lath

American  

[lath, lahth] / læθ, lɑθ /

noun

plural

laths

1. a thin, narrow strip of wood, used with other strips to form latticework, a backing for plaster or stucco, a support for slates and other roofing materials, etc.

2. a group or quantity of such strips.

3. work consisting of such strips.

4. wire mesh or the like used in place of wooden laths as a backing for plasterwork.

5. a thin, narrow, flat piece of wood used for any purpose.

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verb (used with object)

1. to cover or line with laths.

lath British  

/ lɑːθ /

noun

1. one of several thin narrow strips of wood used to provide a supporting framework for plaster, tiles, etc

2. expanded sheet metal, wire mesh, etc, used to provide backing for plaster or rendering

3. any thin strip of wood

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verb

1. (tr) to attach laths to (a ceiling, roof, floor, etc)

Other Word Forms

• lathlike
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of lath

before 1000; Middle English la ( th ) the; replacing Middle English latt, Old English lætt; cognate with German Latte, Dutch lat

Example Sentences

The fee paid to Spurs for the South Korean surpasses the previous MLS record of £16.5m paid by Atlanta United to sign Emmanuel Latte Lath from Middlesbrough in February.

From BBC • Aug. 6, 2025

The hosts failed to capitalise on a number of chances at St Mary's as Latte Lath pounced for his 10th goal of the season.

From BBC • Mar. 29, 2024

“This is a development market,” said Nina Lath Gupta, managing director of the N.F.D.C.

From New York Times • Nov. 26, 2011

What Lath and his team of engineers and architects do is alter the composition of concrete and plastic.

From Time Magazine Archive

Then Lath Mac Dabro is asked to go against Cuchulainn, as Cur had been asked.

From The Cattle-Raid of Cualnge (Tain Bo Cualnge) : An Old Irish Prose-Epic by Faraday, L. Winifred

Related Words

• girder
• joist
• piling
• pillar
• plank
• pole
• shaft
• sill
• timber