lavatory
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Pronunciation: ipa: /ˈlæv.ə.tɹi/
ipa: /ˈlæv.ə.təɹ.i/
ipa: /ˈlæv.ə.t(ɔ)ɹ.i/
Forms: form: lavatories
form: lavat'ry
Etymology: From Middle English lavatorie, from Late Latin lavātōrium, from Latin lavāre (“to wash”) + -ium (forming places related to an activity). As a place to pan gold, via Spanish lavadero. Doublet of lavatorium and laver. See also lave.
Senses: examples: text: Whon he haþ vsed he walkeþ riht
To Lauatorie þer hit is diht
For to wassche his hende.
ref: a. 1375, Lay Folks Mass Book, Appendix iv, p. 606:
text: And thow shalt make a brasun lauatory with his foot to wasshe with.
ref: 1382, Bible (Wycliffe), Exod. 30:18
glosses: A vessel or fixture for washing, particularly
glosses: A vessel or fixture for washing
A laver: a washbasin.
glosses: A vessel or fixture for washing
A bathtub.
topics: Christianity
glosses: A vessel or fixture for washing
A piscina: the basin used for washing communion vessels.
topics: Christianity
glosses: A vessel or fixture for washing
A lavabo: the basin used for washing one's hands before handling the Eucharist.
topics: Christianity
glosses: A vessel or fixture for washing
A baptismal font: the basin used for baptism, used figuratively for the washing away of sins.
examples: text: Their 'bathroom' included a toilet and a lavatory but no bath.
text: Lavatories (bathroom sinks) are available in a blizzard of colors, materials, and styles.
ref: 2005, Michael W. Litchfield, Renovation, page 325:
text: Anywhere a water closet is used, a lavatory (ie, hand-washing sink) must also be installed.
ref: 2011, Sharon Koomen Harmon et al., The Codes Guidebook for Interiors, page 288：:
topics: business
construction
manufacturing
glosses: A vessel or fixture for washing
A plumbing fixture used for washing: a sink.
qualifier: interior design
examples: text: Wᵗ condicion that at the tyme of the Lavatory eueryche of theym turne theym to the people, and exorte theym to pray for ye soules following...
ref: 1513, Robert Fabyan, last will and testament
glosses: Handwashing as an act, particularly
topics: Christianity
glosses: Handwashing as an act, particularly
The lavabo: the ritual washing of hands before handling the eucharist.
topics: Christianity
glosses: Handwashing as an act, particularly
The ritual washing of hands after using the piscina to clean the communion vessels.
examples: text: They must be wasshed wyth wyne or wyth some other lauatorye.
ref: 1490, Publius Vergilius Maro, chapter XXVIII, in William Caxton, transl., The Boke yf Eneydos, page 110:
glosses: A liquid used in washing; a lotion; a wash; a rinse.
examples: text: Even the lavatory, a vestibule to the refectory through which the novices would pass on their way to the recreation room, boasted a painting cycle.
ref: 2003, Gauvin A. Bailey, Between Renaissance and Baroque: Jesuit Art in Rome, 1565-1610, page 61:
glosses: A washroom: a room used for washing the face and hands.
examples: text: Americans don't know 'WC' and Brits mock 'bathroom' but everyone usually understands 'toilet' or 'lavatory'.
text: People needing to use the lavatory often ask to use the baño in a restaurant; toilet paper is rarely available, so the experienced traveler always carries a personal supply.
ref: 2003, Rob Rachowiecki et al., Ecuador and the Galápagos Islands, page 44:
text: THE RESTROOM ON THE OLDER TRAINS ARE TOO SMALL FOR AN ADULT. ONE CAN'T USE THE TOILET WITHOUT CONSTANTLY ELBOWING THE WALL. AIRPLANES HAVE LARGER LAVATORIES AND A BETTER USEABLE FAUCET.
ref: 2014, “Verbatim Comments”, in Corey, Canapary & Galanis, editor, Caltrain 2014 On-Board Survey, Caltrain, retrieved 30 Jul 2023, page 1:
glosses: A room containing a toilet: a bathroom (US) or WC (UK).
examples: text: In a traditional German lavatory, the hole in which shit disappears after we flush water is way in front, so that the shit is first laid out for us to sniff at and inspect for traces of some illness; in the typical French lavatory, on the contrary, the hole is in the back - that is, the shit is supposed to disappear as soon as possible; finally, the Anglo-Saxon (English or American) lavatory presents a kind of synthesis, a mediation between these two opposed poles - the basin is full of water so that the shit floats in it - visible, but not to be inspected.
ref: 1997, Slavoj Žižek, The Plague of Fantasies, page 4:
glosses: A plumbing fixture for urination and defecation: a toilet.
glosses: A place to wash clothes: a laundry.
glosses: A place where gold is panned.
glosses: A paved room in a mortuary where corpses are kept under a shower of disinfecting fluid.
Synonyms: sense: basin for washing hands
word: washbasin
sense: fixture for washing hands
word: sink
sense: room with a toilet
word: bathroom
sense: toilet
word: toilet
Derived terms: lav
lavatorial
lavatory attendant
lavatory basin
lavatory bowl
lavatory brush
lavatory chain
lavatory cleanser
lavatory humor
lavatory joke
lavatory pan
lavatory paper
lavatory period
lavatory room
lavatory seat
lavatory stone
lavatory style
lavvy
Related terms: lavatorium