Lousily Lous"i·ly adverb [ From
Lousy .]
In a lousy manner; in a mean, paltry manner; scurvily. [ Vulgar]
Lousiness Lous"i·ness noun The state or quality of being lousy.
Lousy Lous"y adjective 1. Infested with lice. 2. Mean; contemptible; as, lousy knave. [ Vulgar]
Such lousy learning as this is.
Bale.
Lout Lout (lout)
intransitive verb [ Middle English
louten ,
luten , Anglo-Saxon
lūtan ; akin to Icelandic
lūta , Danish
lude , Old High German
lūzēn to lie hid.]
To bend; to box; to stoop. [ Archaic]
Chaucer. Longfellow. He fair the knight saluted, louting low.
Spenser.
Lout Lout noun [ Formerly also written
lowt .]
A clownish, awkward fellow; a bumpkin. Sir P. Sidney.
Lout Lout transitive verb To treat as a lout or fool; to neglect; to disappoint. [ Obsolete]
Shak.
Loutish Lout"ish adjective Clownish; rude; awkward. "
Loutish clown."
Sir P. Sidney. --
Lout"ish*ly ,
adverb --
Lout"ish*ness ,
noun
Loutou Lou·tou" noun [ Native names.]
(Zoology) A crested black monkey ( Semnopithecus maurus ) of Java.
Louver, Louvre Lou"ver, Lou"vre noun [ Middle English
lover , Old French
lover ,
lovier ;
or l'ouvert the opening, from
overt ,
ouvert , past participle of
ovrir ,
ouvrir , to open, French
ouvrir . Confer
Overt .]
(Architecture) A small lantern. See Lantern , 2 (a) . [ Written also
lover ,
loover ,
lovery , and
luffer .]
Louver boards or boarding ,
the sloping boards set to shed rainwater outward in openings which are to be left otherwise unfilled; as belfry windows, the openings of a louver, etc. --
Louver work ,
slatted work.
Lovable Lov"a·ble adjective Having qualities that excite, or are fitted to excite, love; worthy of love. Elaine the fair, Elaine the lovable ,
Elaine, the lily maid of Astolat.
Tennyson.
Lovage Lov"age noun [ French
livèche , from Latin
levisticum ,
ligusticum , a plant indigenous to Liguria, lovage, from
Ligusticus Ligustine, Ligurian,
Liguria a country of Cisalpine Gaul.]
(Botany) An umbelliferous plant ( Levisticum officinale ), sometimes used in medicine as an aromatic stimulant.
Love Love noun [ Middle English
love ,
luve , Anglo-Saxon
lufe ,
lufu ; akin to English
lief ,
believe , Latin
lubet ,
libet ,it pleases, Sanskrit
lubh to be lustful. See
Lief .]
1. A feeling of strong attachment induced by that which delights or commands admiration; preëminent kindness or devotion to another; affection; tenderness; as, the love of brothers and sisters. Of all the dearest bonds we prove
Thou countest sons' and mothers' love
Most sacred, most Thine own.
Keble. 2. Especially, devoted attachment to, or tender or passionate affection for, one of the opposite sex. He on his side
Leaning half-raised, with looks of cordial love
Hung over her enamored.
Milton. 3. Courtship; -- chiefly in the phrase to make love , i. e., to court, to woo, to solicit union in marriage. Demetrius . . .
Made love to Nedar's daughter, Helena,
And won her soul.
Shak. 4. Affection; kind feeling; friendship; strong liking or desire; fondness; good will; -- opposed to hate ; often with of and an object. Love , and health to all.
Shak. Smit with the love of sacred song.
Milton. The love of science faintly warmed his breast.
Fenton. 5. Due gratitude and reverence to God. Keep yourselves in the love of God.
Jude 21. 6. The object of affection; -- often employed in endearing address. "Trust me,
love ."
Dryden. Open the temple gates unto my love .
Spenser. 7. Cupid, the god of love; sometimes, Venus. Such was his form as painters, when they show
Their utmost art, on naked Lores bestow.
Dryden. Therefore do nimble-pinioned doves draw Love .
Shak. 8. A thin silk stuff. [ Obsolete]
Boyle. 9. (Botany) A climbing species of Clematis ( C. Vitalba ). 10. Nothing; no points scored on one side; -- used in counting score at tennis, etc. He won the match by three sets to love .
The Field. »
Love is often used in the formation of compounds, in most of which the meaning is very obvious; as,
love- cracked,
love- darting,
love- killing,
love- linked,
love- taught, etc.
A labor of love ,
a labor undertaken on account of regard for some person, or through pleasure in the work itself, without expectation of reward. --
Free love ,
the doctrine or practice of consorting with one of the opposite sex, at pleasure, without marriage. See Free love . --
Free lover ,
one who avows or practices free love. --
In love ,
in the act of loving; -- said esp. of the love of the sexes; as, to be in love ; to fall in love . --
Love apple (Botany) ,
the tomato. --
Love bird (Zoology) ,
any one of several species of small, short-tailed parrots, or parrakeets, of the genus Agapornis , and allied genera. They are mostly from Africa. Some species are often kept as cage birds, and are celebrated for the affection which they show for their mates. --
Love broker ,
a person who for pay acts as agent between lovers, or as a go-between in a sexual intrigue. Shak. --
Love charm ,
a charm for exciting love. Ld. Lytton. --
Love child .
an illegitimate child. Jane Austen. --
Love day ,
a day formerly appointed for an amicable adjustment of differences. [ Obsolete]
Piers Plowman. Chaucer. --
Love drink ,
a love potion; a philter. Chaucer. --
Love favor ,
something given to be worn in token of love. --
Love feast ,
a religious festival, held quarterly by some religious denominations, as the Moravians and Methodists, in imitation of the agapæ of the early Christians. --
Love feat ,
the gallant act of a lover. Shak. --
Love game ,
a game, as in tennis, in which the vanquished person or party does not score a point. --
Love grass . [ German
liebesgras .]
(Botany) Any grass of the genus Eragrostis . --
Love-in-a-mist .
(Botany) (a) An herb of the Buttercup family ( Nigella Damascena ) having the flowers hidden in a maze of finely cut bracts .
(b) The West Indian Passiflora fœtida , which has similar bracts. --
Love-in- idleness (Botany) ,
a kind of violet; the small pansy. A little western flower,
Before milk-white, now purple with love's wound;
And maidens call it love-in-idleness .
Shak. --
Love juice ,
juice of a plant supposed to produce love. Shak. --
Love knot ,
a knot or bow, as of ribbon; -- so called from being used as a token of love, or as a pledge of mutual affection. Milman. --
Love lass ,
a sweetheart. --
Love letter ,
a letter of courtship. Shak. --
Love-lies-bleeding (Botany) ,
a species of amaranth ( Amarantus melancholicus ). --
Love match ,
a marriage brought about by love alone. --
Love potion ,
a compounded draught intended to excite love, or venereal desire. --
Love rites ,
sexual intercourse. Pope --
Love scene ,
an exhibition of love, as between lovers on the stage. --
Love suit ,
courtship. Shak. --
Of all loves ,
for the sake of all love; by all means. [ Obsolete] "Mrs. Arden desired him
of all loves to come back again."
Holinshed. --
The god of love , or
Love god ,
Cupid. --
To make love to ,
to express affection for; to woo. "If you will marry,
make your
loves to me."
Shak. --
To play for love ,
to play a game, as at cards, without stakes. "A game at piquet
for love ."
Lamb. Syn. -- Affection; friendship; kindness; tenderness; fondness; delight.
Love Love (lŭv)
transitive verb [
imperfect & past participle Loved (lŭvd);
present participle & verbal noun Loving .] [ Anglo-Saxon
lufian . √124. See
Love ,
noun ]
1. To have a feeling of love for; to regard with affection or good will; as, to love one's children and friends; to love one's country; to love one's God. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Matt. xxii. 37. Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thy self.
Matt. xxii. 39. 2. To regard with passionate and devoted affection, as that of one sex for the other. 3. To take delight or pleasure in; to have a strong liking or desire for, or interest in; to be pleased with; to like; as, to love books; to love adventures. Wit, eloquence, and poetry.
Arts which I loved .
Cowley.
Love Love intransitive verb To have the feeling of love; to be in love.
Love-drury Love"-dru`ry noun [
Love + Old French
druerie. Confer
Druery .]
Affection. [ Obsolete]
Chaucer.
Love-making Love"-mak`ing noun Courtship. Bacon.
Love-sick Love"-sick` adjective 1. Languishing with love or amorous desire; as, a love-sick maid. To the dear mistress of my love-sick mind.
Dryden. 2. Originating in, or expressive of, languishing love. Where nightingales their love-sick ditty sing.
Dryden.
Love-sickness Love"-sick`ness noun The state of being love-sick.
Loveable Love"a·ble adjective See Lovable .
Lovee Lov·ee" noun One who is loved. [ Humorous] "The lover and
lovee ."
Richardson.
Loveful Love"ful adjective Full of love. [ Obsolete]
Sylvester.
Loveless Love"less adjective 1. Void of love; void of tenderness or kindness. Milton. Shelton. 2. Not attracting love; unattractive. These are ill-favored to see to; and yet, as loveless as they be, they are not without some medicinable virtues.
Holland.
Lovelily Love"li·ly adverb [ From
Lovely .]
In manner to excite love; amiably. [ R.]
Otway.
Loveliness Love"li·ness noun [ From
Lovely .]
The state or quality of being lovely. If there is such a native loveliness in the sex as to make them victorious when in the wrong, how resistless their power when they are on the side of truth!
Spectator.
Lovelock Love"lock` noun A long lock of hair hanging prominently by itself; an earlock; -- worn by men of fashion in the reigns of Elizabeth and James I. Burton. A long lovelock and long hair he wore.
Sir W. Scott.
Lovelorn Love"lorn` adjective Forsaken by one's love. The lovelorn nightingale.
Milton.
Lovely Love"ly adjective [
Compar. Lovelier ;
superl. Loveliest .] [ Anglo-Saxon
luflic .]
1. Having such an appearance as excites, or is fitted to excite, love; beautiful; charming; very pleasing in form, looks, tone, or manner. "
Lovely to look on."
Piers Plowman. Not one so fair of face, of speech so lovely .
Robert of Brunne. If I had such a tire, this face of mine
Were full as lovely as is this of hers.
Shak. 2. Lovable; amiable; having qualities of any kind which excite, or are fitted to excite, love or friendship. A most lovely gentlemanlike man.
Shak. 3. Loving; tender. [ Obsolete] "A
lovely kiss."
Shak. Many a lovely look on them he cast.
Chaucer. 4. Very pleasing; -- applied loosely to almost anything which is not grand or merely pretty; as, a lovely view; a lovely valley; a lovely melody. Indeed these fields
Are lovely , lovelier not the Elysian lawns.
Tennyson. Syn. -- Beautiful; charming; delightful; delectable; enchanting; lovable; amiable.
Lovely Love"ly adverb In a manner to please, or to excite love. [ Obsolete or R.]
Tyndale.
Lovemonger Love"mon`ger noun One who deals in affairs of love. [ Obsolete]
Shak.
Lover Lov"er (lŭv"ẽr)
noun 1. One who loves; one who is in love; -- usually limited, in the singular, to a person of the male sex. Gower. Love is blind, and lovers can not see
The pretty follies that themselves commit.
Shak. 2. A friend; one strongly attached to another; one who greatly desires the welfare of any person or thing; as, a lover of his country. I slew my best lover for the good of Rome.
Shak. 3. One who has a strong liking for anything, as books, science, or music. "A
lover of knowledge."
T. Burnet.
Lover Lo"ver (lō"vẽr),
Lo"ver*y noun See Louver . [ Obsolete]
Bp. Hall.
Loverwise Lo"ver·wise` (lŭv"ẽr*wīz`)
adverb As lovers do. As they sat down here loverwise .
W. D. Howells.
Lovesome Love"some adjective [ Anglo-Saxon
lufsum .]
Lovely. [ Obsolete]
Loving Lov"ing adjective 1. Affectionate. The fairest and most loving wife in Greece.
Tennyson. 2. Expressing love or kindness; as, loving words.
Loving cup Lov"ing cup` A large ornamental drinking vessel having two or more handles, intended to pass from hand to hand, as at a banquet.
Loving-kindness Lov"ing-kind"ness noun Tender regard; mercy; favor. Ps. lxxxix. 33.
Lovingly Lov"ing·ly adverb With love; affectionately.
Lovingness Lov"ing·ness noun Affection; kind regard. The only two bands of good will, loveliness and lovingness .
Sir. P. Sidney.
Lovyer Lov"yer noun A lover. [ Obsolete]
Chaucer.
Low Low obsolete
strong imperfect of Laugh . Chaucer.
Low Low intransitive verb [
imperfect & past participle Lowed ;
present participle & verbal noun Lowing .] [ Middle English
lowen , Anglo-Saxon
hl...wan ; akin to Dutch
loeijen , Old High German
hl...jan ,
hluojan .]
To make the calling sound of cows and other bovine animals; to moo. The lowing herd wind slowly o'er the lea.
Gray.
Low Low noun The calling sound ordinarily made by cows and other bovine animals. Talking voices and the law of herds.
Wordsworth.
Low Low noun [ Anglo-Saxon
hlāw ; akin to Goth.
hlaiw a grave,
hlains a hill, and to English
lean to incline.]
A hill; a mound; a grave. [ Obsolete except in place names.]
Skeat.
Low Low noun [ Icelandic
log ,
logi ; akin to English
light ,
noun ]
Fire; a flame; a light. [ Scot. & Prov. Eng.]
Low Low intransitive verb To burn; to blaze. [ Prov. Eng. & Scot.]
Burns.
Low Low adjective [
Compar. Lower ;
superl. Lowest .] [ Middle English
low ,
louh ,
lah , Icelandic
lāgr ; akin to Swedish
låg , Danish
lav , D.
laag , and English
lie . See
Lie to be prostrate.]
1. Occupying an inferior position or place; not high or elevated; depressed in comparison with something else; as, low ground; a low flight. 2. Not rising to the usual height; as, a man of low stature; a low fence. 3. Near the horizon; as, the sun is low at four o'clock in winter, and six in summer. 4. Sunk to the farthest ebb of the tide; as, low tide. 5. Beneath the usual or remunerative rate or amount, or the ordinary value; moderate; cheap; as, the low price of corn; low wages. 6. Not loud; as, a low voice; a low sound. 7. (Mus.) Depressed in the scale of sounds; grave; as, a low pitch; a low note. 8. (Phon.) Made, as a vowel, with a low position of part of the tongue in relation to the palate; as, ă (ăm), a (all). See Guide to Pronunciation , §§ 5, 10, 11. 9. Near, or not very distant from, the equator; as, in the low northern latitudes. 10. Numerically small; as, a low number. 11. Wanting strength or animation; depressed; dejected; as, low spirits; low in spirits. 12. Depressed in condition; humble in rank; as, men of low condition; the lower classes. Why but to keep ye low and ignorant ?
Milton. 13. Mean; vulgar; base; dishonorable; as, a person of low mind; a low trick or stratagem. 14. Not elevated or sublime; not exalted in thought or diction; as, a low comparison. In comparison of these divine writers, the noblest wits of the heathen world are low and dull.
Felton. 15. Submissive; humble. "
Low reverence."
Milton. 16. Deficient in vital energy; feeble; weak; as, a low pulse; made low by sickness. 17. Moderate; not intense; not inflammatory; as, low heat; a low temperature; a low fever. 18. Smaller than is reasonable or probable; as, a low estimate. 19. Not rich, high seasoned, or nourishing; plain; simple; as, a low diet. »
Low is often used in the formation of compounds which require no special explanation; as,
low- arched,
low- browed,
low- crowned,
low- heeled,
low- lying,
low- priced,
low- roofed,
low- toned,
low- voiced, and the like.
Low Church .
See High Church , under High . --
Low Countries ,
the Netherlands. --
Low German ,
Low Latin ,
etc. See under German , Latin , etc. --
Low life ,
humble life. --
Low milling ,
a process of making flour from grain by a single grinding and by siftings. --
Low relief .
See Bas-relief . --
Low side window (Architecture) ,
a peculiar form of window common in mediæval churches, and of uncertain use. Windows of this sort are narrow, near the ground, and out of the line of the windows, and in many different situations in the building. --
Low spirits ,
despondency. --
Low steam ,
steam having a low pressure. --
Low steel ,
steel which contains only a small proportion of carbon, and can not be hardened greatly by sudden cooling. --
Low Sunday ,
the Sunday next after Easter; -- popularly so called. --
Low tide ,
the farthest ebb of the tide; the tide at its lowest point; low water. --
Low water .
(a) The lowest point of the ebb tide; a low stage of the in a river, lake, etc. (b) (Steam Boiler) The condition of an insufficient quantity of water in the boiler. --
Low water alarm or indicator (Steam Boiler) ,
a contrivance of various forms attached to a boiler for giving warning when the water is low. --
Low water mark ,
that part of the shore to which the waters recede when the tide is the lowest. Bouvier. - -
Low wine ,
a liquor containing about 20 percent of alcohol, produced by the first distillation of wash; the first run of the still; -- often in the plural.
Low Low noun (Card Playing) The lowest trump, usually the deuce; the lowest trump dealt or drawn.
Low Low adverb 1. In a low position or manner; not aloft; not on high; near the ground. 2. Under the usual price; at a moderate price; cheaply; as, he sold his wheat low . 3. In a low or mean condition; humbly; meanly. 4. In time approaching our own. In that part of the world which was first inhabited, even as low down as Abraham's time, they wandered with their flocks and herds.
Locke. 5. With a low voice or sound; not loudly; gently; as, to speak low . Addison. The . . . odorous wind
Breathes low between the sunset and the moon.
Tennyson. 6. With a low musical pitch or tone. Can sing both high and low .
Shak. 7. In subjection, poverty, or disgrace; as, to be brought low by oppression, by want, or by vice. Spenser. 8. (Astron.) In a path near the equator, so that the declination is small, or near the horizon, so that the altitude is small; -- said of the heavenly bodies with reference to the diurnal revolution; as, the moon runs low , that is, is comparatively near the horizon when on or near the meridian.
Low Low transitive verb To depress; to lower. [ Obsolete]
Swift.
Low steel Low steel See under Low .