Loaf, lōf, v.i. to loiter, pass time idly.—n. Loaf′er.—adj. Loaf′erish. [Prob. directly Ger. läufer, a runner, laufen, to run about.]
Loam, lōm, n. a muddy soil, of clay, sand, and animal and vegetable matter.—v.t. to cover with loam.—adj. Loam′y. [A.S. lám; Ger. lehm; cf. lime.]
Loan, lōn, n. a lane: an open space for passage left between fields of corn: a place for milking cows.—Also Loan′ing. [Lane.]
Loan, lōn, n. anything lent: the act of lending: permission to use: money lent for interest.—v.t. to lend.—adj. Loan′able.—ns. Loan′-off′ice, a public office at which loans are negotiated, a pawnbroker's shop; Loan′-socī′ety, a society organised to lend money to be repaid with interest by instalments; Loan′-word, one taken into one language from another—like Loafer above. [A.S. lǽn; Ice. lán, Dan. laan, cf. Ger. lehen, a fief.]
Loath, Loth, lōth, adj. disliking: reluctant, unwilling.—adv. Loath′ly.—n. Loath′ness. [A.S. láð, hateful—líðan, to travel; Ger. leiden, suffer.]
Loathe, lōth, v.t. to dislike greatly, to feel disgust at.—adj. Loath′ful, full of loathing, hate, or abhorrence: exciting loathing or disgust.—n. Loath′ing, extreme hate or disgust: abhorrence.—adj. hating.—adv. Loath′ingly.—adjs. Loath′ly, Loath′y (obs.), loathsome; Loath′some, exciting loathing or abhorrence: detestable.—adv. Loath′somely.—n. Loath′someness. [A.S. láðian—láð; cf. loath.]
Lob, lob, n. a clumsy person, the last in a race: a lobworm: the coal-fish: at cricket, a long slow ball: something thick and heavy.—v.t. to throw gently, slowly, or with underhand delivery: at lawn-tennis, to strike the ball high over an opponent's head into the end of the court: to hang wearily down.—n. Lobs′pound, a prison.—Lob lie by the fire, Milton's lubber-fiend, a brownie who works by night for his bowl of cream. [W. llob; cf. Lubber.]
Lobby, lob′i, n. a small hall or waiting-room: a passage serving as a common entrance to several apartments: the ante-chamber of a legislative hall, frequented by outsiders for the purpose of influencing votes.—ns. Lobb′ying, frequenting the lobby to collect political intelligence, &c.; Lobb′yist, Lobb′y-mem′ber, a journalist, &c., who frequents a lobby in the interest of some cause or of a newspaper. [Low L. lobia—Middle High Ger. loube (Ger. laube), a portico, arbour—laub, a leaf.]
Lobe, lōb, n. the lower part of the ear: (anat.) a division of the lungs, brain, &c.: (bot.) a division of a leaf.—adjs. Lob′ar, Lob′āte, Lobed, Lob′ose; Lobe′-foot′ed, Lō′biped, having lobate feet, as a coot, grebe, or phalarope.—ns. Lobe′let, Lob′ule, a small lobe.—adjs. Lob′ular, Lob′ulāted.—ns. Lob′ulus, any small lobe or lobe-like structure:—pl. Lob′ulī; Lō′bus, a lobe:—pl. Lō′bī.—Lobar pneumonia, inflammation of a whole lobe of the lungs, as distinguished from Lobular pneumonia, which attacks the lungs in patches. [Fr., prob. through Low L. from Gr. lobos, lobe; cf. lap, to fold.]
Lobelia, lob-ē′li-a, n. an ornamental flower, its roots medicinal. [Lobel, a Flemish botanist.]