loon
English
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈluːn/
Audio (US) (file) - Rhymes: -uːn
Etymology 1
From Middle English louen, lowen (“rascal; rogue”), probably of Middle Dutch or Middle Low German origin. Compare Dutch loen (“simpleton”). Or, related to sense 2, due to the bird's loud cry.[1]Folk etymology associates it slang-wise with lunatic, though the latter may have influenced it; see loony.
Noun
loon (plural loons)
- An idler, a lout.
- (chiefly Scotland, Ulster) A boy, a lad.
- (chiefly Scotland) A harlot; mistress.
- (chiefly Scotland) A simpleton.
- (slang) A crazy or deranged person; a lunatic.
- 1971, Richard Carpenter, Catweazle and the Magic Zodiac, Harmondsworth: Puffin Books, page 67:
- An electric fire came next, followed by an umbrella and then a colander. "This bowl will carry no water," he muttered. "Some loon hath pierced it with holes."
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- (Ireland, historical) An English soldier of an expeditionary army in Ireland.
Synonyms
- (crazy person): lunatic, psycho, wacko
Translations
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See also
- looney, loony, loonie
References
- “loon”, in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th edition, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016, →ISBN.
Etymology 2
Of North Germanic origin, from Old Norse lómr (“loon”), ultimately imitative of the bird's cry, particularly when it's in danger. Distantly related to lament, probably sharing Proto-Indo-European *leh₂- (expressive root).
Noun
loon (plural loons)
- (US, Canada) Any of various birds, of the order Gaviiformes, of North America and Europe that dive for fish and have a short tail, webbed feet and a yodeling cry.
- 1634, William Wood, “Of the Birds and Fowles both of Land and Water”, in New Englands Prospect. A True, Lively, and Experimentall Description of that Part of America, Commonly Called New England; […], London: […] Tho[mas] Cotes, for Iohn Bellamie, […], OCLC 837516736, 1st part, page 31:
- The Loone is an ill ſhap'd thing like a Cormorant; but that he can neyther goe nor flye; he maketh a noiſe ſometimes like a Sovvgelders horne.
- 1886, Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, H. L. Brækstad, transl., Folk and Fairy Tales, page 286:
- [O]h, yes! the loon does shriek dreadfully - particularly when there's fine rain […]
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Synonyms
- (bird of order Gaviiformes): diver
Derived terms
- black-throated loon (Gavia arctica)
- great northern loon, common loon (Gavia immer)
- Pacific loon (Gavia pacifica)
- red-throated loon (Gavia stellata)
- yellow-billed loon (Gavia adamsii)
- loonie
Translations
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References
- Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary, Springfield, Massachusetts, G.&C. Merriam Co., 1967
Anagrams
- nolo
Afrikaans
Etymology
From Dutch loon, from Middle Dutch loon, from Old Dutch lōn.
Pronunciation
Audio (file)
Noun
loon (plural lone, diminutive loontjie)
- wage
Dutch
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /loːn/
audio (file) - Hyphenation: loon
- Rhymes: -oːn
- Homophone: Loon
Etymology 1
From Middle Dutch loon, from Old Dutch lōn, from Proto-West Germanic *laun.
Noun
loon n (plural lonen, diminutive loontje n)
- wage, pay, reward
Synonyms
- salaris
Derived terms
- arbeidsloon
- belonen
- hongerloon
- leefloon
- loondienst
- loonheffing
- loonkosten
- loonlijst
- loonslaaf
- loonstrook
- loonwerk
- loonzakje
- minimumloon
- verlonen
Descendants
- Afrikaans: loon
- Negerhollands: loon
Etymology 2
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
Verb
loon
- first-person singular present indicative of lonen
- imperative of lonen
Noun
Plural of loo (“clearing”)
Ingrian
Postposition
loon
- Alternative spelling of loonna
References
- Ruben E. Nirvi (1971) Inkeroismurteiden Sanakirja, Helsinki: Suomalais-Ugrilainen Seura, page 276
- Olga I. Konkova; Nikita A. Dyachkov (2014) Inkeroin Keel: Пособие по Ижорскому Языку, →ISBN, page 14
Middle Dutch
Etymology 1
From Old Dutch *lōn, from Old Dutch *lōn, from Proto-West Germanic *laun.
Noun
lôon m or n
- wage, payment for services or work
- reward
- value
Inflection
This noun needs an inflection-table template.
Derived terms
- lônen
Descendants
- Dutch: loon
- Limburgish: loean
Etymology 2
Dative plural of lô.
Noun
lôon ?
- Borgloon (a city in modern Belgium)
- Loon (a county)
Inflection
This noun needs an inflection-table template.
Descendants
- Dutch: Loon, (compounded) Borgloon
Further reading
- “loon (I)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
- “loon (II)”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
- Verwijs, E.; Verdam, J. (1885–1929), “loon”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN
Oromo
Etymology
From Proto-Cushitic, from Proto-Afroasiatic. Cognates include Hadiyya laro, Saho laa, Afar láa, Somali lo', Boon loy, Burji láli, Gedeo lalo, Awngi əllwa, Blin ləwi, Xamtanga ləwa, Iraqw slee, Kw'adza hleko and Maay hliŋé.[1].
Noun
loon
- cattle
References
- Oromo Dictionary by Takilee Qinaaxxii
- Appleyard, David (2006) A Comparative Dictionary of Agaw languages (Kuschitische Sprachstudien), volume 24, Köln, Germany: Rüdiger Köppe Verlag, →ISBN, page 49
Scots
Etymology
Uncertain, but compare English loon.
Noun
loon (plural loons)
- (Doric) boy, young man