lode

American  

[lohd] / loʊd /

noun

1. a veinlike deposit, usually metalliferous.

2. any body of ore set off from adjacent rock formations.

3. a rich supply or source.

4. British. a waterway or channel.

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lode British  

/ ləʊd /

noun

1. a deposit of valuable ore occurring between definite limits in the surrounding rock; vein

2. a deposit of metallic ore filling a fissure in the surrounding rock

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lode Scientific  

/ lōd /

1. A vein of mineral ore that is deposited between clearly demarcated layers of rock or that fills a fissure in a rock formation.

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Etymology

Origin of lode

before 900; Middle English; Old English lād way, course, carrying; cognate with Old Norse leith way, route, Old High German leita procession. See load, lade, lead ¹

Explanation

If you work in a mine and you find a stripe of gold that seems to stretch on forever, you’ve found a lode of gold — a supply vein of ore. You’re also rich. Don’t confuse lode with load. They sound exactly the same, but while load means a big pile of something, lode means that something’s original source. It usually refers to valuable metals, but you can find a lode of anything, like the lollipop lode at a candy factory or a lode of laughter at a comedy show. You’ll hear about the “mother lode,” which is a lode beyond your imagination, like "the mother lode of riches inside a dragon’s den."

Example Sentences

“In addition, a new mineralized structure has been discovered west of Waihi’s Golden Pole lode further highlighting the exploration upside, opening up another promising zone for follow-up drilling, and potential resource growth,” Euroz Hartleys says.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 15, 2026

But it could be a mother lode for small and large local news outlets, providing $500 million a year to preserve and grow local newsrooms.

From Seattle Times • May 15, 2024

But for a noir of isolation and concealment, about how the past can often feel inescapable, these shadowy dugouts — Travis’ motel, a church and one character’s lonely lair — are an atmospheric mother lode.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 21, 2024

After all, he is a stoic prospector who, at the outset of the writer-director Jalmari Helander’s film, discovers a mother lode of gold.

From New York Times • Dec. 15, 2023

He took a peek into the bag—whoa—a fly mother lode!

From "As Brave As You" by Jason Reynolds

Related Words

• vein