Etymology dictionary
lavatory (n.) — learnable (adj.)
lavatory (n.)
late 14c., "washbasin," from Late Latin lavatorium "place for washing," noun use of neuter of Latin adjective lavatorius "pertaining to washing," from lavat-, past participle stem of lavare "to wash," from PIE root *leue- "to wash." Sense of "washroom" is first attested 1650s; as a euphemism for "toilet, W.C.," it is attested by 1864. Related: Lavatorial.
lave (v.)
c. 1200 (transitive), from Old English lafian "wash by pouring water on, pour (water)," possibly an early Anglo-Saxon or West Germanic borrowing (compare Dutch laven, German laben) of Latin lavare "to wash," or its Old French descendant, laver, or some confusion in English of the two. Latin lavare is from PIE root *leue- "to wash."
lavender (n.)
"fragrant plant of the mint family," c. 1300, from Anglo-French lavendre, Old French lavendre "the lavender plant," from Medieval Latin lavendula "lavender" (10c.), perhaps from Latin lividus "bluish, livid" (see livid). If so, it probably was associated with French lavande, Italian lavanda "a washing" (from Latin lavare "to wash;" from PIE root *leue- "to wash") because it was used to scent washed fabrics and as a bath perfume.
The adjective meaning "of a pale purple color, of the color of lavender flowers" is from 1840; as a noun in the color sense from 1882. An identical Middle English word meant "laundress, washerwoman;" also, apparently, "prostitute, whore; camp follower" and is attested as a surname from early 13c.
lavish (adj.)
"spending or bestowing profusely," mid-15c., laves, from Old French lavasse, lavache (n.) "a torrent of rain, deluge" (15c.), from laver "to wash," from Latin lavare "to wash" (from PIE root *leue- "to wash"). Related: Lavishly; lavishness.
lavish (v.)
"spend or bestow profusely," 1540s, from lavish (adj.). Related: Lavished; lavisher; lavishing.
lawful (adj.)
c. 1300, laghful, "rightful, supported by law" (of sanctions, etc.); see law (n.) + -ful. Meaning "allowed by law" is late 14c. Similar construction in Old Norse logfullr. Old English had lahlic. Related: Lawfully; lawfulness.
law (n.)
Old English lagu (plural laga, combining form lah-) "ordinance, rule prescribed by authority, regulation; district governed by the same laws;" also sometimes "right, legal privilege," from Old Norse *lagu "law," collective plural of lag "layer, measure, stroke," literally "something laid down, that which is fixed or set."
This is reconstructed to be from Proto-Germanic *lagam "put, lay" (from PIE root *legh- "to lie down, lay"). The modern word is thus a twin of lay (n.2) as "that which is set or established."
Rare in Old English, it ousted the more usual ae and also gesetnes, which also were etymologically "something placed or set."
In physics, "a proposition which expresses the regular order of things," from 1660s. Law and order have been coupled since 1796. To lay down the law (1752) is pleonastic (the "law" in the figure is biblical law, laid down from the pulpit). Poor laws provided for the support of paupers at public expense; sumptuary laws restrained excesses in apparel, food, or luxuries.
It is more common for Indo-European languages to use different words for "a specific law" and for "law" in the general sense of "institution or body of laws," for example Latin lex "a law," ius "a right," especially "legal right, law."
Indo-European words for "a law" are most commonly from verbs for "to put, place, set, lay," such as Greek thesmos (from tithemi "to put, place"), Old English dom (from PIE *dhe- "to put, place, set"), Lithuanian įstatymas (from statyti "cause to stand, set up, establish"), Polish ustawa (from stać "stand"). Also compare Old English gesetnes (above), statute, from Latin statuere; German Gesetz "a law, statute," from Old High German gisatzida "a fixing, determination, assessment," with sezzen (modern German setzen) "to make sit, set, put."
Words for "law" in the general sense mostly mean etymologically "what is right" and often are connected with adjectives for "right" (themselves often figurative uses of words for "straight," "upright," "true," "fitting," or "usage, custom." Such are Greek nomos (as in numismatic); French droit, Spanish derecho, from Latin directus; Polish prawo, Russian pravo (from Old Church Slavonic pravŭ "straight," in the daughter languages "right"); also Old Norse rettr, Old English riht, Dutch recht, German Recht (see right (adj.1)).
law (v.)
1640s, "to litigate," from law (n.). Old English had lagian "make a law, ordain." Related: Lawed; lawing.
law-abiding (adj.)
"obedient to the laws," 1828, from law (n.) + abiding.
law-breaker (n.)
also lawbreaker, mid-15c., from law (n.) + agent noun from break (v.). Old English had lahbreca.
law-giver (n.)
also lawgiver, "one who makes or enacts a code of laws," late 14c., from law (n.) + agent noun from give (v.).
lawless (adj.)
c. 1200, lawelese "uncontrolled by law of any kind," from law (n.) + -less. Meaning "illegal" is from c. 1300. Related: Lawlessly; lawlessness.
lawmaker (n.)
also law-maker, "legislator," late 15c., from law (n.) + maker.
lawman (n.)
1530s, "lawyer," from law (n.) + man (n.). Meaning "law-enforcement officer" is from 1865. Old English had lahmann "an official or declarer of the law, one acquainted with the law and qualified to declare it," a word from Old Norse. There is an Anglo-Latin lagamannus "magistrate" from early 12c., hence the proper name of Layamon, author of the "Brut."
lawn (n.1)
"turf, stretch of grass," 1540s, laune "glade, open space in a forest or between woods," from Middle English launde (c. 1300), from Old French lande "heath, moor, barren land; clearing" (12c.), from Gaulish (compare Breton lann "heath"), or from a cognate Germanic word, from Proto-Germanic *landam-, source of English land (n.). The -d perhaps was mistaken for an affix and dropped. Sense of "grassy ground kept mowed" first recorded 1733. Lawn-tennis is from 1884.
lawn (n.2)
"thin linen or cotton cloth," early 15c., probably from Laon, city in northern France, a center of linen manufacture. The town name is Old French Lan, from Latin Laudunum, of Celtic origin. For form evolution, compare fawn (n.) from faon. Lawn sleeves (1630s) were emblematic of Anglican bishops.
lawn-mower (n.)
1853 as a type of machine to cut grass, from lawn (n.1) + mower. Originally pushed by hand or drawn by horses, later also powered by a motor.
lawn-sprinkler (n.)
1872, from lawn (n.1) + sprinkler.
Lawrence
see Laurence.
lawrencium (n.)
1961, Modern Latin, from the name of Ernest O. Lawrence (1901-1958), U.S. physicist, cyclotron pioneer and founder of the lab where it was discovered. With metallic element ending -ium.
lawsuit (n.)
1620s, from law (n.) + suit (n.).
lawyer (n.)
late 14c. lauier, lawer, lawere (mid-14c. as a surname), "one versed in law, one whose profession is suits in court or client advice on legal rights," from Middle English lawe "law" (see law) + -iere. Spelling with -y- predominated from 17c. (see -yer). In the New Testament (Luke xiv.3, etc.) "interpreter of Mosaic law." Old English had lahwita, with wita "sage, wise man; adviser councilor," and an earlier Middle English word for "lawyer" was man-of-law (mid-14c.). Related: Lawyerly.
laxative (adj.)
late 14c., "causing relaxation or looseness," from Old French laxatif (13c.), from Medieval Latin laxativus "loosening," from Latin laxat-, past participle stem of laxare "loosen," from laxus "loose, lax" (see lax). The noun meaning "a laxative medicine, a medicine that relieves constipation by relaxing the intestines" is from late 14c.
lax (n.)
"salmon," from Old English leax (see lox). Cognate with Middle Dutch lacks, German Lachs, Danish laks, etc.; according to OED the English word was obsolete except in the north and Scotland from 17c., reintroduced in reference to Scottish or Norwegian salmon.
lax (n. 1)
1951 as an abbreviation of lacrosse.
lax (adj.)
c. 1400, "loose" (in reference to bowels), from Latin laxus "wide, spacious, roomy," figuratively "loose, free, wide" (also used of indulgent rule and low prices), from PIE *lag-so-, suffixed form of root *sleg- "be slack, be languid."
In English, of rules, discipline, etc., from mid-15c. Related: Laxly; laxness. A transposed Vulgar Latin form yielded Old French lasche, French lâche. The laxists, though they formed no avowed school, were nonetheless condemned by Innocent XI in 1679.
laxity (n.)
1520s, from French laxité, from Latin laxitatem (nominative laxitas) "width, spaciousness," from laxus "loose, lax" (see lax). An earlier noun was laxation (late 14c.). Laxness is from 1630s.
layabout (n.)
"habitual loafer," 1932, from the verbal phrase; see lay (v.) + about (adv.). One who "lays about" the house, etc.
lay-away (n.)
also lay-away, 1961 in reference to a system of payments for reserved merchandise, from the verbal phrase (attested from c. 1400 as "to put away," especially "place in store for future use"); see lay (v.) + away (adv.). Earlier in the same sense, as an adjective, was Australian lay-by (1930).
layer (n.)
late 14c., "one who or that lays" (especially stones, "a mason"), agent noun from lay (v.). Passive sense of "a thickness of some material laid over a surface" is first recorded 1610s, but because the earliest English use was in cookery this is perhaps from French liue "binding," used of a thickened sauce. Of hens from 1707. Layer cake attested from 1875.
layer (v.)
1832, in gardening, as a method of plant propagation, from layer (n.). Meaning "to form into layers" is from 1852. Related: Layered; layering.
layette (n.)
"newborn baby's outfit," 1839, from French layette, properly the box in which it comes, subsequently transferred to the linen, in Middle French "chest of drawers," from laie "drawer, box," from Middle Dutch laeye, which is related to lade, load (v.).
layman (n.)
"non-cleric," early 15c., from lay (adj.) + man (n.). Similar formation in Old Frisian lekman, Danish lægmand. Meaning "outsider, unprofessional person, non-expert" (especially in regards to law or medicine) is from late 15c. Related: Laymen.
layoff (n.)
also lay-off, lay off; 1889, "rest, relaxation, respite;" from the verbal phrase; see lay (v.) + off (adv.). Via seasonal labor with periodic inactivity, it came to have a sense of "temporary release from employment," and by 1960s was being used somewhat euphemistically for permanent releases of masses of workers by employers. The verbal phrase lay off is attested from 1841 (colloquial) as "stop working, be idle" (intransitive); 1892 as "dismiss" (an employee); meaning "stop disturbing" is from 1908. Its oldest sense is "remove and lay aside, rid oneself of" (1590s).
layout (n.)
also lay-out, "configuration, arrangement," 1852, from the verbal phrase; see lay (v.) + out (adv.). Meaning "rough design of a printing job" is from 1910. The verbal phrase is attested from c. 1400 as "expose to view, show, set forth;" mid-15c. as "to expend, lavish." The meaning "prepare (a corpse) for burial" is from 1590s and is said to be the source of the figurative sense "knock out; kill."
layover (n.)
also lay-over, "a stop overnight," 1873, from the verbal phrase; see lay (v.) + over (adv.). Earlier as "a cloth laid over a table-cloth" (1777). The verbal phrase is from 1530s as "to overlay."
layperson (n.)
1972, gender-neutral version of layman.
layup (n.)
also lay-up, 1927, "temporary period out of work," from the verbal phrase; see lay (v.) + up (adv.). Compare layoff. Basketball shot so called by 1955, short for lay-up shot (1947). The verbal phrase is attested from mid-14c. as "store away," 1550s as "confine to one's bed or room" (of illness); of ships in docks, 1660s. Related: Laid-up.
laywoman (n.)
1520s, from lay (adj.) + woman; probably modeled on layman.
lazar (n.)
"filthy beggar, leper," c. 1300, from Medieval Latin lazarus "leper," from Lazarus (q.v.), the name of the beggar in the biblical parable. Sometimes also lazard, with pejorative suffix.
lazaretto (n.)
"house for reception of lepers and diseased poor persons," 1540s, from Italian lazareto "place set aside for performance of quarantine" (especially that of Venice, which received many ships from plague-infested districts in the East), from the Biblical proper name Lazarus (q.v.). Meaning "building set apart for quarantine" is c. 1600 in English. The word in Italian was perhaps influenced by the name of another hospital in Venice, that associated with the church of Santa Maria di Nazaret. Sometimes Englished as lazaret; also known as lazar house (1520s).
Lazarus
Biblical character (Luke xvi.20), the poor man covered in sores; his name was extended in medieval times to "any poor and visibly diseased person." Compare lazar (n.), mid-14c., "one deformed and nauseous with filthy and pestilential diseases" [Johnson]. The name is from a Greek rendition of Hebrew El'azar, literally "(he whom) God has helped."
La-Z-Boy
brand of recliner chair, 1929, Floral City Furniture Co., Monroe, Michigan, U.S. According to company lore, chosen from names submitted in a contest. See lazy + boy.
laze (v.)
1590s, back-formation from lazy. Related: Lazed; lazing.
laziness (n.)
lazy (adj.)
1540s, laysy, of persons, "averse to labor, action, or effort," a word of unknown origin. In 19c. thought to be from lay (v.) as tipsy from tip. Skeat is responsible for the prevailing modern view that it probably comes from Low German, from a source such as Middle Low German laisch "weak, feeble, tired," modern Low German läösig, early modern Dutch leuzig, all of which may go back to the PIE root *(s)leg- "slack." According to Weekley, the -z- sound disqualifies a connection with French lassé "tired" or German lassig "lazy, weary, tired." A supposed dialectal meaning "naught, bad," if it is the original sense, may tie the word to Old Norse lasenn "dilapidated," lasmøyrr "decrepit, fragile," root of Icelandic las-furða "ailing," las-leiki "ailment."
Replaced native slack, slothful, and idle as the usual word expressing the notion of averse to work. Lazy Susan is from 1917. Lazy-tongs is from 1785, "An instrument like a pair of tongs for old or very fat people, to take anything off the ground without stooping" [Grose, "Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue"]. In his 1788 edition, Grose has lazy man's load: "Lazy people frequently take up more than they can safely carry, to save the trouble of coming a second time."
lazily (adv.)
lazuli (n.)
1789, short for lapis lazuli.
lazybones (n.)
"idler," colloquial, 1590s, from lazy + plural of bone (n.). Another form was lazyboots (1831).
lazzarone (n.)
"Italian beggar," 1792, Italian, augmentative of lazzaro "a beggar, leper," from Lazarus (q.v.).
LCD
1973, initialism (acronym) from liquid crystal display, which is attested from 1968, from liquid crystal, a translation of German flüssiger krystall (1890).
-le
instrumental word-forming element, the usual modern form of -el (1), a suffix originally used in Old English to form agent nouns.
le
French masc. definite article (including the old neuter), fem. la, from Latin ille "he, that," used in Late Latin and Medieval Latin as the definite article. Cognate with Spanish el. Latin ille "that," illa "by that way, there," replaced Old Latin olle/ollus, perhaps by analogy with iste [de Vaan]; from PIE *hol-no- "that, yonder."
lea (n.)
Old English leah "open field, meadow, piece of untilled grassy ground," earlier læch, preserved in place names, from Proto-Germanic *lauhaz (source also of Old High German loh "clearing," and probably also Flemish -loo, which forms the second element in Waterloo), from PIE *louko- "light place" (source also of Sanskrit lokah "open space, free space, world," Latin lucus "grove, sacred grove, wood," Lithuanian laukas "open field, land"), from root *leuk- "to shine, be bright." The dative form is the source of many of the English surnames Lee, Leigh.
leach (v.)
"wash or drain by percolation of water, treat by downward drainage," by 1660s in cookery, perhaps from a dialectal survival from Old English leccan "to moisten, water, wet, irrigate," which, under Norse influence, became leak (v.). The word was used 18c. in technological senses, such as leach-trough, a device used in salt-works in which corns of salt taken from brine were set to drain dry, after which they were called leach-brine. Related: Leached; leaching. Hence leach (n.) "a preparation made by leaching or straining" (1630s), in later use especially "a separation of lye or alkali in solution."
leachate (n.)
"that which is formed by or results from leaching," 1920, from leach + -ate (1). The older noun was simply leach.
lead (v.2)
early 15c., "to make of lead," from lead (n.1). Meaning "to cover with lead" is from mid-15c. In printing, 1841, also lead out.
leading (adj.)
1590s, "that goes first," present-participle adjective from lead (v.1). Meaning "directing, guiding" is from 1620s. Of persons, "having first or most prominent place," 1670s. In reference to theatrical companies, leading lady is from 1846; leading man from 1847.
lead (n.2)
c. 1300, "action of leading," from lead (v.1). Meaning "the front or leading place" is from 1560s. Johnson stigmatized it as "a low, despicable word." Sense in card-playing, "action or privilege of playing first," is from 1742; in theater, "the principal part," from 1831; in journalism, "initial summary of a news story," from 1912 (often spelled lede to distinguish it from lead (n.1), which formerly played a prominent role in typesetting. Boxing sense is from 1906. In jazz bands, from 1934 in reference to the principal parts; earlier it was used in music in reference to fugues (1880) of the part that takes off first and is "followed" by the others.
Meaning "direction given by example" (as in follow (someone's) lead) is by 1863, that of "a clue to a solution" is by 1851, both from the notion of "thing to be followed." As an adjective, "leading," by 1846. Lead-time "time needed to produce something" is 1945, American English.
leading (n.1)
"lead work; lead covering or frame of lead," mid-15c., verbal noun from lead (n.1). Printing sense is from 1855.
lead (adj.)
"made of or resembling lead," late 14c., from lead (n.1).
leading (n.2)
mid-13c., "a bringing by force," verbal noun from lead (v.1). Meaning "direction, guidance" is from late 14c.
lead (v.1)
"to guide," Old English lædan (transitive) "cause to go with oneself; march at the head of, go before as a guide, accompany and show the way; carry on; sprout forth, bring forth; pass (one's life)," causative of liðan "to travel," from Proto-Germanic *laidjanan (source also of Old Saxon lithan, Old Norse liða "to go," Old High German ga-lidan "to travel," Gothic ga-leiþan "to go"), from PIE *leit- (2) "to go forth."
Of roads, c. 1200. Meaning "to be in first place" is from late 14c. Intransitive sense, "act the part of a leader," is from 1570s. Sense in card playing, "to commence a round or trick," is from 1670s. Meaning "take the directing part in a musical performance or prayer" is from 1849. Related: Led; leading.
To lead with one's chin "leave oneself vulnerable in a contest" (1946) is a figure from boxing. To lead on "entice to advance" is from 1590s. To figuratively lead (someone) by the nose "guide by persuasion" is from 1580s, from draught animals (earlier lead by the sleeve, early 15c.). To lead (someone) a dance "compel through a course of irksome actions" is from 1520s.
lead (n.1)
heavy metal, Old English lead "lead, leaden vessel," from West Germanic *lauda- (source also of Old Frisian lad, Middle Dutch loot, Dutch lood "lead," German Lot "weight, plummet"), a word of uncertain origin. The name and the skill in using the metal seem to have been borrowed from the Celts (compare Old Irish luaide).
Figurative of heaviness at least since early 14c. American English slang lead balloon "dismal failure" attested by 1957, perhaps 1940s (as a type of something heavy that can be kept up only with effort, from 1904). Lead-footed "slow" is from 1896; opposite sense of "fast" emerged 1940s in trucker's jargon, from notion of a foot heavy on the gas pedal.
Meaning "graphite in a pencil" is from 1816 (see pencil (n.)). Black lead was an old name for "graphite," hence lead pencil (1680s) and the colloquial figurative phrase to have lead in one's pencil "be possessed of (especially male sexual) vigor," attested by 1902. White lead (1560s) was an old name for "tin."
As a name of a dull bluish-gray color, 1610s. From 1590s as figurative for "bullets." Lead oxide was much used in glazing, mirror-making, and pigments. In printing, "thin strip of type-metal (often lead but sometimes brass) used in composition to separate lines" from 1808, earlier space-line. Lead-poisoning is from 1848; earlier lead-distemper (1774).
leaded (adj.)
early 13c., "covered with lead," from lead (n.1). In reference to printed matter, "set with more than ordinary space between the lines," 1864. Of fuel, "with added lead," 1936.
leaden (adj.)
"made of lead," Old English leaden, from lead (n.1) + -en (2). The figurative sense of "heavy, oppressive, dull" is attested by 1570s. Related: Leadenly; leadenness.
leader (n.)
Old English lædere "one who leads, one first or most prominent," agent noun from lædan "to guide, conduct" (see lead (v.)). Cognate with Old Frisian ledera, Dutch leider, Old High German leitari, German Leiter. As a title for the head of an authoritarian state, from 1918 (translating Führer, Duce, caudillo, etc.). Meaning "writing or statement meant to begin a discussion or debate" is late 13c.; in modern use often short for leading article (1807) "opinion piece in a British newspaper" (leader in this sense attested from 1837). The golf course leader board so called from 1970.
leaderless (adj.)
1590s, from leader (n.1) + -less. Related: Leaderlessly; leaderlessness.
leadership (n.)
1821, "position of a leader, command," from leader + -ship. Sense extended by late 19c. to "characteristics necessary to be a leader, capacity to lead."
lead-in (n.)
1913, in electrical wiring, from verbal phrase; see lead (v.1) + in (adv.). General sense of "introduction, opening" is from 1928, originally in music.
lead-off (n.)
"commencement, beginning," 1879, from verbal phrase (attested from 1806); see lead (v.1) + off (adv.).
lead-up (n.)
1917, from verbal phrase; see lead (v.1) + up (adv.). To lead up to "prepare gradually for" is from 1861.
leaf (n.)
Old English leaf "leaf of a plant, foliage; page of a book, sheet of paper," from Proto-Germanic *lauba- (source also of Old Saxon lof, Old Norse lauf, Old Frisian laf, Dutch loof, Old High German loub, German Laub "foliage, leaves," Gothic laufs "leaf, foliage"), perhaps from PIE *leub(h)- "to peel off, strip or break off" ((source also of Old Irish luib, "herb," lub-gort "garden;" Albanian labë "rind, cork;" Lithuanian luba "plank, board;" Russian lob "forehead, brow," Czech leb "skull;" Lithuanian luobas "bast," Latvian luobas "peel," Russian lub "bast;" Old Norse lyf "medicinal herbs," Old English lybb "poison; magic").
Related to lodge and lobby; for another PIE root see folio. Extended late 14c. to very thin sheets of metal (especially gold). Compare Lithuanian lapas "leaf," from a root also in Greek lepos "bark," lepein "to peel off." Also applied to flat and relatively broad surfaces, especially of flexible or mounted attachments; meaning "hinged flap on the side of a table" is from 1550s. To turn over a (new) leaf (1590s; 1570s as turn the leaf) "begin a new and better course of life" is a reference to the book sense. Among insects, leaf-hopper is from 1847; leaf-cutter from 1816.
leaf (v.)
"to turn over (the pages of a book)," 1660s, from leaf (n.). Meaning "put forth leaves or foliage" is from 1610s. Related: Leafed; leaved; leafing.
leafy (adj.)
1550s, from leaf (n.) + -y (2). Related: Leafily; leafiness.
leafless (adj.)
1580s, from leaf (n.) + -less.
leaflet (n.)
1787 as a term in botany; 1867 as a term in printing and publication; diminutive of leaf (n.) with -let.
league (n.2)
itinerary unit in medieval England, distance of about three statute miles, late 14c., ultimately from Late Latin leuga (source also of French lieue, Spanish legua, Italian lega), which is said by Roman writers to be from Gaulish. A vague measure (perhaps originally an hour's hike), in England it was a conventional, not a legal measure, and in English it is found more often in poetic than in practical writing.
league (v.)
"to form a league," 1610s, from league (n.1). Related: Leagued; leaguing.
league (n.1)
"alliance," mid-15c., ligg, from French ligue "confederacy, league" (15c.), from Italian lega, from legare "to tie, to bind," from Latin ligare "to bind" (from PIE root *leig- "to tie, bind"). Originally among nations, subsequently extended to political associations (1846) and sports associations (1879). League of Nations is attested from 1917 (created 1919).
leak (n.)
"hole by which liquid enters or escapes," late 15c., from leak (v.) or Old Norse cognate leka. Sense of "revelation of secret information" is from 1950. Meaning "act of urination" is attested from 1934 ("Tropic of Cancer"); but the verb meaning "to piss" is from 1590s: "Why, you will allow vs ne're a Iourden [i.e. a chamberpot], and then we leake in your Chimney." ["I Hen. IV," II.i.22]
leak (v.)
"to let water in or out" [Johnson], late 14c., from Middle Dutch leken "to drip, to leak," or from Old Norse leka, both of them related to Old English leccan "to moisten, water, irrigate" (which did not survive into Middle English), all from Proto-Germanic *lek- "deficiency" (source also of Old High German lecchen "to become dry," German lechzen "to be parched with thirst"), from PIE root *leg- (2) "to dribble, trickle." The figurative meaning "come to be known in spite of efforts at concealment" dates from at least 1832; transitive sense first recorded 1859. Related: Leaked; leaking.
leakage (n.)
late 15c., from leak (v.) + -age.
leaky (adj.)
mid-15c., from leak (n.) + -y (2). Related: Leakiness. Slang sense of "unable to keep a secret" attested from 1704.
leal (adj.)
"loyal, faithful, honest, true," c. 1300, lele, surviving from Middle English as Northern English and Scottish form of loyal. But the Land of the leal (Lady Nairne) is Heaven, not Scotland. Related: Lealty.
lean (adj.)
"thin, spare, with little flesh or fat," c. 1200, from Old English hlæne "lean, thin," possibly (Skeat) from hlænan "cause to lean or bend," from Proto-Germanic *khlainijan, which would connect it to Old English hleonian (see lean (v.)). But perhaps rather, according to OED, from a PIE *qloinio- (with cognates in Lithuanian klynas "scrap, fragment," Lettish kleins "feeble"). Extended and figurative senses from early 14c. In business jargon, paired with mean (adj.) from 1970s to suggest aggressiveness as if from hunger.
leaning (n.)
Old English hlininga; verbal noun from lean (v.). Figurative sense "inclination, tendency" is from 1580s. Related: Leanings.
leanness (n.)
Old English hlænnesse; see lean (adj.) + -ness.
lean (v.)
c. 1200, from Old English hlinian "to recline, lie down, rest; bend or incline" (Mercian hleonian, Northumbrian hlionian), from Proto-Germanic *hlinen (source also of Old Saxon hlinon, Old Frisian lena, Middle Dutch lenen, Dutch leunen, Old High German hlinen, German lehnen "to lean"), from PIE root *klei- "to lean."
Transitive sense "cause to lean or rest" is from 14c. Meaning "to incline the body against something for support" is mid-13c. Figurative sense of "to trust for support" is from early 13c. Sense of "to lean toward mentally, to favor" is from late 14c. Related: Leaned; leaning. Colloquial lean on "put pressure on" (someone) is first recorded 1960.
lean (n.2)
c. 1200, "lean animals or persons," from lean (adj.). Meaning "lean part of anything, muscle without fat, lean meat" is mid-15c.
lean (n.1)
"action or state of leaning, deviation from a vertical position," 1776, from lean (v.).
Leander
youth of Abydos, lover of Hero. He swam nightly across the Hellespont to visit her in Sestos, on the Thracian side, until he drowned. The name is from Greek Leiandros, literally "lion-man," from leon "lion" + anēr (genitive andros) "man" (from PIE root *ner- (2) "man").
leant
occasion past tense and past participle of lean (v.).
lean-to (n.)
"building whose rafters lean against another building or wall," mid-15c., from lean (v.) + to (adv.). Compare penthouse. "An addition made to a house behind, or at the end of it, chiefly for domestic offices, of one story or more, lower than the main building, and the roof of it leaning against the wall of the house" [Bartlett].
leap (v.)
c. 1200, from Old English hleapan "to jump, spring clear of the ground by force of an initial bound; run, go; dance, leap upon (a horse)" (class VII strong verb; past tense hleop, past participle hleapen), from Proto-Germanic *hlaupanan (source also of Old Saxon hlopan, Old Norse hlaupa, Old Frisian hlapa, Dutch lopen, Old High German hlouffan, German laufen "to run," Gothic us-hlaupan "to jump up"), of uncertain origin, with no known cognates beyond Germanic; perhaps a substratum word.
Transitive sense "pass over by leaping" is from early 15c. Leap-frog, the children's game, is attested by that name from 1590s ("Henry V"); figurative use by 1704; as a verb from 1872. To leap tall buildings in a single bound (1940s) is from the description of Superman's powers. Related: Leaped; leaping.
leap (n.)
c. 1200, "the act or an act of leaping," from Old English hliep, hlyp (West Saxon), *hlep (Mercian, Northumbrian) "a leap, a bound, a spring; sudden movement; thing to leap from;" from Proto-Germanic *hlaupan (cognates: Old Frisian hlep, Dutch loop, Old High German hlouf, German lauf); from the root of leap (v.). Leaps has been paired with bounds at least since 1720.
leap year (n.)
"year containing 366 days," late 14c., lepe gere (not in Old English), from leap (v.) + year. Probably so called from its causing fixed festival days, which normally advance one weekday per year, to "leap" ahead one day in the week. Compare Medieval Latin saltus lunae (Old English monan hlyp) "omission of one day in the lunar calendar every 19 years."
Dutch schrikkeljaar "leap year" is from Middle Dutch schricken "leap forward," literally "be startled, be in fear." The 29th of February is schrikkeldag. Danish skudaar, Swedish skottår are literally "shoot-year;" German schaltjahr is from schalten "insert, intercalate." The Late Latin phrase was annus bissextilis, source of the Romanic words; compare bissextile.
learned (adj.)
"having knowledge gained by study," mid-14c., past-participle adjective from learn (v.) in its former transitive sense. Related: Learnedly; learnedness. "[L]earned expresses depth and fullness in the knowledge, while scholarly expresses accuracy" [Century Dictionary].
learning (n.)
Old English leornung "study, action of acquiring knowledge," verbal noun from leornian (see learn). Meaning "knowledge acquired by systematic study, extensive literary and scientific culture" is from mid-14c. Learning curve attested by 1907.
learn (v.)
Old English leornian "to get knowledge, be cultivated; study, read, think about," from Proto-Germanic *lisnojanan (cognates: Old Frisian lernia, Middle Dutch leeren, Dutch leren, Old High German lernen, German lernen "to learn," Gothic lais "I know"), with a base sense of "to follow or find the track," from PIE root *lois- "furrow, track." It is related to German Gleis "track," and to Old English læst "sole of the foot" (see last (n.1)).
From c. 1200 as "to hear of, ascertain." Transitive use (He learned me (how) to read), now considered vulgar (except in reflexive expressions, I learn English), was acceptable from c. 1200 until early 19c. It is preserved in past-participle adjective learned "having knowledge gained by study." Old English also had læran "to teach" (see lere). Related: Learning.