lass
Part of speech: noun
Morphological type: simple
Etymology: From Middle English las, lasce, lasse (“female infant or child; young woman”), traditionally derived from Old Norse lǫskr (“unmarried”, adjective); see Middle English las for more.
Cognates
Scots lass, lassie
Inflected forms:
form: lasses
pos: noun
tags: plural
Senses:
gloss: A girl; also (by extension), a young woman.
pos: noun
examples: Come and dance, ye lads and lasses!
[T]heyr founders soules / Haue lost theyr beade rolles, / The mony for theyr masses / Spent amonge wanton lasses; […]
Ste[phano]. Is it ſo braue a Laſſe? / Cal[iban]. I [i.e., aye] Lord, ſhe vvill become thy bed, I vvarrant, / And bring thee forth braue brood.
This is the prettieſt Lovv-borne Laſſe, that euer / Ran on the greene-ſord: […]
The laſs i' th' red petticoat ſhall pay for all. Young men anſvver ſo vvhen they are chid for being ſo prodigal and expenſive, meaning they vvill get a vvife vvith a good portion, that ſhall pay for it.
[P]ray vvhich is the little Laſs that intends to be a Gentlevvoman?
Let the toaſt paſs, drink to the laſs, / I vvarrant ſhe'll find an excuſe for the glaſs.
But one there is, the loveliest of them all, / Some sweet lass of the valley, looking out / For gains, and who that sees her would not buy?
[S]he was the bonniest lass in our parochine and the neest till't.
He was fond of a lass and fond of a glass, and fond of a ran-dan; […]
My audience to this not-too-easy operation was a small group of Scottish school lasses, who seemed (perhaps naturally) to find the proceedings somewhat mysterious, but at any rate amusing. I wished they would go away, but they didn't, so I had to get on with the job to the accompaniment of a background of giggles!
gloss: A girl; also (by extension), a young woman.
pos: noun
tags: specifically
examples: Jenny Hill, a pale, overwrought, pretty Salvation lass of 18, comes in through the yard gate, leading Peter Shirley, a half hardened, half worn-out elderly man, weak with hunger.
gloss: A sweetheart.
pos: noun
tags: Geordie
Wearside
especially
examples: But firſt him ſeemed fit, that vvounded Knight / To viſite, after this nights perillous paſſe, / And to ſalute him, if he vvere in plight, / And eke [also] that Lady his faire louely laſſe.
It vvas a Louer, and his laſſe, / VVith a hey, and a ho, and a hey nonino, / That o're the greene corne feild did paſſe, / In the ſpring time, the onely pretty rang [ring] time, / VVhen Birds do ſing, hey ding a ding, ding.
The youthfull Bull muſt vvander in the VVood; / Behind the Mountain, or beyond the Flood: / […] / VVith tvvo fair Eyes his Miſtreſs burns his Breaſt; / He looks, and languiſhes, and leaves his Reſt; / Forſakes his Food, and pining for the Laſs, / Is joyleſs of the Grove, and ſpurns the grovving graſs.
There might ye ſee the pioney ſpread vvide, / The full-blovvn roſe, the ſhepherd and his laſs, / Lap-dog and lambkin vvith black ſtaring eyes, / And parrots vvith tvvin cherries in their beak.
The love Leeby bore for Jamie was such that in their younger days it shamed him. […] "Hoo is your lass?" they used to cry to him, inventing a new game.
gloss: A female servant; a maid, a maidservant.
pos: noun
tags: Northern-England
Scotland
examples: […] I'll tell ye that after we are done wi' our supper, for it will may be no be sae weel to speak about it while that lang-lugged limmer o' a lass is gaun flisking in and out o' the room.
[S]ure aneugh, the lass washed clottered blood aff the carpet the neist day.
She fleyed Johnnie awa' frae the door when he was for daffin' wi' the serving lasses.
gloss: A term of address for a woman, or a female animal.
pos: noun
tags: Scotland
familiar
examples: As fair art thou, my bonie laſs, / So deep in luve am I; / And I will luve thee ſtill, my Dear, / Till a' the ſeas gang dry.
"Hi, Juno, lass—hi, old girl; down, Daph, down," said Wardle, caressing the dogs.
Derived words: buffer lass
currency lass
hallelujah lass
lassie
lasslorn
lassock
lassy
our lass
wor lass
Translations:
lang: Arabic
word: صبية
lang: Breton
word: merc'h
lang: Breton
word: plac'h
lang: Bulgarian
word: мома
roman: moma
lang: Bulgarian
word: девойка
roman: devojka
lang: Cebuano
word: dalaga
lang: Czech
word: děvenka
lang: Czech
word: děvče
lang: Czech
word: dívka
lang: Danish
word: tøs
lang: Esperanto
word: junulino
lang: Finnish
word: tyttö
lang: French
word: fillette
lang: French
word: jeune fille
lang: German
word: Jungfrau
lang: German
word: Mädchen
lang: Ancient Greek
word: κοράσιον
roman: korásion
lang: Hebrew
word: ילדה
roman: yaldá
lang: Hungarian
word: leány
lang: Hungarian
word: leányka
lang: Irish
word: cailín
lang: Irish
word: gearrchaile
lang: Irish
word: maighdean
lang: Korean
word: 아가씨
roman: agassi
lang: Macedonian
word: девојче
roman: devojče
lang: Macedonian
word: моме
roman: mome
lang: Occitan
word: joventa
lang: Occitan
word: tosa
lang: Persian
word: لاکو
roman: lâku
lang: Plautdietsch
word: Mäakjen
lang: Plautdietsch
word: Mejal
lang: Polish
word: dziewczyna
lang: Portuguese
word: garota
lang: Portuguese
word: menina
lang: Portuguese
word: rapariga
lang: Portuguese
word: senhorita
lang: Russian
word: де́вочка
roman: dévočka
lang: Scottish Gaelic
word: caileag
lang: Scottish Gaelic
word: nighneag
lang: Spanish
word: niña
lang: Swedish
word: flicka
lang: Swedish
word: jänta
lang: Swedish
word: tös
lang: Tagalog
word: ining
lang: Tagalog
word: nene
lang: Tagalog
word: neneng
lang: Welsh
word: geneth
lang: Welsh
word: merch
lang: Finnish
word: neiti
lang: French
word: demoiselle
lang: French
word: fille
lang: French
word: jeune femme
lang: French
word: nana
lang: Hebrew
word: עַלְמָה
roman: 'almá
lang: Hebrew
word: בַּחוּרָה
roman: bakhurá
lang: Hebrew
word: בַּת
roman: bat
lang: Hebrew
word: נַעֲרָה
roman: na'ará
lang: Polish
word: dziewczyna
lang: Russian
word: де́вушка
roman: dévuška
lang: Scottish Gaelic
word: gruagach
lang: Scottish Gaelic
word: nighean
lang: Scottish Gaelic
word: rìbhinn
lang: Spanish
word: chica
lang: Spanish
word: chiquita
lang: Spanish
word: muchacha
lang: Spanish
word: señorita
lang: Swedish
word: flicka
lang: Swedish
word: jänta
lang: Swedish
word: tös
lang: Welsh
word: merch
lang: Welsh
word: rhiain