læwede

Middle English

Adjective

læwede

1. (Early Middle English) Alternative form of lewed

Old English

Etymology

According to the OED, of uncertain origin, but likely from Vulgar Latin *laigo-, from Late Latin laicus (“of the people”) +‎ -ede, although the phonetic development is a difficulty.

Otherwise, formally resembling a derivative of the past participle of lǣwan (“to reveal, betray”) in the sense of "exposed as being unlearned" or "easily betrayed, clueless", from Proto-West Germanic *lāwijan (“to betray”), fitting a scenario where the word was influenced in meaning by similar sounding Latin laicus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈlæː.we.de/

Adjective

lǣwede

1. lay; non-clerical

Declension

Descendants

• Middle English: lewede, lewed, lewd, lewid, lewde
  • English: lewd
  • Middle Scots: lawit, lewit, lewd

References

• Joseph Bosworth and T. Northcote Toller (1898) “lǽwede”, in An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary‎, 2nd edition, Oxford: Oxford University Press.