Advertisement

Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

Origin and history of lye

lye(n.)

Old English læg, leag "lye, water impregnated with alkaline salt absorbed from the ashes of wood by leaching," from Proto-Germanic *laugo (source also of Middle Dutch loghe, Dutch loog, Old High German louga, German Lauge "lye"), from PIE root *leue- "to wash."

The substance formerly was used in place of soap, hence Old High German luhhen "to wash," Old Norse laug "hot bath, hot spring," Danish lørdag, Swedish lördag "Saturday," literally "washing-day," "the day appropriated by the Scandinavians to that exercise" [Century Dictionary]. Chamber-lye in early Modern English was the name for urine used as a detergent.

Entries linking to lye

chamber-lye(n.)

"urine used as a detergent," 1570s, from chamber (n.) in the "privy" sense + lye.

*leue-

*leuə-, Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to wash."

It might form all or part of: ablution; alluvium; deluge; dilute; elution; lather; latrine; launder; lautitious; lavage; lavation; lavatory; lave; lavish; lotion; lye.

It might also be the source of: Greek louein "to wash, bathe;" Latin lavare "to wash," luere "to wash;" Old Irish loathar "basin," Breton laouer "trough;" Old English leaþor "lather," læg "lye."

    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    Trends of lye

    adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/ with a 7-year moving average; ngrams are probably unreliable.

    More to explore

    enchilada
    The ingredients which go to make it up are pepper, lye, hominy, pepper, onions chopped fine, pepper, grated cheese, and pepper...
    caddie
    , a very useful Black-Guard, who attend ... publick Places to go at Errands; and though they are Wretches, that in Rags lye...
    leach
    "a preparation made by leaching or straining" (1630s), in later use especially "a separation of lye or alkali in solution...
    potash
    "vegetable alkali; substance obtained originally by leaching wood-ashes and evaporating the solution obtained in a large iron pot or pan; one of the fixed alkalis," 1751, earlier pot-ash (1640s), a loan-translation of older Dutch potaschen, literally "pot ashes" (16c.); see pot (
    caustic
    c. 1400, "capable of burning or destroying organic tissue, corrosive," from Latin causticus "burning, caustic," from Greek kaustikos "capable of burning; corrosive," from kaustos "combustible; burnt," verbal adjective from kaiein, the Greek word for "to burn" (transitive and intr
    blackmail
    1550s, "tribute paid to men allied with criminals as protection against pillage, etc.," from black (adj.) + Middle English male "rent, tribute." This is from Old English mal "lawsuit, terms, bargaining, agreement," from Old Norse mal "speech, agreement;" related to Old English mæ
    Amazon
    late 14c., "one of a race of female warriors in Scythia," via Old French (13c.) or Latin, from Greek Amazon (mostly in plural Amazones), probably from an unknown non-Indo-European word, or possibly from an Iranian compound *ha-maz-an- "(one) fighting together" [Watkins]. But in f
    transgression
    late 14c., from Old French transgression "transgression," particularly that relating to Adam and the Fall (12c.), from Late Latin transgressionem (nominative transgressio) "a transgression of the law," in classical Latin, "a going over, a going across," noun of action from transg
    economy
    1530s, "household management," from Latin oeconomia (source of French économie, Spanish economia, German Ökonomie, etc.), from Greek oikonomia "household management, thrift," from oikonomos "manager, steward," from oikos "house, abode, dwelling" (cognate with Latin vicus "distric
    anxious
    1620s, "greatly troubled by uncertainties," from Latin anxius "solicitous, uneasy, troubled in mind" (also "causing anxiety, troublesome"), from angere, anguere "to choke, squeeze," figuratively "to torment, cause distress" (from PIE root *angh- "tight, painfully constricted, pai

    Share lye

    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    Trending
    Dictionary entries near lye
    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.