lad
See also: LAD, läd, lǟd, ľad, ląd, láð, and ład
Translingual
Symbol
lad
- (international standards) ISO 639-2 & ISO 639-3 language code for Ladino.
English
Etymology
From Middle English ladde (“foot soldier, servant; male commoner; boy”), from late Old English *ladda (attested in Old English personal byname Ladda), probably of North Germanic origin. Compare Old Norse ladd (“hose, woolen stocking; sock”), which may have undergone semantic shift to mean a term of abuse (e.g. foolish youth, youngster of lower social status, etc.); thence by connotative amelioration coming to mean any young fellow. Compare Norwegian ladd (“rough sock, woolen or felt slipper”) and the -ladd in compounds Askeladd/Askeladden (a personal name) and tusseladd (“nincompoop”). See also Swedish ladder (“old shoes”), lodde (“Frisian shoe”), lädder (“socks”), all said to be related to Old Norse loðinn (“hairy, shaggy, woolly”), loddi (“shaggy dog”).[1]
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /læd/
- (unstressed, sometimes) (rare) IPA(key): /ləd/
Audio (US) (file) - Rhymes: -æd
Noun
lad (plural lads)
- A boy or young man.
- Coordinate term: lass
- 1582 – 1610, Douay Rheims Bible, Gospel of Saint Luke IX.37–50:
- And it came to paſſe the day folowing, when they came downe from the mountaine, there mette him a great multitude. And behold a man of the multitude cried out, ſaying, Maiſter, I beſeeche thee, looke vpõ my ſonne, becauſe he is mine only one. And loe, the ſpirit taketh him, and he ſodenly crieth, and he daſheth him, and teareth him that he fometh, and with much a doe departeth renting him. And I deſired thy diſciples to caſt him out, and they could not. And IESVS anſwering ſaid, O faithles and peruerſe generation, how long ſhal I be with you and ſuffer you? Bring hither thy ſonne. And when he came to him, the deuil daſhed, and tore him. And IESVS rebuked the vncleane ſpirit, and healed the lad: and rendred him to his father. And al were aſtonied at the might of God: and al merueiling at al things that he did, he said to his diſciples, Lay you in your hartes theſe vvordes, for it ſhal come to paſſe that the Sonne of man ſhal be deliuered into the hands of men. But they did not know this word, and it was couered before them, that they perceiued it not. And they were afraid to aſke him of this word. And there entred a cogitation into them, which of them ſhould be greater. But IESVS ſeeing the cogitations of their hart, tooke a childe and ſet him by him, and ſaid to them, Whoſoeuer receiueth this childe in my name, receiueth me: and whoſoeuer receiueth me, receiueth him that ſent me. For he that is the leſſer among you al, he is the greater. And Iohn, anſwering ſaid, Maiſter, we ſaw a certaine man caſting out deuils in thy name, and we prohibited him, becauſe he foloweth not with vs. And IESVS ſaid to him, Prohibit not, for he that is not againſt you, is for you.
- (Britain) A Jack the lad; a boyo.
- Coordinate term: ladette
- I think he reckons he’s a bit of a lad.
- Last night I was out drinking with the lads.
- A familiar term of address for a young man.
- Come here, lad, and help me shift these boxes.
- A groom who works with horses.
- Synonyms: stable boy, stable lad
- (Ireland, colloquial) The penis.
- 1922, James Joyce, Ulysses, page 225:
- — The lad stood to attention anyhow, he said with a sigh. She's a gamey mare and no mistake.
- 1995 May 5, Graham Linehan and Arthur Matthews, “The Passion of St Tibulus”, in Father Ted:
- Mrs Glynn: Oh but there's this great bit in it. You see, there was this girl, but then you find out it's not a girl but a man!
Mrs Sheridan: And he got his lad out.
- 2007, Unknown, translated by Ciaran Carson, The Táin, →ISBN, page 175:
- And he loaded the chariot with clods and boulders and cobbles that he fired at anyone who came to stare at him and jeer him, stark naked as he was, with his long lad and his acorns dangling down through the floor of the chariot.
- 2010, Loucinda McGary, The Wild Irish Sea: A Windswept Tale of Love and Magic, →ISBN, page 11:
- Just thinking about how she would look without her clothes made his lad twitch with anticipation.
-
Usage notes
Prevalent in Northern English dialects such as Geordie, Mackem, Scouse and Northumbrian.
Derived terms
- booking lad
- laddie
- laddish
- ladette
- ladhood
- lad lit
- lad mag
- new lad
- signal lad
Related terms
- fellow-me-lad
- lad's love
- lass
- lassie
- lead
Translations
a boy or young man
|
Jack the lad, boyo — see Jack the lad, boyo
familiar term of address for a young man
|
a groom who works with horses — See also translations at groom, stable boy
|
References
- Frank Graham (1987) The New Geordie Dictionary, →ISBN
- A Dictionary of North East Dialect, Bill Griffiths, 2005, Northumbria University Press, →ISBN
- Northumberland Words, English Dialect Society, R. Oliver Heslop, 1893–4
- Newcastle 1970s, Scott Dobson and Dick Irwin,
- A List of words and phrases in everyday use by the natives of Hetton-le-Hole in the County of Durham, F.M.T.Palgrave, English Dialect Society vol.74, 1896,
- A Dictionary of North East Dialect, Bill Griffiths, 2005, Northumbria University Press, →ISBN
-
- Liberman, Anatoly, Analytic Dictionary of English Etymology, University of Minnesota Press, 2008, p. 139
Further reading
- lad at The Septic's Companion: A British Slang Dictionary
- lad in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911
- Douglas Harper (2001–2023), “lad”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
Anagrams
- ADL, DAL, DLA, Dal, LDA, dal
Czech
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [ˈlat]
Noun
lad
- genitive plural of lado
Danish
Etymology 1
From Old Danish lat, from Old Norse latr, from Proto-Germanic *lataz, from Proto-Indo-European *lē(y)d-.
Adjective
lad
- languid, lazy, indolent
Inflection
| Inflection of lad | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Positive | Comparative | Superlative | |
| Common singular | lad | ladere | ladest2 |
| Neuter singular | ladt | ladere | ladest2 |
| Plural | lade | ladere | ladest2 |
| Definite attributive1 | lade | ladere | ladeste |
| 1) When an adjective is applied predicatively to something definite, the corresponding "indefinite" form is used. 2) The "indefinite" superlatives may not be used attributively. | |||
Etymology 2
From Old Norse hlað (“heap, stack”).
Noun
lad n (singular definite ladet, plural indefinite lad)
- bed (platform of a truck, trailer, railcar, or other vehicle that supports the load to be hauled), e.g. truckbed
Inflection
Declension of lad
| neuter gender | Singular | Plural | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| indefinite | definite | indefinite | definite | |
| nominative | lad | ladet | lad | ladene |
| genitive | lads | ladets | lads | ladenes |
Verb
lad
- imperative of lade
French
Noun
lad m (plural lads)
- stable lad; stable hand
Further reading
- “lad”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
German
Verb
lad
- singular imperative of laden
Middle English
Noun
lad
- Alternative form of ladde
Norwegian Bokmål
Verb
lad
- imperative of lade
Old English
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /lɑːd/
Etymology 1
From Proto-Germanic *laidō. Cognate with Old High German leita (German Leite), Old Norse leið. Akin to līþan (“to go, travel, fare”).
Noun
lād f
- carrying, bringing, leading
- way, course
- passage, watercourse
- provision, sustenance
Declension
Declension of lad (strong ō-stem)
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | lād | lāda, lāde |
| accusative | lāde | lāda, lāde |
| genitive | lāde | lāda |
| dative | lāde | lādum |
Derived terms
- lādmann
- lādsċipe
- lādtēow
- lǣdan
Descendants
- English: load; lode
Etymology 2
Akin to Old Frisian lēde, lāde.
Noun
lād f
- excuse (+ genitive for something)
- apology (+ genitive for something)
- defense or exoneration (+ genitive against an accusation)
Declension
Declension of lad (strong ō-stem)
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | lād | lāda, lāde |
| accusative | lāde | lāda, lāde |
| genitive | lāde | lāda |
| dative | lāde | lādum |
Derived terms
- lādian
- werlād
Polish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /lat/
- Rhymes: -at
- Syllabification: lad
Noun
lad f
- genitive plural of lada
Romansch
Alternative forms
- (Sutsilvan) lo
Etymology
From Latin lātus.
Adjective
lad m (feminine singular lada, masculine plural lads, feminine plural ladas)
- (Rumantsch Grischun, Sursilvan) wide, broad
Synonyms
- (Rumantsch Grischun, Sursilvan, Sutsilvan, Surmiran) lartg
- (Puter, Vallader) larg
Scots
Alternative forms
- laddie - most common usage
Etymology
From Proto-Germanic *laidō. Cognate with Old High German leita (German Leite), Old Norse leið. Akin to līþan (“to go, travel, fare”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /lad/, /lɑd/
Noun
lad (plural lads)
- lad
- son
- menial
- male sweetheart
Volapük
Noun
lad (nominative plural lads)
- heart
Declension
declension of lad
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | lad | lads |
| genitive | lada | ladas |
| dative | lade | lades |
| accusative | ladi | ladis |
| vocative 1 | o lad! | o lads! |
| predicative 2 | ladu | ladus |
- 1 status as a case is disputed
- 2 in later, non-classical Volapük only
Derived terms
- ladik