lass

See also: laß and lȧss

English

Etymology

From Middle English lasse, from Old Norse laskura (“an unmarried woman, maiden”). Cognate with Scots lassie.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /læs/
  • Rhymes: -æs

Noun

lass (plural lasses)

  1. (archaic in some dialects, informal) A young woman or girl.
    "Come and dance, ye lads and lasses!"
  2. (Geordie, Mackem) A sweetheart.

Usage notes

Still prevalent in Scottish English, Irish English, and Northern English dialects such as Geordie (Tyneside), Wearside/County Durham, Northumberland/Northumbrian, Teesside and Yorkshire. Sometimes used poetically in other dialects of English.

Synonyms

  • See also Thesaurus:girl

Derived terms

Translations

References

  • A Dictionary of North East Dialect, Bill Griffiths, 2005, Northumbria University Press, →ISBN
  • lass in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
  • “lass” in Douglas Harper, Online Etymology Dictionary, 2001–2018.
  • Newcastle 1970s, Scott Dobson and Dick Irwin,
  • The New Geordie Dictionary, Frank Graham, 1987, →ISBN
  • 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,

Anagrams

German

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /las/
  • Rhymes: -as

Verb

lass

  1. Imperative singular of lassen.
  2. (colloquial) First-person singular present of lassen.

Luxembourgish

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /lɑs/
    Rhymes: -ɑs

Adjective

lass (masculine lassen, neuter lasst, comparative méi lass, superlative am lassten)

  1. loose, unattached

Declension

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