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• lith
  lith

  noun

  an arm or leg; limb.
• lith-
  lith-

  variant of litho- before a vowel.
• -lith
  -lith

  a combining form meaning “stone” (acrolith; megalith; paleolith ); sometimes occurring in words as a variant form of -lite (batholith; laccolith ).
• lith.
  lith.

  abbreviation

  lithograph.
• Lith.
  Lith.

  abbreviation

  Lithuania.

lith

¹ American  

[lith] / lɪθ /

noun

British Dialect.

1. an arm or leg; limb.

2. a joint, as of the finger.

3. a segment, as of an orange.

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lith- ² American  

1. variant of litho- before a vowel.

   lithic.

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-lith ³ American  

1. a combining form meaning “stone” (acrolith; megalith; paleolith ); sometimes occurring in words as a variant form of -lite (batholith; laccolith ).

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lith. ⁴ American  

abbreviation

1. lithograph.

2. lithographic.

3. lithography.

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Lith. ⁵ American  

abbreviation

1. Lithuania.

2. Lithuanian. Also Lith

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-lith ¹ British  

combining form

1. indicating stone or rock Compare -lite

   megalith

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Lith. ² British  

abbreviation

1. Lithuania(n)

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Usage

Basic definitions of lith- and -lith Lith- and -lith are combining forms meaning “stone.” They come from the Greek líthos, meaning “stone.”What does lith- mean?Lith- is a combining form used like a prefix. It is used in medicine, especially in pathology, and in science, especially in geology. In pathology terms, lith- specifically refers to a calculus, "a stone, or concretion, formed in the gallbladder, kidneys, or other parts of the body." The word calculus itself literally means “little stone” in calculus. Lith- is a variant of litho-, which loses its -o- when combined with words or word elements beginning with vowels. Want to know more? Read our Words That Use litho- article. What does -lith mean?The combining form -lith is used like a suffix meaning “stone.” It is used in scientific and medical terms, especially in geology and pathology. In pathology, it specifically refers to a calculus, "a stone, or concretion, formed in the gallbladder, kidneys, or other parts of the body." The word calculus itself literally means “little stone” in calculus. In geology, -lith is occasionally used as a variant of -lite and its variant -lyte, combining forms used to name minerals or fossils. The corresponding form of -lith combined to the beginning of words is litho- and lith-. Learn more about their specific applications in our Words That Use articles for the terms. Closely related to -lith is -lithic, as in Paleolithic.

Etymology

Origin of lith¹

before 900; Middle English, Old English; cognate with Dutch, Old High German lid, Old Norse lithr, Gothic lithus limb, member; akin to German Glied

Origin of -lith³

see origin at litho-

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lith Lith.

Wok ubbe, and saw a mikel lith In þe bour þat hauelok lay, Also brith so it were day.

From The Lay of Havelok the Dane by Unknown

His state of desolation is poetically described: He that werd the fowe and griis, And on bed the purpur biis, Now on bard hethe he lith.

From Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border, Volume 2 Consisting of Historical and Romantic Ballads, Collected in The Southern Counties of Scotland; with a Few of Modern Date, Founded Upon Local Tradition by Sir Walter Scott

Lond and lede, or ledes, or lith, frequently occur unequivocally in this latter sense, thus:— "He was the first of Inglond that gaf God his tithe Of isshue of bestes, of londes, or of lithe."

From Notes and Queries, Number 27, May 4, 1850 by Various

In this yere, that is to seye in the xij day of Juyn the yere of oure lord a mlccclxxxxiiij, the goode lady quene deyde at Shene, and lith entered worthyly at Westm’.

From A Chronicle of London from 1089 to 1483 Written in the Fifteenth Century, and for the First Time Printed from MSS. in the British Museum by Sir Nicholas Harris Nicolas

O nith saw she þer-inne a lith, 1252 A swiþe fayr, a swiþe bryth, Al so brith, al so shir, So it were a blase of fir.

From The Lay of Havelok the Dane by Unknown

Lith. of Ritchies & Dunnavant Richmond, Va. Tab: 2       Book: 3       Pag 129 Tab.

From The History of Virginia, in Four Parts by Robert Beverley

Sw., and Dan. ”l, Lith. alus a kind of beer, OSlav. ol? beer.

From Webster's Unabridged Dictionary by Noah Webster

To the root ab or ap, water, place the Lith. and Lett. uppe, river, whence the following.

From The River-Names of Europe by Robert Ferguson

Agni, fire, god of fire; Lat. ignis; Lith. ugnis; O.-S. ogni.

From History of Religion A Sketch of Primitive Religious Beliefs and Practices, and of the Origin and Character of the Great Systems by Allan Menzies