loaf
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Related to loaf: loaf around
loaf 1
(lōf)n. pl. loaves (lōvz)
1. A shaped mass of bread baked in one piece.
2. A shaped, usually rounded or oblong, mass of food: veal loaf.
[Middle English lof, from Old English hlāf, from Proto-Germanic *hlaibaz, perhaps from the same European substrate source as Greek klībanos, krībanos, earthen vessel for baking, tandoor.]
Word History: Loaf, lord, and lady are closely related words that testify to bread's fundamental importance in the Middle Ages. Curiously, though bread was a staple food in many Indo-European cultures, loaf and its cognates occur only in the Germanic languages, and lord and lady only in English. Loaf derives from Old English hlāf, "bread, loaf of bread," related to Gothic hlaifs, Old Norse hleifr, and Modern German Laib, all of which mean "loaf of bread." Hlāf survives in Lammas, originally Hlāfmaesse, "Loaf-Mass," the Christian Feast of the First Fruits, traditionally celebrated on August 1. Lord comes from Old English hlāford, a compound meaning "loaf-ward, keeper of bread," because a lord maintains and feeds his household and offers hospitality. Similarly, lady derives from Old English hlǣfdige, which became lady by 1382. The -dige comes from dæge, "kneader," and is related to our dough. A lady, therefore, is "a kneader of bread, a breadmaker." Lord and lady both retain vestiges of their original meanings, although England's aristocrats have not been elbow deep in flour, let alone dough, for several centuries.
loaf 2
(lōf)intr.v. loafed, loaf·ing, loafs
To pass time at leisure; idle.
[Probably back-formation from loafer.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
loaf
(ləʊf)n, pl loaves (ləʊvz)
1. (Cookery) a shaped mass of baked bread
2. (Cookery) any shaped or moulded mass of food, such as cooked meat
3. slang the head; sense: use your loaf!.
[Old English hlāf; related to Old High German hleib bread, Old Norse hleifr, Latin libum cake]
loaf
(ləʊf)vb
1. (intr) to loiter or lounge around in an idle way
2. (foll by: away) to spend (time) idly: he loafed away his life.
[C19: perhaps back formation from loafer]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
loaf1
(loʊf)n., pl. loaves (lōvz).
1. a portion of bread or cake usu. baked in an oblong mass with a rounded top.
2. a shaped or molded mass of food, as of chopped meat: a veal loaf.
[before 950; Middle English lo(o)f, Old English hlāf loaf, bread, c. Old High German leip, Old Norse hleifr, Gothic hlaifs]
loaf2
(loʊf)v.i.
1. to idle away time.
2. to lounge or saunter lazily and idly.
v.t. 3. to pass idly (usu. fol. by away): to loaf one's life away.
[1825–35, back formation from loafer]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
loaf
- bread bag - A plastic wrapper in which a loaf of bread is sold, intended to keep the bread fresh for longer than it would be if unwrapped.
- loaf - A head on a cabbage.
- bread - In Old English, it meant "piece, morsel," while actual bread was known as "loaf."
- crumb - The soft inner part of a bread roll, slice, or loaf.
Farlex Trivia Dictionary. © 2012 Farlex, Inc. All rights reserved.
loaf
Past participle: loafed
Gerund: loafing
| Imperative |
|---|
| loaf |
| loaf |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Switch to new thesaurus
| Noun | 1. |  loaf - a shaped mass of baked bread that is usually sliced before eatingbread, breadstuff, staff of life - food made from dough of flour or meal and usually raised with yeast or baking powder and then baked heel - one of the crusty ends of a loaf of bread French loaf - a loaf of French bread |
| 2. | loaf - a quantity of food (other than bread) formed in a particular shape; "meat loaf"; "sugar loaf"; "a loaf of cheese" solid food, food - any solid substance (as opposed to liquid) that is used as a source of nourishment; "food and drink" pound cake - rich loaf cake made of a pound each of butter and sugar and flour haslet - heart and liver and other edible viscera especially of hogs; usually chopped and formed into a loaf and braised headcheese - sausage or jellied loaf made of chopped parts of the head meat and sometimes feet and tongue of a calf or pig lunch meat, luncheon meat - any of various sausages or molded loaf meats sliced and served cold scrapple - scraps of meat (usually pork) boiled with cornmeal and shaped into loaves for slicing and frying | |
| Verb | 1. |  loaf - be lazy or idle; "Her son is just bumming around all day" |
| 2. |  loaf - be about; "The high school students like to loiter in the Central Square"; "Who is this man that is hanging around the department?"footle, hang around, lallygag, loiter, lollygag, mess about, mill about, mill around, tarry, lounge, lurk, linger be - have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun); "John is rich"; "This is not a good answer" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
loaf
1noun
loaf
2verb idle, hang around, take it easy, lie around, loiter, loll, laze, lounge around, doss (Brit. slang), veg out (slang, chiefly U.S.), be indolent She studied, and I just loafed around.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
loaf
verbThe American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
رَغيفرَغِيْفٌ
bochníkpecenpotloukat sezahálet
brøddrive
leipä
štrucahljeb
brauðbrauîhleifurhleifurslæpast, slóra
パンのひと塊
덩어리
klaiņotklaipsklīstkukulisslaistīties
bochník
hlebec
limpa
ก้อนขนมปัง
ổ
loaf
1 [ləʊf]A. N (loaves (pl))
loaf
2 [ləʊf] VI (also loaf about, loaf around) → holgazanear, flojear (LAm)Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
loaf
[ˈləʊf] [loaves] (pl) n (British) (= head) use your loaf! → sers-toi de ta tête!
loaf about
loaf around vi → fainéanter, traînerCollins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
loaf
n pl <loaves> → Brot nt; (unsliced) → (Brot)laib m; (= meat loaf) → Hackbraten m; a loaf of bread → ein (Laib) Brot; a small white loaf → ein kleines Weißbrot; half a loaf is better than none or than no bread (Prov) → (wenig ist) besser als gar nichts; use your loaf! (inf) → streng deinen Grips an (inf)
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
loaf
1 [ləʊf] n (loaves (pl)) → pagnotta, pane mhalf a loaf is better than no bread (Proverb) → meglio poco che niente
loaf
2 [ləʊf] vi (also loaf about, loaf around) → oziare, bighellonareCollins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
loaf1
(ləuf) – plural loaves (louvz) – noun a shaped mass of bread. a sliced loaf.
loaf2
(ləuf) verb (with about or around) to pass time without doing anything in particular. They were loafing about (the street).
ˈloafer nounan idle loafer.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
loaf
→ رَغِيْفٌ bochník brød Laib φραντζόλα barra de pan, hogaza de pan leipä pain štruca pagnotta パンのひと塊 덩어리 brood brød bochenek pão de forma буханка limpa ก้อนขนมปัง somun ổ 一条面包Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009