lad

¹

[lad]

noun

1. a boy or youth.

2. Informal.,  a familiar or affectionate term of address for a man; chap.

3. British Horseracing Informal.,  a stable boy.

LAD

²

abbreviation

Psycholinguistics.

1. language acquisition device.

lad

/ læd /

noun

1. a boy or young man

2. informal,  a familiar form of address for any male

3. a lively or dashing man or youth (esp in the phrase a bit of a lad )

4. a young man whose behaviour is characteristic of male adolescents, esp in being rowdy, macho, or immature

5. a boy or man who looks after horses

Other Word Forms

• laddish adjective
• ladhood noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of lad¹

1250–1300; Middle English ladde < ?; compare late Old English Ladda (nickname)

Word History and Origins

Origin of lad¹

C13 ladde; perhaps of Scandinavian origin

Example Sentences

The ticker replaced the swift-running lads who previously delivered price quotes from the telegraph office.

Read more on Wall Street Journal

One of the lads drafted this contract saying 'I must not be cheeky to the senior pros again' and he had to sign it before we let him out.

Read more on BBC

I was used to the people that sat around me and a couple of lads had gone a couple of rows from the front.

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"He was just a straightforward, ordinary lad, nothing would stand out to make you think he was."

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As a young lad growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area town of Pittsburg, my school uniform consisted of corduroys the color of Ash Wednesday, a white dress shirt and a maroon V-neck sweater.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• fellow 
• schoolboy 
• youngster