lanyard

or lan·iard

[ lan-yerd ]

/ ˈlæn yərd /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR lanyard ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

Nautical. a short rope or wire rove through deadeyes to hold and tauten standing rigging.

any of various small cords or ropes for securing or suspending something, as a whistle about the neck or a knife from one's belt.

a cord with a small hook at one end, used in firing certain kinds of cannon.

a colored, single-strand cord worn around the left shoulder by a member of a military unit awarded a foreign decoration.

a white cord worn around the right shoulder, as by a military police officer, and secured to the butt of a pistol.

RELATED WORDS

rope, line, string, cord, gasket, gimp

Nearby words

Origin of lanyard

1475–85; blend of late Middle English lanyer (< Middle French laniere, Old French lasniere thong, equivalent to lasne noose + -iere, feminine of -ier -ier²) and yard¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for lanyard

An identification tag dangling from a lanyard around his neck was tucked discreetly into a breast pocket.
Amnesty International’s Pussy Riot Concert: Balaclavas and Punk Rockers|Robin Givhan|August 13, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The hansom turned off the boulevard, affording Lanyard an opportunity to look back through the side window.
Alias The Lone Wolf|Louis Joseph Vance
Lanyard mastered a sense of daze that he saw reflected in the opening eyes of the woman as she slipped from his arms.
Alias The Lone Wolf|Louis Joseph Vance
The interruption could not have been better timed; Lanyard was keen to get away.
Alias The Lone Wolf|Louis Joseph Vance

Lanyard called, but was not permitted to speak to me, and walked off swearing to himself.
The Boy Spy|Joseph Kerby
He measured with his eye when the right instant came, and snapped the lanyard.
Up the Forked River|Edward Sylvester Ellis

British Dictionary definitions for lanyard

lanyard

laniard

/ (ˈlænjəd) /

noun

a cord worn around the neck, shoulder, etc, to hold something such as a whistle or knife

a similar but merely decorative cord worn as part of a military uniform

a cord with an attached hook used in firing certain types of cannon

nautical a line rove through deadeyes for extending or tightening standing rigging

Word Origin for lanyard

C15 lanyer, from French lanière, from lasne strap, probably of Germanic origin

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for lanyard

lanyard

also laniard, alternative spelling (influenced by nautical yard (2) "long beam used to support a sail") of Middle English lainer, "thong for fastening parts of armor or clothing" (late 14c.), from Old French laniere "thong, lash," from lasniere, from lasne "strap, thong," apparently altered (by metathesis and influence of Old French las "lace") from nasliere, from Frankish *nastila or some other Germanic source, from Proto-Germanic *nastila- (cf. Old High German, Old Saxon nestila "lace, strap, band," German nestel "string, lace, strap"), from PIE root *ned- "to knot."