英语词源

• laird 英文词源 laird (n.) mid-15c. (mid-13c. as a surname), Scottish and northern England dialectal variant of lord , from Middle English laverd (see lord ). Related: Lairdship . 中文词源 laird ：（苏格兰）地主 来自lord的苏格兰方言。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： laird 词源， laird 含义。
• lair 英文词源 lair lair: [OE] Etymologically a lair is a place where you ‘lie’ down. For it comes ultimately from the same Germanic base, * leg -, as produced English lie . In Old English it had a range of meanings, from ‘bed’ to ‘grave’, which are now defunct, and the modern sense ‘place where an animal lives’ did not emerge until the 15th century. Related Germanic forms show diffe
• laid-back 英文词源 laid past tense and past participle of lay (v.). Laid-up "injured, sick," originally was a nautical term (1769) describing a ship moored in harbor. Laid off "temporarily unemployed" is from 1916. Get laid "have sex" (with someone) attested from 1952, U.S. slang. Laid-back "relaxed" is first attested 1973, perhaps in reference to the posture of highway motorcyclists. Laid up "incapacit
• lah 英文词源 lah "(In tonic sol-fa) the sixth note of a major scale", Middle English: representing (as an arbitrary name for the note) the first syllable of Latin labii , taken from a Latin hymn (see solmization ). 中文词源 lah ：大调音阶第六音 音乐术语。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： lah 词源， lah 含义。
• lagoon 英文词源 lagoon lagoon: see lake lagoon (n.) 1670s, lagune , earlier laguna (1610s), from French lagune or directly from Italian laguna "pond, lake," from Latin lacuna "pond, hole," from lacus "pond" (see lake (n.1)). Originally in reference to the region of Venice; applied 1769 (by Capt. Cook) to the lake-like stretch of water enclosed in a South Seas atoll. Also see -oon . 中文词源 lagoo
• laggard 英文词源 laggard 1702 (adj.), from lag (v.) + -ard . From 1757 as a noun. 中文词源 laggard ：发展缓慢者 来自lag,缓慢，滞后。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： laggard 词源， laggard 含义。
• lager lout 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random bairn bairn: see bear 中文词源 lager lout ：耍酒疯的年青人 lager,啤酒，lout,举止粗野的年青人。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： lager lout 词源， lager lout 含义。
• lager 英文词源 lager lager: [19] Lager is etymologically beer that has been matured by being kept in a ‘store’. English borrowed the term from German lagerbier , a compound based on the noun lager ‘storeroom’ (to which English laager and lair are closely related). = laager , lair lager (n.) 1858, American English, short for lager beer (1845), from German Lagerbier "beer brewed for keeping" s
• lag 英文词源 lag lag: English has three distinct words lag . The verb ‘fall behind’ [16] is perhaps of Scandinavian origin (Norwegian has lagga ‘go slowly’), although a link has been suggested with the lag of fog , seg , lag , a dialect expression used in children’s games which represents an alteration of first , second , last . Lag ‘insulate’ [19] comes from an earlier noun lag ‘b
• ladyship 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random member member: [13] Latin membrum originally meant ‘part of the body, limb, organ’ (it has been connected tentatively with various words in other Indo-European languages meaning ‘flesh, meat’, including Sanskrit māmsám and Gothic mimz ). But it was early broadened out metaphorically to ‘part of anything, one that bel
• ladykiller 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random cherub cherub: [OE] Cherub is of Akkadian origin (Akkad was the northern region of ancient Babylonia). Akkadian karūbu meant ‘gracious’. This was borrowed into Hebrew as kerūbh (plural kerūbhīm ), which was used in the Old Testament to signify a certain class of winged divine being. It passed into English via Greek kheroú
• ladyfinger 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random such such: [OE] Etymologically, such means ‘so formed’. It comes from a prehistoric Germanic compound formed from * swa ‘so’ (ancestor of English so ) and * līk - ‘form, body’ (source of English like ). This reached Old English as swylc , which gradually lost its l and w and evolved into modern English such . Amongs
• ladyboy 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random mattress mattress: [13] Etymologically, a mattress is something ‘thrown’ down on the floor to lie on. The word comes via Old French materas and Italian materasso from Arabic matrah ‘mat, cushion’, a derivative of the verb taraha ‘throw’. 中文词源 ladyboy ：易装癖者 比喻用法。 该词的英语词源请访问
• ladybird 英文词源 ladybird (n.) "sweetheart," 1590s, from lady + bird (n.2). 中文词源 ladybird ：瓢虫 比喻用法。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： ladybird 词源， ladybird 含义。
• la dolce vita 英文词源 paparazzi paparazzi: [20] In Federico Fellini’s film La Dolce Vita (1959), a press photographer who pesters celebrities is called Paparazzo (the name was supplied by the writer of the film’s scenario, Ennio Flaiano, who in turn got it from Sulle Rive dello Ionio (1957), Margherita Guidacci’s translation of George Gissing’s travel book By the Ionian Sea (1901), in which a resta
• ladle 英文词源 ladle ladle: see load ladle (n.) "large, long-handled spoon for drawing liquids," Old English hlædel "ladle," from hladan "to load" (see lade ) + -le, suffix expressing "appliance, tool" (compare shovel , handle , thimble ). The verb is first recorded 1520s, from the noun. Related: Ladled ; ladling . 中文词源 ladle ：长柄勺 来自lade,装载，-le,小词后缀。用来指长柄
• la-do-la 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random breach breach: see break 中文词源 la-do-la ：装腔作势的 拟声词，用来形容装腔作势的人。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： la-do-la 词源， la-do-la 含义。
• ladette 英文词源 ladette "A young woman who behaves in a boisterously assertive or crude manner and engages in heavy drinking sessions", 1990s: from lad + -ette. 中文词源 ladette ：假小子 lad,小伙，-ette,阴性格后缀。即行为举止像男孩的女孩。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： ladette 词源， ladette 含义。
• laden 英文词源 laden (adj.) "loaded, weighted down," 1590s, from the original past participle of lade . 中文词源 laden ：载满的 来自lade,装载。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： laden 词源， laden 含义。
• lade 英文词源 lade lade: see load lade (v.) Old English hladan (past tense hlod , past participle gehladen ) "to load, heap" (the general Germanic sense), also "to draw water" (a meaning peculiar to English), from Proto-Germanic *khlad- (cognates: Old Norse hlaða , Old Saxon hladan , Middle Dutch and Dutch laden , Old Frisian hlada "to load," Old High German hladen , German laden ), from PIE *kla-
• laddish 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random coppice coppice: [14] The notion underlying coppice is of ‘cutting’. Its ultimate source is the Greek noun kólaphos ‘blow’, which passed via Latin colaphus into medieval Latin as colpus (source of English cope and coup ). From colpus was derived a verb colpāre ‘cut’, which formed the basis of Vulgar Latin colpātī
• laddie 英文词源 golf (n.) mid-15c., Scottish gouf , usually taken as an alteration of Middle Dutch colf , colve "stick, club, bat," from Proto-Germanic *kulth- (cognates: Old Norse kolfr "clapper of a bell," German Kolben "mace, club, butt-end of a gun"). The game is from 14c., the word is first mentioned (along with fut-bol ) in a 1457 Scottish statute on forbidden games (a later ordinance decrees,
• ladder 英文词源 ladder ladder: [OE] Etymologically, a ladder is something that is ‘leant’ up against a wall. Like Greek klīmax ‘ladder’ (source of English climax ), it goes back ultimately to the Indo- European base * khli -, source of English lean . Its West Germanic relatives are German leiter and Dutch leer . = climax , lean ladder (n.) Old English hlæder "ladder, steps," from Proto-Germ
• lad 英文词源 lad lad: [13] Lad originally meant ‘male of low status or social rank’, and hence ‘male servant’, but by the 14th century its progression to the presentday ‘young male’ was well under way. It is not known where it came from, but there seems to be a strong likelihood of a Scandinavian origin (Norwegian has - ladd in compounds referring to ‘(male) persons’). lad (n.) c.
• lacuna 英文词源 lacuna lacuna: see lake lacuna (n.) "blank or missing portion in a manuscript," 1660s, from Latin lacuna "hole, pit," diminutive of lacus "pond, lake" (see lake (n.1)). The Latin plural is lacunae . Related: Lacunal ; lacunar ; lacunose . 中文词源 lacuna ：空白，缺漏 来自拉丁语lacuna,洞，小坑，词源同lake.后用于指书写文档上的空格或缺漏符号。 该词
• lactose 英文词源 lactose (n.) sugar from milk, 1843, from French, coined 1843 by French chemist Jean Baptiste André Dumas (1800-1884) from Latin lac (genitive lactis ) "milk" (see lactation ) + chemical suffix -ose (2). 中文词源 lactose ：乳糖 lacto-,乳，-ose,化学名词后缀，糖。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： lactose 词源， lactose 含义。
• lactobacillus 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random accuse accuse: [13] Accuse comes via Old French acuser from the Latin verb accūsāre , which was based on the noun causa ‘cause’ – but cause in the sense not of ‘something that produces a result’, but of ‘legal action’ (a meaning preserved in English cause list , for instance). Hence accūsāre was to ‘call some
• lactate 英文词源 lactate (v.) "secrete milk from the breasts," 1889, probably a back-formation from lactation . Related: Lactated ; lactating . lactate (n.) 1794, from stem of lactic + -ate (1). 中文词源 lactate ：泌乳 来自PIE*glakt,挤奶，泌乳，词源同galaxy,latte,字母g脱落。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： lactate 词源， lactate 含义。
• lacrosse 英文词源 lacrosse lacrosse: [18] French la crosse means ‘the hooked stick’ ( crosse was originally borrowed from a prehistoric Germanic * kruk -, from which English got crook and crutch ). French speakers in Canada used the term jeu de la crosse ‘game of the hooked stick’ to name a game played by the native Americans with netted sticks, and in due course this became reduced and lexical
• lacquer 英文词源 lacquer lacquer: see lake lacquer (n.) 1570s as "dye obtained from lac;" 1670s as "lacquer," from obsolete French lacre , name for a kind of sealing wax, from Portuguese lacre , unexplained variant of lacca "resinous substance," from Arabic lakk , from Persian lak (see lac ). lacquer (v.) "cover or coat with laqueur," 1680s, from lacquer (n.). Related: Lacquered ; lacquering . 中文词
• lackluster 英文词源 lackluster (adj.) also lack-luster , c. 1600, first attested in "As You Like It," from lack + luster . Combinations with lack- were frequent in 16c., such as lackland (1590s), of a landless man; lack-Latin (1530s), of an ignorant priest. 中文词源 lackluster ：单调的 lack,缺乏，luster,光泽。引申词义单调的。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： la
• lackey 英文词源 lackey lackey: [16] By a circuitous series of steps, lackey is of Arabic origin. English borrowed it from French laquais , which originally denoted a sort of foot-soldier, and hence a ‘footman’ or ‘servant’. French in turn got it from Catalan alacay , whose source was Arabic al-qādī ‘the judge’ (the Spanish version alcalde ‘magistrate’ was acquired by English in the
• lackadaisical 英文词源 lackadaisical (adj.) 1768 (Sterne), from interjection lackadaisy "alas, alack" (1748), an alteration of lack-a-day (1690s), from alack the day (1590s). Hence, "given to crying 'lack-a-day,' vapidly sentimental." Sense probably altered by influence of lax . Related: Lackadaisically . 中文词源 lackadaisical ：无精打采的 来自短语lack a day ,来自alack the day, 哀伤的一天
• lack 英文词源 lack lack: [12] The word lack is not known to have existed in Old English, although it is by no means impossible that it did. If it was a borrowing, a possible source would have been Middle Dutch lak ‘deficiency, fault’. This has been traced back to a prehistoric Germanic * lak -, a variant of which produced English leak . = leak lack (n.) c. 1300, "absence, want; shortage, defici
• lachrymose 英文词源 lachrymose lachrymose: see tear lachrymose (adj.) 1660s, "tear-like," from Latin lacrimosus "tearful, sorrowful, weeping," also "causing tears, lamentable," from lacrima "tear," a dialect-altered borrowing of Greek dakryma "tear," from dakryein "to shed tears," from dakry "tear," from PIE *dakru- (see tear (n.1)). Meaning "given to tears, tearful" is first attested 1727; meaning "of a
• lacewing 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random arcane arcane: [16] Arcane comes from the Latin adjective arcānus ‘hidden, secret’. This was formed from the verb arcēre ‘close up’, which in turn came from arca ‘chest, box’ (source of English ark ). The neuter form of the adjective, arcānum , was used to form a noun, usually used in the plural, arcāna ‘myster
• lace-up 英文词源 lace-up (adj.) 1831, originally of boots, from the verbal phrase, from lace (v.) + up (adv.). 中文词源 lace-up ：系带鞋 来自lace,带子，鞋带，用于指系带鞋。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： lace-up 词源， lace-up 含义。
• lacerate 英文词源 lacerate (v.) early 15c., from Latin laceratus , past participle of lacerare "tear to pieces, mangle," figuratively, "to slander, censure, abuse," from lacer "torn, mangled," from PIE root *lek- "to rend, tear" (cognates: Greek lakis "tatter, rag," lakizein "to tear to pieces;" Russian lochma "rag, tatter, scrap;" Albanian l'akur "naked"). Related: Lacerated ; lacerating . 中文词源
• lace 英文词源 lace lace: [13] Lace originally meant ‘noose’ or ‘snare’, and its underlying semantic connections are not with ‘string’ or ‘thread’ but with ‘entrapment’ or ‘enticement’. Its ultimate source was Latin laqueus ‘noose’, which was related to the verb lacere ‘lure, deceive’ (source of English delicious and elicit ). This passed into Vulgar Latin as * lacium
• lac 英文词源 lac (n.) "red resinous substance," 1550s (perhaps via Middle French lacce ), earlier lacca (early 15c., from Medieval Latin form lacca ), from Persian lak , from Hindi lakh (Prakrit lakkha ), from Sanskrit laksha "red dye," of uncertain origin. According to Klein, literally "one hundred thousand," in reference to the insects that gather in great numbers on the trees and make the resin
• laburnum 英文词源 laburnum (n.) 1570s, from Latin laburnum (Pliny), of unknown origin; perhaps from Etruscan. 中文词源 laburnum ：金链花 来自拉丁语laburnum,金链，链子，词源不详，可能来自PIE*skel,弯，转，词源同scoliosis,isosceles.由弯，转引申词义链子。因这种花开如金链而得名。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： laburnum 词源，
• Labrador 英文词源 Labrador large province of eastern Canada, probably from Portuguese lavrador "landholder," perhaps in reference to 15c. Portuguese explorer Joao Fernandes, a landholder in the Azores. The name was first applied to Greenland. The breed of retriever dog so called from 1815. Related: Labradorian . 中文词源 Labrador ：拉布拉多猎犬 因产自加拿大Labrador省而得名，地名来
• labored 英文词源 labored (adj.) also laboured , "learned," mid-15c., past participle adjective from labor (v.). Meaning "done with much labor" is from c. 1600. 中文词源 labored ：不自然的，费力的 来自labor,劳动，辛劳，引申词义做作的，不自然的。词义演变比较factitious. 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： labored 词源， labored 含义。 labor
• laborious 英文词源 laborious (adj.) late 14c., "hard-working, industrious," from Old French laborios "arduous, wearisome; hard-working" (12c., Modern French laborieux ), from Latin laboriosus "toilsome, wearisome, troublesome," from labor (see labor (n.)). Meaning "costing much labor, burdensome" is from early 15c.; meaning "resulting from hard work" is mid-15c. Related: Laboriousness . 中文词源 lab
• labor 英文词源 labor (n.) c. 1300, "a task, a project;" later "exertion of the body; trouble, difficulty, hardship" (late 14c.), from Old French labor "labor, toil, work, exertion, task" (12c., Modern French labeur ), from Latin laborem (nominative labor ) "labor, toil, exertion; hardship, pain, fatigue; a work, a product of labor," of uncertain origin, perhaps originally from the notion of "totteri
• labiovelar 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random desist desist: see statue 中文词源 labiovelar ：唇齿软腭音 labi-,唇，velar,腭音。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： labiovelar 词源， labiovelar 含义。
• labiodental 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random luff luff: see aloof 中文词源 labiodental ：唇齿音 labi-,唇，dental,齿的。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： labiodental 词源， labiodental 含义。
• labial 英文词源 labial labial: see lip labial (adj.) "pertaining to the lips," 1590s, from Medieval Latin labialis "having to do with the lips," from Latin labium "lip" (see lip (n.)). The noun meaning “a labial sound” is from 1660s. Related: Labially . 中文词源 labial ：唇音 来自拉丁语labia,唇，词源同lip。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： labial 词源
• labia 英文词源 labia (n.) from Latin labia , plural of labium "lip" (see lip (n.)). Specifically of the folds on either side of the vulva from 1630s ( labia pudendi ). 中文词源 labia ：阴唇 来自拉丁语labia,唇，词源同lip,用于解剖学术语阴唇。 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： labia 词源， labia 含义。
• label 英文词源 label label: see lap label (n.) c. 1300, "narrow band or strip of cloth" (oldest use is as a technical term in heraldry), from Old French label, lambel "ribbon, fringe worn on clothes" (13c., Modern French lambeau "strip, rag, shred, tatter"), possibly from Frankish *labba or some other Germanic source (compare Old High German lappa "flap"), from Proto-Germanic *lapp- (see lap (n.)).
• laager 英文词源 laager laager: see lair 中文词源 laager ：用马车围起的车阵 来自南非荷兰语lager,放置，安营扎寨，用来指用马车围起的车阵，词源同lager,lair. 该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版： laager 词源， laager 含义。
• log 英文词源 log log: [14] Log is a mystery word. It first turns up (in the sense ‘felled timber’) towards the end of the 14th century, but it has no ascertainable relatives in any other language. Nor is it altogether clear how the sense ‘ship’s record’ came about. It was inspired by the use of log for a thin piece of wood floated in the water from a line to determine the speed of a ship
• liber 英文词源 deliberate deliberate: see deliver liberal liberal: [14] The Latin word for ‘free’ was līber . It came from the same prehistoric source as Greek eleútheros ‘free’, which may have denoted ‘people, nation’ (in which case the underlying etymological meaning of the word would be ‘being a member of the (free) people’, as opposed to ‘being a slave’). From līber was de
• lesbian 英文词源 lesbian lesbian: [16] Originally, and for many centuries, Lesbian simply meant ‘of Lesbos’, referring to the Aegean island of that name, off the Turkish coast. Then, in the second half of the 19th century, probably some time before 1870, it embarked on a more sensational career. The lyric poet Sappho (c. 600 BC) lived on Lesbos, and she was noted for the love poems she wrote to ot
• laboratory 英文词源 laboratory (n.) c. 1600, "building set apart for scientific experiments," from Medieval Latin laboratorium "a place for labor or work," from Latin laboratus , past participle of laborare "to work" (see labor (n.)). Figurative use by 1660s. 中文词源 laboratory （实验室）：中世纪炼丹术士劳作炼丹的场所 英语单词laboratory（实验室）来自中世纪拉丁文l
• lombard 英文词源 Lombard (n.) from Late Latin Langobardus , proper name of a Germanic people who conquered Italy 6c. and settled in the northern region that became known as Lombardy , from Proto-Germanic Langgobardoz , often said to mean literally "Long-beards," but perhaps rather from *lang- "tall, long" + the proper name of the people (Latin Bardi ). Their name in Old English was Langbeardas (plural
• lumber 英文词源 lumber lumber: [14] Swedish has a dialectal verb loma ‘move heavily’, which is the only clue we have to the antecedents of the otherwise mysterious English verb lumber . The noun, too, which first appears in the 16th century, is difficult to account for. In the absence of any other convincing candidates, it is presumed to have been derived from the verb (its earliest recorded sens
• lobby 英文词源 lobby lobby: see lodge lobby (n.) 1530s, "cloister, covered walk," from Medieval Latin laubia, lobia "covered walk in a monastery," from a Germanic source (compare Old High German louba "hall, roof;" see lodge (n.)). Meaning "large entrance hall in a public building" is from 1590s. Political sense of "those who seek to influence legislation" is attested by 1790s in American English, i
• legend 英文词源 legend legend: see lecture legend (n.) early 14c., "narrative dealing with a happening or an event," from Old French legende (12c., Modern French légende ) and directly from Medieval Latin legenda "legend, story," literally "(things) to be read," on certain days in church, etc., from Latin legendus , neuter plural gerundive of legere "to read, gather, select" (see lecture (n.)). Used
• lewd 英文词源 lewd (adj.) Old English læwede "nonclerical," of uncertain origin but probably ultimately from Vulgar Latin *laigo- , from Latin laicus (see lay (adj.)). Sense of "unlettered, uneducated" (early 13c.) descended to "coarse, vile, lustful" by late 14c. Related: Lewdly ; lewdness . 中文词源 lewd （淫荡的）：没有文化的世俗人士 英语单词lewd本意为“世俗人士、非
• libel 英文词源 libel libel: see library libel (n.) c. 1300, "formal written statement," especially, in civil law, "plaintiff's statement of charges" (mid-14c.); from Old French libelle (fem.) "small book; (legal) charge, claim; writ; written report" (13c.), from Latin libellus "a little book, pamphlet; petition, written accusation, complaint," diminutive of liber "book" (see library ). Broader sense
• lynch 英文词源 lynch lynch: [19] This verb for ‘punishing someone without an official trial’ owes its existence to one William Lynch, a planter and justice of the peace of Pittsylvania, Virginia, USA, who at the beginning of the 19th century took it upon himself to set up unofficial tribunals to try suspects. His rough and ready method of administering justice was termed Lynch’s law , later ly
• laconic 英文词源 laconic laconic: [16] The Greek term for an inhabitant of the ancient region of Laconia, in the southern Peloponnese, and of its capital Sparta, was Lákōn . The Spartans were renowned for not using two words where one would do (there is a story that when Philip of Macedon threatened invasion with ‘If I enter Laconia, I will raze Sparta to the ground’, the Spartans’ only reply
• logroll 英文词源 logrolling (n.) also log-rolling , in the legislative vote-trading sense, 1823, American English, from the notion of neighbors on the frontier helping one another with the heavy work of clearing land and building cabins (as in phrase you roll my log and I'll roll yours ); see log (n.1) + rolling . LOG-ROLLING. 1. In the lumber regions of Maine it is customary for men of different logg
• leeway 英文词源 leeway (n.) 1660s, sideways drift of a ship caused by wind, from lee + way (n.). Figurative meaning "extra space" is by 1835. 中文词源 leeway （回旋余地）：航海时受风影响产生的偏移 英语单词leeway原本是个航海术语，由lee（下风处）+way（途径）组成，指的是船只在航行时，受风力影响，向下风方向产生的偏移。在航行时，
• liberal 英文词源 liberal liberal: [14] The Latin word for ‘free’ was līber . It came from the same prehistoric source as Greek eleútheros ‘free’, which may have denoted ‘people, nation’ (in which case the underlying etymological meaning of the word would be ‘being a member of the (free) people’, as opposed to ‘being a slave’). From līber was derived līberālis ‘of freedom’,
• limousine 英文词源 limousine limousine: [20] Limousin is a former province of central France. Its inhabitants commonly wore a distinctive style of cloak, and when at the beginning of the 20th century a new and luxurious type of car was designed with a closed passenger compartment and an open but roofed seat for the driver, it evidently struck someone that the roof resembled a Limousin cloak, and so the
• lobster 英文词源 lobster lobster: [OE] The Latin word locusta denoted both the voracious grasshopper, the ‘locust’, and the ‘lobster’ or similar crustaceans, such as the crayfish (if, as has been suggested, the word is related to Greek lēkan ‘jump’, then presumably the ‘grasshopper’ sense was primary, and the ‘lobster’ application arose from some supposed resemblance between the t
• lettuce 英文词源 lettuce lettuce: [13] The lettuce was named for the milky white sap that exudes from its stalk when cut. The Latin for milk is lac (source of English lactation [17] and lactose [19]), and so the lettuce was christened lactūca . This passed into English via laituës , the plural of Old French laituë . = lactation , lactose lettuce (n.) late 13c., probably from Old French laitues , pl
• language 英文词源 language language: [13] Like English tongue , Latin lingua ‘tongue’ was used figuratively for ‘language’; from it English gets linguist [16] and linguistic [19]. In the Vulgar Latin spoken by the inhabitants of Gaul, the derivative * linguāticum emerged, and this became in due course Old French langage , source of English language . (The u in the English word, which goes back
• lunatic 英文词源 lunatic (adj.) late 13c., "affected with periodic insanity, dependent on the changes of the moon," from Old French lunatique , lunage "insane," or directly from Late Latin lunaticus "moon-struck," from Latin luna "moon" (see Luna ). Compare Old English monseoc "lunatic," literally "moon-sick;" Middle High German lune "humor, temper, mood, whim, fancy" (German Laune ), from Latin luna
• limbo 英文词源 limbo limbo: English has two distinct and probably unrelated words limbo . By far the older is the theological limbo [14], referring originally to that condition in which the souls of the dead exist that are neither in heaven nor in hell. It comes from Latin limbus ‘border, edge’, which in the Middle Ages was used to refer to a region on the borders of, but not actually inside, he
• lun- 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random grey grey: [OE] Grey is an ancient colour term, traceable back all the way to a prehistoric Indo- European * ghrēghwos . From this was descended West and North Germanic * grǣwaz , which produced German grau , Dutch grauw , Swedish grå , and Danish graa as well as English grey . The distinction in spelling between British grey
• lotus eater 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random suture suture: see sew 中文词源 lotus eater （浑噩度日的人）：食之忘忧的忘忧果 在古希腊神话中，据说在北非的某个岛上，种有许多称为lotus的树，当地人以此树 的果实为食。这种果实具有强烈的催眠作用，能使食用者忘却烦恼忧愁，陷入浑浑噩噩、乐不思
• leth- 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random thumb thumb: [OE] The thumb is etymologically the ‘swollen’ part – an allusion to its greater thickness than the other fingers. Along with its relatives German daumen and Dutch duim , it goes back to a prehistoric West Germanic * thūmon . This in turn can be traced to Indo- European * tum - ‘swell’, which also produce
• logic 英文词源 logic (n.) mid-14c., "branch of philosophy that treats of forms of thinking," from Old French logique (13c.), from Latin (ars) logica , from Greek logike (techne) "reasoning (art)," from fem. of logikos "pertaining to speaking or reasoning," from logos "reason, idea, word" (see logos ). Meaning "logical argumentation" is from c. 1600. 中文词源 logic （逻辑）：世间万物变化
• labyrinth 英文词源 labyrinth (n.) c. 1400, laberynthe (late 14c. in Latinate form laborintus ) "labyrinth, maze," figuratively "bewildering arguments," from Latin labyrinthus , from Greek labyrinthos "maze, large building with intricate passages," especially the structure built by Daedelus to hold the Minotaur near Knossos in Crete, from a pre-Greek language; perhaps related to Lydian labrys "double-edg
• livery 英文词源 livery (n.) c. 1300, "household allowance of any kind (food, provisions, clothing) to retainers or servants," from Anglo-French livere (late 13c.), Old French livrée , "allowance, ration, pay," originally "(clothes) delivered by a master to his retinue," from fem. past participle of livrer "to dispense, deliver, hand over," from Latin liberare (see liberate ). The sense later was red
• lottery 英文词源 lottery (n.) 1560s, "arrangement for a distribution of prizes by chance," from Italian lotteria , from lotto "lot, portion, share," from same root as Old English hlot (see lot ). Compare Middle French loterie , from Middle Dutch loterje , from lot (n.). 中文词源 lottery （彩票）：决定份额大小的阄（lot） 抽奖的做法历史上早已有之。圣经上就有记载，摩
• lady 英文词源 lady lady: [OE] Originally, the term lady denoted a ‘kneader of bread’. It comes from Old English hloefdige , a compound formed from hlǣf ‘bread’ (ancestor of modern English loaf ) and an element * dig - ‘knead’ (related to English dough ). It is a measure of the symbolic (and actual) importance of bread in medieval households that (like lord , also a derivative of loaf )
• lord 英文词源 lord lord: [OE] It is a measure of the centrality of bread to human society that the word lord denotes etymologically ‘guardian of the loaf’. It goes back to a primitive Old English * khlaibward , a compound formed from * khlaib ‘loaf’ and * ward ‘guardian, keeper’ (ancestor of modern English ward ). This gradually developed in Old English via hlāfweard to hlāford , and
• library 英文词源 library library: [14] The Latin word for ‘book’ was liber . It is related to Russian lub ‘bark’ and Lithuanian luba ‘board’, and originally denoted ‘bark’, as used for writing on before the introduction of papyrus. From it was derived librāria ‘bookseller’s shop’, which Old French took over as librairie and passed on to English. The English word has only ever be
• lyric 英文词源 lyric (n.) "a lyric poem," 1580s, from Middle French lyrique "short poem expressing personal emotion," from Latin lyricus "of or for the lyre," from Greek lyrikos "singing to the lyre," from lyra (see lyre ). Meaning "words of a popular song" is first recorded 1876. Related: lyrics . 中文词源 lyric （歌词）：希腊神话中众神的乐器里拉琴 lyre是古希腊的一种七弦
• lunar 英文词源 lunar lunar: [17] Latin lūna ‘moon’ came from an Indo- European base which also produced English light (not to mention a range of Latin ‘light’- words, such as lūx and lūmen , which have given English illustrate , lucid , luminous , lustre , etc). It had two adjectival derivatives: lūnāris , which simply meant ‘of the moon’, and was borrowed by English as lunar ; and
• Laurel 英文词源 laurel (n.) c. 1300, lorrer , from Old French laurier (12c.), from Latin laurus "laurel tree," probably related to Greek daphne "laurel" (for change of d- to l- see lachrymose ), probably from a pre-IE Mediterranean language. The change of second -r- to -l- after mid-14c. is by dissimilation. An emblem of victory or of distinction, hence the phrase to rest (originally repose ) on one'
• Kiribati 英文词源 Kiribati island nation in the Pacific, formerly Gilbert Islands and named for Capt. Thomas Gilbert , who arrived there 1788 after helping transport the first shipload of convicts to Australia. At independence in 1979 it took the current name, which represents the local pronunciation of Gilbert . Christmas Island , named for the date it was discovered by Europeans, is in the chain and
• Kentucky 英文词源 Kentucky U.S. state, earlier a county of Virginia, organized 1776; the name is of Iroquois or Shawnee origin, perhaps a Wyandot (Iroquoian) word meaning "meadow" (compare Seneca geda'geh "at the field"); the original use in English seems to have been the river name; the native use perhaps was first in reference to a village in what now is Clark County known in Shawnee as Eskippakithik
• Kansas 英文词源 Kansas named for the river, which is named for the native people, from French variant of Kansa , native name of the Siouan people who lived there (1722). It is a plural (see Arkansas ). Established as a U.S. territory in 1854, admitted as a state 1861. Related: Kansan . 中文词源 Kansas ：堪萨斯州 和阿肯色州同源。堪萨斯和阿肯色相对于苏族人的地盘，都位于
• king's ransom 英文词源 No matching word found in the dictionary. Word of Random ride ride: [OE] Ride is a widespread Germanic verb, with close relatives in German reiten , Dutch rijden , Swedish rida , and Danish ride . It apparently has connections in the Celtic languages – Irish rīadaim ‘ride’ and Gaulish rēda ‘chariot’, for instance – but its ultimate provenance is unclear. = raid , road 中文
• kremlin 英文词源 Kremlin 1660s, Cremelena , from Old Russian kremlinu , later kremlin (1796), from kreml' "citadel, fortress," perhaps of Tartar origin. Originally the citadel of any Russian city, now especially the one in Moscow. Used metonymically for "government of the U.S.S.R." from 1933. The modern form of the word in English might be via French. 中文词源 kremlin ：克里姆林宫 这是个来