loaf

The definition of a loaf is an oblong shaped mass of baked food, such as bread or meat.

(noun)

An example of a loaf is a package of sliced bread.

Loaf is defined as to lounge around.

(verb)

An example of loaf is spending a Saturday afternoon laying on the couch.

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See loaf in Webster's New World College Dictionary

noun pl. loaves

  1. a portion of bread baked in one piece, commonly of oblong shape and in a size convenient for table use
  2. any mass of food shaped somewhat like a loaf of bread and baked: a salmon loaf
  3. lump ()
  4. Brit., Slang head or brain

Origin: ME lof < OE hlaf, akin to Ger laib, OHG hlaib, ON hleifr, Goth hlaifs

intransitive verb

to spend time idly; loiter or lounge about; idle, dawdle, etc.

Origin: prob. back-form. < loafer

transitive verb

to spend (time) idly: often with away

See loaf in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun pl. loaves loaves (lōvz)
  1. A shaped mass of bread baked in one piece.
  2. A shaped, usually rounded or oblong, mass of food: veal loaf.

Origin:

Origin: Middle English lof

Origin: , from Old English hlāf

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Word History: Loaf, lord, and lady are closely related words that testify to bread's fundamental importance in the Middle Ages. Curiously, though bread was a staple food in many Indo-European cultures, loaf and its cognates occur only in the Germanic languages, and lord and lady only in English. Loaf derives from Old English hlāf, “bread, loaf of bread,” related to Gothic hlaifs, Old Norse hleifr, and Modern German Laib, all of which mean “loaf of bread.” Hlāf survives in Lammas, originally Hlāfmaesse, “Loaf-Mass,” the Christian Feast of the First Fruits, traditionally celebrated on August 1. A lord, Old English hlāford, was a compound meaning “loaf-ward, keeper of bread,” because a lord maintains and feeds his household and offers hospitality. Similarly, lady derives from Old English hlǣfdige, which became lady by 1382. The -dige comes from dǽge, “kneader,” and is related to our dough. A lady, therefore, is “a kneader of bread, a breadmaker.” Lord and lady both retain vestiges of their original meanings, although England's aristocrats have not been elbow deep in flour, let alone dough, for several centuries.

intransitive verb loafed, loaf·ing, loafs
To pass time at leisure; idle.

Origin:

Origin: Probably back-formation from loafer

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