaning for the phrase.