lye
Americannoun
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a highly concentrated, aqueous solution of potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide.
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any solution resulting from leaching, percolation, or the like.
noun
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any solution obtained by leaching, such as the caustic solution obtained by leaching wood ash
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a concentrated solution of sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide
Etymology
Origin of lye
First recorded before 900; Middle English lie, ley, Old English lēag; cognate with Dutch loog, German Lauge “lye,” Old Norse laug “warm bath”; see lave 1
Explanation
Lye is an alkaline solution that's used for cleaning. If you were a maid about 200 years ago, you probably cleaned the chamber pots with lye. Lye is an old cleaning product and an old word too. It comes from the Old English léag, which is related to the root for "wash" in our word lather. Lye is still used to make soap, but you probably won't come across the word except in old novels. If you become a historical re-enactor, say goodbye to body wash and hello to lye.
Vocabulary lists containing lye
"Everyday Use" by Alice Walker
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The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
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Old Yeller
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The process uses hot water mixed with an alkaline lye solution, so it’s more environmentally friendly than standard cremation, and usually more expensive.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 23, 2025
Food-science writer Harold McGee suggested baking the baking soda before using it to mimic lye more effectively.
From Seattle Times • Apr. 23, 2023
To make the humanmade version, the team first softened thin strips of oak by boiling them with lye and sodium sulfite.
From Science Magazine • Feb. 15, 2023
My friend Erin Clarkson of Cloudy Kitchen finally produced a beautiful pretzel without lye, and it inspired me to try, too.
From Salon • Oct. 10, 2022
When it dropped through the ash, it came out as lye.
From "A Long Way from Chicago" by Richard Peck
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
