lag
pronunciation
How to pronounce lag in British English:
UK [læɡ]
How to pronounce lag in American English:
US [læɡ]
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- Noun:
- the act of slowing down or falling behind
- the time between one event, process, or period and another
- one of several thin slats of wood forming the sides of a barrel or bucket
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- Verb:
- hang (back) or fall (behind) in movement, progress, development, etc.
- lock up or confine, in or as in a jail
- throw or pitch at a mark, as with coins
- cover with lagging to prevent heat loss
Word Origin
- lag
- lag: English has three distinct words lag. The verb ‘fall behind’ [16] is perhaps of Scandinavian origin (Norwegian has lagga ‘go slowly’), although a link has been suggested with the lag of fog, seg, lag, a dialect expression used in children’s games which represents an alteration of first, second, last. Lag ‘insulate’ [19] comes from an earlier noun lag ‘barrel stave’, which was also probably borrowed from a Scandinavian language (Swedish has lagg ‘stave’); the original material used for ‘lagging’ was wooden laths.And finally the noun lag ‘prisoner’ [19] seems to have come from an earlier verb lag, which originally meant ‘steal’, and then ‘catch, imprison’; but no one knows where this came from.
- lag (v.)
- "fail to keep pace," 1520s, earlier as a noun meaning "last person" (1510s), later also as an adjective (1550s, as in lag-mon "last man"), all of uncertain relationship, possibly from a Scandinavian source (compare Norwegian lagga "go slowly"), or some dialectal version of last, lack, or delay. Related: Lag; lagging. The noun meaning "retardation" is from 1855. First record of lag time is from 1951.
Example
- 1. However , this may reflect a time lag .
- 2. Analysts say that unemployment may lag changes in the economy .
- 3. Governmental ties already lag far behind the people-to-people relationships .
- 4. With a lag , growth should resume in coming months .
- 5. The wage lag is a key factor contributing to the rebounding competitiveness of u.s. industry .