lace

lace
\ \ [13] Lace originally meant ‘noose’ or ‘snare’, and its underlying semantic connections are not with ‘string’ or ‘thread’ but with ‘entrapment’ or ‘enticement’. Its ultimate source was Latin laqueus ‘noose’, which was related to the verb lacere ‘lure, deceive’ (source of English delicious and elicit). This passed into Vulgar Latin as *lacium, which in due course diversified into Italian laccio, Spanish lazo (source of English lasso [19]), and French lacs. It was the latter’s Old French predecessor, laz or las, that gave English lace. The sense ‘noose’ had died out by the early 17th century, but by then it had already developed via ‘string, cord’ to ‘cord used for fastening clothes’. ‘Open fabric made of threads’ emerged in the mid-16th century. Latch [14] is thought to be distantly related.
\ \ Cf.⇒ DELICIOUS, ELICIT, LASSO, LATCH

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • lacé — lacé …   Dictionnaire des rimes

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  • Lace — is an openwork fabric, patterned with open holes in the work, made by machine or by hand. The holes can be formed via removal of threads or cloth from a previously woven fabric, but more often open spaces are created as part of the lace fabric.… …   Wikipedia

  • Lace — (l[=a]s), n. [OE. las, OF. laz, F. lacs, dim. lacet, fr. L. laqueus noose, snare; prob. akin to lacere to entice. Cf. {Delight}, {Elicit}, {Lasso}, {Latchet}.] 1. That which binds or holds, especially by being interwoven; a string, cord, or band …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Lace — Lace, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Laced} ([=a]st); p. pr. & vb. n. {Lacing}.] 1. To fasten with a lace; to draw together with a lace passed through eyelet holes; to unite with a lace or laces, or, figuratively. with anything resembling laces. Shak.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • lace — [lās] n. [ME las < OFr las, laz < L laqueus, a noose, snare, trap < IE base * lēk > OE læla, a whip] 1. a string, ribbon, etc. used to draw together and fasten the parts of a shoe, corset, etc. by being drawn through eyelets or over… …   English World dictionary

  • Lace — Lace, v. i. To be fastened with a lace, or laces; as, these boots lace. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • lace-up — n [C usually plural] especially BrE a shoe that is fastened with a lace >lace up adj ▪ shiny black lace up shoes …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • lacé — lacé, ée (la sé, sée) part. passé de lacer. 1°   Serré avec un lacet. Corset bien lacé. Une femme lacée. 2°   S. m. Lacé, entrelacement de petits grains de verre, dont on orne les lustres …   Dictionnaire de la Langue Française d'Émile Littré

  • lace-up — (adj.) 1831, originally of boots, from LACE (Cf. lace) (v.) + UP (Cf. up) …   Etymology dictionary

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