lye

[ lahy ]

/ laɪ /

noun Chemistry.

a highly concentrated, aqueous solution of potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide.

any solution resulting from leaching, percolation, or the like.

Nearby words

Origin of lye

before 900; Middle English lie, ley, Old English lēag; cognate with Dutch loog, German Lauge lye, Old Norse laug warm bath. See lave¹

Can be confusedlie lye

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

Examples from the Web for lye

Another discusses being bathed by her grandmother as a child with lye soap in an effort to lighten her complexion.
Beyonce and the Myth of Black Beauty|Allison Samuels|March 2, 2012|DAILY BEAST
In principle the lye boil is simple, consisting in boiling the goods with a solution of soda ash, or caustic soda.
The Dyeing of Cotton Fabrics|Franklin Beech
If this be true, the bodies of Christians do lye unnaturally in their Graves.
The Works of Sir Thomas Browne (Volume 1 of 3)|Thomas Browne
The frames being each about two inches thick, the flowers undergo very little pressure, though they lye between the cloths.
The Toilet of Flora|Pierre-Joseph Buc'hoz

Repeat the process of closing, graining and settling and take a sample of lye.
Soap-Making Manual|E. G. Thomssen
Lixivium means made into lye; hence, of the color of ashes and water.
The Mushroom, Edible and Otherwise|M. E. Hard

British Dictionary definitions for lye

lye

/ (laɪ) /

noun

any solution obtained by leaching, such as the caustic solution obtained by leaching wood ash

a concentrated solution of sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide

Word Origin for lye

Old English lēag; related to Middle Dutch lōghe, Old Norse laug bath, Latin lavāre to wash

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 lye

lye

Old English læg, leag "lye," from Proto-Germanic *laugo (cf. Middle Dutch loghe, Dutch loog, Old High German louga, German Lauge "lye"), from PIE root *leue- "to wash" (see lave). The substance was formerly used in place of soap, hence Old High German luhhen "to wash," Old Norse laug "hot bath, hot spring," Danish lørdag, Swedish lördag "Saturday," literally "washing-day." Chamber-lye in early Modern English was the name for urine used as a detergent.

Science definitions for lye

lye

[ lī ]

A strong alkaline solution or solid of potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide, made by allowing water to wash through wood ashes. It is used to make soap and drain and oven cleaners. Chemical formula: KOH or NaOH.