lace
Americannoun
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a netlike ornamental fabric made of threads by hand or machine.
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a cord or string for holding or drawing together, as when passed through holes in opposite edges.
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ornamental cord or braid, especially of gold or silver, used to decorate uniforms, hats, etc.
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a small amount of alcoholic liquor or other substance added to food or drink.
verb (used with object)
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to fasten, draw together, or compress by or as if by means of a lace.
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to pass (a cord, leather strip, etc.), as through holes.
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to interlace or intertwine.
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to adorn or trim with lace.
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to add a small amount of alcoholic liquor or other substance to (food or drink).
He took his coffee laced with brandy.
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to lash, beat, or thrash.
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to compress the waist of (a person) by drawing tight the laces of a corset, or the like.
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to mark or streak, as with color.
verb (used without object)
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to be fastened with a lace.
These shoes lace up the side.
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to attack physically or verbally (often followed byinto ).
The teacher laced into his students.
noun
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a delicate decorative fabric made from cotton, silk, etc, woven in an open web of different symmetrical patterns and figures
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a cord or string drawn through holes or eyelets or around hooks to fasten a shoe or garment
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ornamental braid often used on military uniforms, etc
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a dash of spirits added to a beverage
verb
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to fasten (shoes, etc) with a lace
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(tr) to draw (a cord or thread) through holes, eyes, etc, as when tying shoes
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(tr) to compress the waist of (someone), as with a corset
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(tr) to add a small amount of alcohol or drugs to (food or drink)
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to streak or mark with lines or colours
the sky was laced with red
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(tr) to intertwine; interlace
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informal (tr) to give a sound beating to
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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lacesimple
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lacessimple
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have lacedperfect
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has lacedperfect
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am lacingprogressive
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are lacingprogressive
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is lacingprogressive
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have been lacingperfect progressive
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has been lacingperfect progressive
Past
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lacedsimple
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had lacedperfect
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was lacingprogressive
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were lacingprogressive
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had been lacingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of lace
1175–1225; (noun) Middle English las < Old French laz, las ≪ Latin laqueus noose; (v.) Middle English lasen < Middle French lacier, lasser, lachier ( French lacer ) ≪ Latin laqueāre to enclose in a noose, trap
Explanation
Your grandmother's kitchen curtains might be made from lace, a delicate fabric with twists and loops forming patterns of holes. Lace is often used for fancy dresses, special doilies and tablecloths, and decorative accents. You can also use the noun lace to describe the cord you tie your sneakers with, and the verb lace can mean twist or braid or intertwine: "The two friends lace their arms around each other and skip across the playground." Lace is surprisingly related to lasso, a loop of rope carried by a cowboy — both words are rooted in the Latin laqueus, "noose or snare."
Vocabulary lists containing lace
Flying Lessons & Other Stories
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The Mayor of Casterbridge
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Fabulous Fabrics
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Since then, several technical studies and two test trips with a full-scale reproduction of the tapestry have been undertaken to meet the logistical challenge of transporting a work as delicate as lace.
From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026
They said no DNA belonging to their client had been found on key exhibits in recent tests, including the lace.
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
"Lighter lace material has made a comeback recently, as well as dresses with a chic multiway neck scarf."
From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026
Standing inside her store, surrounded by pastel ballgowns decorated with lace and rhinestones, Leonor felt optimistic.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 7, 2026
“I am finding it difficult to discern between asleep and awake,” Tara says, tugging at her lace cuffs again.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
Each hub brought together suppliers of laces, soles and fabric, as well as logistics firms that help to quickly turn designs into store-ready products and ship them out.
From BBC ● Apr. 26, 2026
Alphie told The Nolan Show that Donall brushes his teeth three times and check his laces six times before he is ready for the day.
From BBC ● Apr. 7, 2026
Heading into the exhibition I was eager to see what 18th-century ribbons and laces if not frock coats and gowns would be displayed as ancillary objects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 4, 2026
A spoonful of brown sugar becomes caramel as it melts; diced apples collapse into little pockets of warmth; cinnamon laces the air with something almost nostalgic.
From Salon ● Nov. 13, 2025
She has loosened her laces and stretched her old running shoes to accommodate them, but she still feels like a C-grade zombie.
From "A Heart in a Body in the World" by Deb Caletti
To some degree, the AI race is laced with inflation concerns for the stock market in the near term, as strong demand for chips has led to pricing power for companies that make them.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 5, 2026
A couple of days later, I was in our nation’s seat of power, the Florsheims in question laced firmly onto my feet.
From Slate ● Jun. 5, 2026
The text of “Service Ready” comes laced with boldfaced aphorisms.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 10, 2026
Taking cues from surf rock, 60s pop and sci-fi soundtracks, The B-52s sound is laced with exuberant humour and a love of junk culture.
From BBC ● Mar. 17, 2026
It took no great leap of intelligence to realize that Hamilton Knapp had laced Gingers dog treats with tranquilizers and laxatives so that she would do one, possibly two, embarrassing things on stage.
From "The View From Saturday" by E.L. Konigsburg
Ilkay Gundogan executed his effort with perfection, lacing a ferocious, dipping strike into David de Gea's top corner, the Manchester United stopper only able to watch it fly in.
From BBC ● May 15, 2026
Its asymmetrical lacing design gave players a larger striking surface on the inside of the foot, enhancing the control of the ball.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 25, 2025
It also feels like a moment — to use a sports metaphor, which I’m not an athlete — that you’re lacing up your shoes.
From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2025
Lux took two balls before lacing a 95-mph fastball from Dylan Cease into center field to score Edman for a 2-2 tie.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 26, 2024
“Every time it rains, it turns into a mudhole behind my place,” he said, leaning back and lacing his fingers behind his head.
From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
