Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. Archaic A sweetheart; a lover.
- n. Archaic A mistress.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. One who is dear; a person beloved.
- n. A sweetheart of either sex; a gallant or a mistress: often in a bad sense; a paramour.
Wiktionary
- n. archaic One beloved; a lover, a sweetheart of either sex (especially a secret lover, gallant, or mistress).
- n. A paramour.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. Archaic A sweetheart, of either sex; a gallant, or a mistress; -- usually in a bad sense.
Etymologies
- From Middle English lemman, from Middle English leofman, from Old English lēof + mann, equivalent to lief + man ("beloved person"). (Wiktionary)
- Middle English leofman, lemman : leof, dear (from Old English lēof; see leubh- in Indo-European roots) + man, man; see man. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“For the truth of the history is, that Master Elisabat, of whom the madman spoke, was very prudent, and a man of a sound judgment, and served the queen as her tutor and physician; but to think that she was his leman is a madness worthy the severest punishment; and to the end thou mayst see that Cardenio knew not what he said, thou must understand that when he spoke it he then was wholly beside himself.”
“In fact, the female next to whom she had sat on the previous day had refused to share a seat with "a gen'leman's bit o 'fluff.”
“Tom! "he called," yo 'take the gen'leman's horse to the stable, rub him down with a wisp, an' give him some hay.”
“Grandfer's sons would like the gen'leman's reasons.”
“If, however, he has reason to believe that 'a nice quiet gen'leman 'is really hard-up, then he is very sorry, and will reduce the rate of hire by so much as half.”
“Usually, however, not wishing to go into the matter so thoroughly -- having come in contact with outsiders chiefly when they have been on holiday and least economical -- he considers a tip merely as the outflowing of a gen'leman's abundance.”
“Nothing like it in the county -- a gen'leman's site, and you don't get that offered you every day.”
“When a gen'leman'sh invited b 'th' lady 'f th' house t 'partake' f refreshmen '----”
“Dar don't seem to be nothin 'else for a gen'leman's sons to do but to kyore people or go to law for' em.”
“That's the only proper sort o 'dignity a gen'leman's son need ever be partic'ler about, to make people recognise him for what he is; and, with this feeling and eddication, you'll take your proper place in the world, never fear!”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘leman’.
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Gene Wolfe
Please contribute your favorite words from any of Gene Wolfe’s books to this prize-winning list.
In case you come across words in this list which are too commonplace to fit in, please ...gallipot, roost, badelaire, oblesque, execration, dhole, amschaspand, arctother, chalcedony, penitence, asimi, autarch and 839 more...
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A Sequel to 250 Spelling Words
Words to quiz the intermediate and advanced speller alike
amatorio, esemplastic, etesian, cholecystitis, chantepleure, paternoster, mondegreen, aporia, kairos, idioglossia, klepht, phansigar and 238 more...
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phrontistery - l
from phrontistery.info
labarum, labefactation, labeorphily, labidometer, labile, lability, labiomancy, labret, labrose, labtebricole, lac, laccolith and 496 more...
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Let Me Call You Sweetheart
Or honey, or baby, or ...
(A Valentine's Day list.)amoret, bonnilasse, ladybird, leikin, leman, love-lass, Phyllis, pout, sweetness, munchkin, darling, sayang and 87 more...
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Papageno's Words, Pt. II
cicurate, circumforaneous, codger, comiconomenclaturist, constable, contradistinction, contraindicated, counterpane, coxcomb, decalcomania, decanal, decoction and 307 more...
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Aequoria's list
affect, deleterious, nuance, pliant, verbatim, pertinent, latter, municipality, provincial, voyeuristic, circumlocution, wane and 798 more...
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Archaic
Because they just don't make 'em like they used to.
comeling, circuition, assentment, advisement, accompts, apertness, larum, soothfastness, deperdition, marish, covin, tinct and 166 more...
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wordhoard
dilatory, ataraxia, hermit, cabana, hut, dome, vestigial, porcine, crapulous, usufruct, curmudgeon, bombastic and 229 more...
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5-0
Hecko, words! I’m so happy I’ve found you. I want to keep you all and never want to lose you again. I hope you like it here.
amscray, thistledown, tine, tinsel, pungent, snarl, wail, lanky, viscid, dawdle, luminous, stow and 2719 more...
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Archaic Occupations
Some of these professions still exist today but the word for them has changed; some (mason or boatswain, for example), are still in use but are included for their rich historical associations. Som...
yeoman, summoner, chandler, ostler, carter, chapman, slaver, mason, cordwainer, cooper, glazier, dyer and 187 more...
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♡LOVE and things like it♡
dedicated to my man Steven, without whom i would be addicted to drugs, lying in a gutter, hating myself, or hooking somewhere :)
affectionate, amative, amatory, amiable, ammophilous, amorous, ardent, attached to, attracted to, beloved, bewitching, bitten and 404 more...
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Marginilia
intertextuality, queer, serendipity, eerie, semiotics, schadenfreude, calliope, logophile, marginalia, reductio ad absurdum, dabble, minutia and 141 more...
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Awesome
Awesome words
mimsy, concupiscence, tumescent, ophidian, houri, vorpal, cyprian, Delphic, incipient, effete, existential, loam and 288 more...
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rememberers
prolix, ageusia, animadversion, anodyne, antic, arabesque, beadle, brachymetropia, colophon, desquamation, diaphoresis, diegesis and 3255 more...
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Words featured in Mrs. Byrne's Dictio...
Selections from Mrs. Byrne's Dictionary of Unusual, Obscure and Preposterous Words by Josefa Heifetz Byrne (University Books, 1974). Definitions in the comments when not available elsewhere.
apanthropy, anoetic, aristology, ayne, bibliopole, bibliotaph, calecannon, caoine, catlap, chirospasm, clamjamfry, coadunate and 174 more...
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Flirtation, Affairs, and Flattery
Sort of Rococo-style affairs
dangleation, sawder, badinage, bavardage, philander, coquette, fop, frippet, trifler, puffery, frothy, palaver and 30 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for leman.
jinglebelljosie a sweetheart or lover; Middle English origin Feb 28, 2009