Meaning
The master of the servants of a household; (historical) the master of a feudal manor
Etymology
Origin: Old English
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *kʷel-der.? Proto-Germanic *hlaibaz Proto-West Germanic *hlaib Old English hlāf Proto-Indo-European *wert-der. Proto-Germanic *wardaz Proto-West Germanic *ward Old English weard Old English hlāfweard Old English hlāford Middle English lord English lord From Middle English lord and lorde (attested from the 15th century), from earlier (14th century) lourde and other variants which dropped the intervocalic consonant of earlier lowerd, louerd, loverd, laford, and lhoaverd; from Old English hlāford < hlāfweard, a compound of hlāf (“bread”) + weard (“guardian”); see loaf and ward. The term was already being applied broadly prior to the literary development of Old English and was influenced by its common use to translate Latin dominus. Compare Scots laird (“lord”), preserving a separate vowel development (from northern/Scottish Middle English lard, laverd), the Old English compound hlāf-ǣta (“servant”, literally “bread-eater”), and modern English lady, from Old English hlǣfdīġe (“bread-kneader”). The Middle English word laford was borrowed by Icelandic, where it survives as lávarður. Doublet of hlaford and laird.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Antonyms
NYT Puzzle Appearances
Accepted in 15 recorded puzzles:
- 2026-08-31LABDORY
- 2026-08-03DFILORY
- 2026-05-17LACDORT
- 2026-01-19DARWKLO
- 2025-05-09RDWLIOY
- 2025-04-09OARLDMU
- 2025-03-24OALRIDB
- 2024-03-24RALDCIO
- 2024-02-26DAOIBLR
- 2024-02-23RAOKDLW
- 2024-02-08RAODBLY
- 2024-02-07ODLHGIR
+3 earlier appearances in the archive.