losel

American  

[loh-zuhl, loo-, loz-uhl] / ˈloʊ zəl, ˈlu-, ˈlɒz əl /

noun

1. a worthless person; scoundrel.

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adjective

1. worthless or useless.

losel British  

/ ˈləʊzəl /

noun

1. a worthless person

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adjective

1. (of a person) worthless, useless, or wasteful

Etymology

Origin of losel

1325–75; Middle English: literally, one who is lost, equivalent to los- (past participle stem of lose ) + -el -le

Example Sentences

Wasn't that "lewd losel" told by the Kentish Archbishop how useful such music might be say if a pilgrim struck his toe on a stone?'

From Cinderella in the South Twenty-Five South African Tales by Cripps, Arthur Shearly

And all his prowess was in vain, For by a losel was he slain, As on the highway side he slept One summer night, of no man kept.

From The Earthly Paradise A Poem by Morris, William

I am a little too sheepish on certain occasions; but that is a virtue your losel should respect, and apply himself to.

From The Childhood of King Erik Menved An Historical Romance by Ingemann, Bernhard Severin

Come life or death, 'tis still the same, So we preserve our stainless name From losel of the coward's shame.

From The Felon's Track History Of The Attempted Outbreak In Ireland, Embracing The Leading Events In The Irish Struggle From The Year 1843 To The Close Of 1848 by Doheny, Michael

Upon this the cavaliers checked their steeds, and requested that the foot soldiery might advance and disperse this losel crew, holding it beneath their dignity to contend with pedestrian foes.

From The Knickerbocker, or New-York Monthly Magazine, April 1844 Volume 23, Number 4 by Clark, Lewis Gaylord