lather
pronunciation
How to pronounce lather in British English:
UK [ˈlɑ:ðə(r)]
How to pronounce lather in American English:
US [ˈlæðə(r)]
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- Noun:
- the froth produced by soaps or detergents
- agitation resulting from active worry
- a workman who puts up laths
- the foam resulting from excessive sweating (as on a horse)
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- Verb:
- cover with soap
- beat severely with a whip or rod
- form a lather
- rub soap all over, usually with the purpose of cleaning
Word Origin
- lather
- lather: [OE] Indo-European *lou- denoted ‘wash’ (from it English gets laundry, lavatory, lotion, etc). Addition of the suffix *-tro- produced *loutrom, which passed via Germanic *lauthram into English as lather. In Old English this is only recorded as meaning ‘washing soda’, and the modern sense ‘soap bubbles’ does not emerge until the late 16th century.=> ablution, laundry, lavatory, lotion
- lather (n.)
- Old English lauþr "foam, washing soda," from Proto-Germanic *lauthran (cognates: Old Norse lauðr "washing soap, foam"), from PIE *loutro- (cognates: Gaulish lautron, Old Irish loathar "bathing tub," Greek louein "to bathe," Latin lavere "to wash"), which is from root *leu(e)- "to wash" + instrumentative suffix *-tro-. The modern noun might be a 16c. redevelopment from the verb. Meaning "violent perspiration" (especially of horses) is from 1650s. Meaning "state of agitation" (such as induces sweating) is from 1839.
- lather (v.)
- Old English laþran, from Proto-Germanic *lauthrjan (source also of Old Norse leyðra "to clean, wash;" see lather (n.)). Related: Lathered; lathering.
Example
- 1. He commences to lather his face again , and then to hone his razor .
- 2. Briskly rub your hands together , making a soapy lather .
- 3. When you need to shave , simply work water against the soap until a lather builds and use it the same way you would regular shaving cream .
- 4. I wonder what his lather does .
- 5. He put some lather on his chin , and then began to shave .