lewd

[lood]

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adjective, lewd·er, lewd·est.

inclined to, characterized by, or inciting to lust or lechery; lascivious.

obscene or indecent, as language or songs; salacious.

Obsolete.

low, ignorant, or vulgar.
base, vile, or wicked, especially of a person.
bad, worthless, or poor, especially of a thing.

Origin of lewd

before 900; Middle English leud, lewed, Old English lǣwede lay, unlearned

Related formslewd·ly, adverblewd·ness, noun

Can be confusedlewd obscene pornographic profanatory profane

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

Related Words for lewdly

suggestively, viciously

Examples from the Web for lewdly

Historical Examples of lewdly

(Lewdly) The mouth can be better engaged than with a cylinder of rank weed.
Ulysses
James Joyce
Concerning Philip that she was lewdly transported with the loue of one Th.
Witch Stories
E. Lynn (Elizabeth Lynn) Linton
He drained his glass noisily while his eyes remained upon the pretty buckskin-clad figure that so lewdly attracted him.
The Heart of Unaga
Ridgwell Cullum
If that man should be lewdly given, he deceiveth me; for, Henry, I see virtue in his looks.
Old and New London
Walter Thornbury

British Dictionary definitions for lewdly

lewd

adjective

characterized by or intended to excite crude sexual desire; obscene

obsolete

wicked
ignorant

Derived Formslewdly, adverblewdness, noun

Word Origin for lewd

C14: from Old English lǣwde lay, ignorant; see lay ³

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 lewdly

lewd

adj.

Old English læwede "nonclerical," of uncertain origin but probably ultimately from Vulgar Latin *laigo-, from Latin laicus (see lay (adj.)). Sense of "unlettered, uneducated" (early 13c.) descended to "coarse, vile, lustful" by late 14c. Related: Lewdly; lewdness.