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''lash'' ▫ᴱᴺ｜Definition｜1st｜20260305143651-00-⌔

lash - Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

Noun

lash (plural lashes)

🖼️ ➺

  • The thong or braided cord of a whip, with which the blow is given.
    • ✤ I observed that your whip wanted a lash to it.1
  • (obsolete) A leash in which an animal is caught or held; hence, a snare.
  • A stroke with a whip, or anything pliant and tough, often given as a punishment.
    • ✤ The culprit received thirty-nine lashes.
  • A quick and violent sweeping movement, as of an animal’s tail; a swish.
  • A stroke of satire or sarcasm; an expression or retort that cuts or gives pain; a cut.
    • ✤ The moral is a lash at the vanity of arrogating that to ourselves which succeeds well.2
  • A hair growing from the edge of the eyelid; an eyelash.
    • ✤ But Richmond, his grandfather’s darling, after one thoughtful glance cast under his lashes at that uncompromising countenance appeared to lose himself in his own reflections.3
  • In carpet weaving, a group of strings for lifting simultaneously certain yarns, to form the figure.
  • (botany) Flowering plants of genus Blepharis.
  • (Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, informal) An attempt; a go at something.
    • ✤ Synonym: (UK) bash
    • ✤ I’ll have a lash.
    • ✤ Much-loved characters living on after their author’s death is not so unusual these days. Every second bloke in possession of a keyboard seems to have had a lash at a James Bond thriller, including Kingsley Amis, John Gardner, Raymond Benson, Jeffery Deaver, William Boyd, Anthony Horowitz, Christopher Wood and Sebastian Faulks.4
    • ✤ “I felt I’d go out and grab the bull by the horns and give it a good lash and I’m very pleased to come away with second in my very first Diamond League final.”5
  • A quantity, a great number or amount (e.g. of rain or milk).
    • ✤ the Ayrshire cow gives a lash of milk on comparatively bare pasture6
    • ✤ The oaks cry oot beneath November’s lashes, But not for all the months […]7
    • ✤ … put a lash of scepticism in his tone.8

Verb

lash (third-person singular simple present lashes, present participle lashing, simple past and past participle lashed)

  • (transitive) To strike with a lash; to whip or scourge with a lash, or with something like one.
    • ✤ We lash the pupil, and defraud the ward9
    • ✤ A lesbian who was lashed as a teenager for saying she was gay.10
  • (transitive) To strike forcibly and quickly, as with a lash; to beat, or beat upon, with a motion like that of a lash.
    • ✤ Heavy seas lashed the shore.
    • ✤ (A swan) dashed suddenly forward with such a flutter that the water all round was lashed into foam.11
    • ✤ Carlo Ancelotti’s out-of-sorts team struggled to hit the target in the first half as Bolton threatened with Matthew Taylor lashing just wide.12
  • (transitive) To throw out with a jerk or quickly.
    • ✤ He falls, and lashing up his heels, his rider throws.13
  • (transitive) To scold; or to satirize; to censure with severity.
    • ✤ Synonym: berate
  • (intransitive) To ply the whip; to strike.
  • (intransitive) To strike vigorously; to let fly.
    • ✤ In the final minute of six added on, Colombia would undo their good work, though, Pérez fumbling the ball allowing Hemp to lash into the empty net.14
  • (intransitive) To utter censure or sarcastic language.
    • ✤ To laugh at follies, or to lash at vice.15
  • (intransitive, of rain) To fall heavily, especially in the phrase lash down.
    • ✤ With rain lashing across the ground at kick-off and every man in Auckland seemingly either English-born or supporting Scotland, Eden Park was transformed into Murrayfield in March.16
  • Used in phrasal verbs: lash back, lash out.

Verb

lash (third-person singular simple present lashes, present participle lashing, simple past and past participle lashed)

  • (transitive) To bind with a rope, cord, thong, or chain, so as to fasten.
    • ✤ to lash something to a spar
    • ✤ * lash a pack on a horse’s back*

Adjective

lash (comparative more lash, superlative most lash)

  • (obsolete) Remiss, lax.
    • ✤ Synonyms: at fault, blameworthy, neglectful, negligent, reprehensible
  • (obsolete) Relaxed.
    • ✤ Synonyms: see Thesaurus: carefree, Thesaurus: calm
  • Soft, watery, wet.
    • ✤ Synonyms: spongy, squidgy; see also Thesaurus: wet
    • ✤ Fruits being unwholesome and lash before the fourth or fifth Yeare.17
  • (Ulster) Excellent, wonderful.
    • ✤ Synonyms: see Thesaurus: excellent
    • ✤ We’re off school tomorrow, it’s gonna be lash!
    • ✤ That Chinese (food) was lash!
  • (UK, slang) Drunk.
    • ✤ Synonyms: see Thesaurus: drunk

Noun

lash (uncountable)

  • (machining, mechanical) Looseness between fitted parts, either intentional (as allowance) or unintentional (from error or wear).
    • ✤ Synonyms: backlash, play, lost motion
    • ✤ setting the proper valve lash for solid lifters
    • ✤ excessive lash in the gear train

Pronunciation

  • (UK, US) IPA: /læʃ/
  • Audio (US): 🔊
  • Rhymes: -æʃ

Etymology 1

From Middle English lashe, lasshe, lasche (“a stroke; the flexible end of a whip”), from Proto-Germanic ﹡laskô (“flap of fabric, strap”).
Cognate with Dutch lasch, las (“a piece; seal; joint; notch; seam”), German Low German Laske, Lask (“a flap; dag; strap”), German Lasche (“a flap; joint; strap; tongue; scarf”), Swedish lask (“scarf”), Icelandic laski (“the bottom part of a glove”).

Etymology 2

From Middle French lachier, from Old French lacier (“to lace”).

Etymology 3

From Old French lasche (French lâche).

Printed 2026-06-28.

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Footnotes

  1. 1711 July 15 (Gregorian calendar), [Joseph Addison; Richard Steele et al.], “WEDNESDAY, July 4, 1711”, in The Spectator, number 108; republished in Alexander Chalmers, editor, The Spectator; a New Edition, […], volume II, New York, N.Y.: D[aniel] Appleton & Company, 1853, →OCLC: ↩

  2. 1692, Roger L’Estrange, “”, in Fables, of Æsop and Other Eminent Mythologists: […], London: […] R[ichard] Sare, […], →OCLC: ↩

  3. 1959, Georgette Heyer, chapter 1, in The Unknown Ajax: ↩

  4. 2021 August 28, Grant Smithies, “The Dark Remains: Ian Rankin’s ‘terrifying’ return”, in Stuff ‎: ↩

  5. 2022 September 9, Cathal Dennehy, “Ciara Mageean shines in Diamond League to claim second”, in Irish Examiner ‎: ↩

  6. 1883, Ontario Agricultural College, Annual Report of the Ontario School of Agriculture and Experimental Farm, page 163: ↩

  7. 1891, James Logie Robertson, Ochil Idylls: And Other Poems, page 23: ↩

  8. 2014 April 22, John Creasey, The Theft of Magna Carta, House of Stratus, →ISBN, page 79: ↩

  9. 1693, Decimus Junius Juvenalis, John Dryden, transl., “[The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis.] The First Satyr”, in The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis. Translated into English Verse. […] Together with the Satires of Aulus Persius Flaccus. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson […], →OCLC: ↩

  10. 1994 October, “Lesbian Launches Transkei Gay Group”, in Gay Community News, page 4: ↩

  11. 1866., Chatterbox ‎, volume XXVI, United States, page 202: ↩

  12. 2010 December 29, Chris Whyatt, “Chelsea 1 - 0 Bolton”, in BBC ‎: ↩

  13. 1717, John Dryden [et al.], “”, in Ovid’s Metamorphoses in Fifteen Books. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC: ↩

  14. 2023 August 12, Suzanne Wrack, “England hit back to beat Colombia and set up World Cup semi with Australia”, in The Guardian ‎: ↩

  15. 1693, Decimus Junius Juvenalis, John Dryden, transl., “[The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis.] The Fifth Satyr”, in The Satires of Decimus Junius Juvenalis. Translated into English Verse. […] Together with the Satires of Aulus Persius Flaccus. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson […], →OCLC: ↩

  16. 2011 October 1, Tom Fordyce, “Rugby World Cup 2011: England 16-12 Scotland”, in BBC Sport ‎: ↩

  17. 1658, Sir Thomas Browne, The Garden of Cyrus, Folio Society, published 2007, page 211: ↩

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