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definitions

livelihood

[ lahyv-lee-hood ]
/ ˈlaɪv liˌhʊd /
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noun

a means of supporting one's existence, especially financially or vocationally; living: to earn a livelihood as a tenant farmer.

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RELATED WORDS

living, subsistence, sustenance, employment, income, slot, vocation, art, business, means, support, work, profession, game, keep, thing, job, craft, maintenance, grind

Nearby words

  1. lived-in,
  2. livedo,
  3. livedo reticularis,
  4. livedoid,
  5. livedoid dermatitis,
  6. livelily,
  7. livelong,
  8. lively,
  9. liven,
  10. livenza

Origin of livelihood

before 1000; earlier liveliod, livelihod, alteration (by reanalysis as lively + -hood; compare obsolete livelihood liveliness) of Middle English livelod, Old English līflād conduct of life, way of life (see life, lode, load)

Synonym study

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

Examples from the Web for livelihood

British Dictionary definitions for livelihood

livelihood

/ (ˈlaɪvlɪˌhʊd) /

noun

occupation or employment
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 livelihood

livelihood

n.

1610s, alteration of livelode "means of keeping alive" (c.1300), from Old English lifad "course of life," from lif "life" + lad "way, course" (see load). Cf. Old High German libleita. Spelling assimilated to words in -hood. Earlier livelihood was a different word, meaning "liveliness," from lively.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper