lute
1[ loot ]
/ lut /
noun
a stringed musical instrument having a long, fretted neck and a hollow, typically pear-shaped body with a vaulted back.
verb (used without object), lut·ed, lut·ing.
to play a lute.
verb (used with object), lut·ed, lut·ing.
to perform (music) on a lute: a musician skilled at luting Elizabethan ballads.
to express (a feeling, mood, etc.) by means of a lute: The minstrel eloquently luted his melancholy.
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Which Words Did English Take From Other Languages?English—is one of the most incredible, flavorfully-complex melting pots of linguistic ingredients from other countries. These linguistic ingredients are called loanwords that have been borrowed and incorporated into English. The loanwords are oftentimes so common now, the foreign flavor has been completely lost.
Nearby words
lustrum, lusty, lusus naturae, lut desert, lutanist, lute, lute stern, luteal, luteal cell, luteal phase, lutecium
Origin of lute
11325–75; Middle English < Middle French, Old French < Old Provençal laut < Arabic al ʿūd literally, the wood
Definition for lute (2 of 3)
lute
2[ loot ]
/ lut /
noun
verb (used with object), lut·ed, lut·ing.
to seal or cement with luting.
Origin of lute
21375–1425; late Middle English < Medieval Latin lutum, special use of Latin lutum mud, clay
Definition for lute (3 of 3)
lute
3[ loot ]
/ lut /
noun
a paving tool for spreading and smoothing concrete, consisting of a straightedge mounted transversely on a long handle.
verb (used with object), lut·ed, lut·ing.
to spread and smooth (concrete in a pavement) with a lute.
Origin of lute
31870–75, Americanism; < Dutch loet
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for lute
British Dictionary definitions for lute (1 of 2)
lute
1/ (luːt) /
noun
an ancient plucked stringed instrument, consisting of a long fingerboard with frets and gut strings, and a body shaped like a sliced pear
Word Origin for lute
C14: from Old French lut, via Old Provençal from Arabic al `ūd, literally: the wood
British Dictionary definitions for lute (2 of 2)
lute
2/ (luːt) /
noun
Also called: luting a mixture of cement and clay used to seal the joints between pipes, etc
dentistry a thin layer of cement used to fix a crown or inlay in place on a tooth
verb
(tr) to seal (a joint or surface) with lute
Word Origin for lute
C14: via Old French ultimately from Latin lutum clay
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for lute
lute
stringed musical instrument, late 13c., from Old French lut, leut, from Old Provençal laut, from Arabic al-'ud, the Arabian lute, literally "the wood" (source of Spanish laud, Portuguese alaude, Italian liuto), where al is the definite article. A player is a lutist (1620s) or a lutanist (c.1600, from Medieval Latin hybrid lutanista).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper