low

low
\ \ English has two words low, of which surprisingly the ‘noise made by cattle’ [OE] is the older. It goes back ultimately to the onomatopoeic Indo-European base *klā-. This also produced Latin clārus (which originally meant ‘loud’, and gave English clear and declare), clāmārecry out’ (source of English acclaim, claim, exclaim, etc), and calāreproclaim, summon’ (source of English council).
\ \ It produced a prehistoric Germanic *khlō-, whose only survivor other than English low is Dutch loeien. Lownot high’ [12] was borrowed from Old Norse lágr (source also of Swedish låglow’).
\ \ This goes back to a prehistoric Germanic *lǣgjaz, which was derived from the same base as produced the English verb lierecline’.
\ \ Cf.ACCLAIM, CLAIM, CLEAR, COUNCIL, EXCLAIM; LIE

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Low — (l[=o]), a. [Compar. {Lower} (l[=o] [ e]r); superl. {Lowest}.] [OE. low, louh, lah, Icel. l[=a]gr; akin to Sw. l[*a]g, Dan. lav, D. laag, and E. lie. See {Lie} to be prostrate.] [1913 Webster] 1. Occupying an inferior position or place; not high… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • low — low1 [lō] adj. [ME lah < ON lagr, akin to MDu lage, MLowG læge < IE base * legh , LIE1] 1. a) of little height or elevation; not high or tall b) not far above the ground [low clouds] 2. depress …   English World dictionary

  • Low — may refer to:*Low (complexity), a relationship between complexity classes in computational complexity theory *Low Island (disambiguation) *Low pressure area, a region where the atmospheric pressure is lowest with relation to the surrounding area… …   Wikipedia

  • Löw — Löw, auch Loew oder Lőw, ist ein Familienname, der vor allem im deutschsprachigen Raum vorkommt. Bekannte Namensträger: Dieter Loew (* 1936), Schweizer Mediziner Emanuel Löw (1834–1908), schweizerischer Politiker Emil Löw (1892–19**), deutscher… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Low — ist der Familienname folgender Personen: Adolphe Low (* 1915), deutsch spanisch französischer Widerstandskämpfer Bruce Low (1913–1990), niederländischer Schlager– und Gospelsänger Colin Low, Baron Low of Dalston (* 1942), britischer Politiker und …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Low — Low, adv. 1. In a low position or manner; not aloft; not on high; near the ground. [1913 Webster] 2. Under the usual price; at a moderate price; cheaply; as, he sold his wheat low. [1913 Webster] 3. In a low or mean condition; humbly; meanly.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Löw — (or Loew) is a surname and may refer to:People* Benjamin Wolf Löw (1775–1851), Polish Hungarian rabbi * Franklin M. Loew, veterinarian * Hermann Loew, German entomologist * Isaak Löw Hofmann, Edler von Hofmannsthal * Joachim Löw, head coach of… …   Wikipedia

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  • LOW — (Loewe), British family of Hungarian origin which became prominent in journalism and literature. MAXIMILIAN LOEWE (1830–1900) was born in Hungary and joined the Nationalist party led by Louis Kossuth. After the failure of the 1848 revolution in… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • low — Ⅰ. low [1] ► ADJECTIVE 1) of less than average height. 2) situated not far above the ground, horizon, etc. 3) below average in amount, extent, or intensity. 4) lacking importance, prestige, or quality; inferior. 5) (of a sound) deep. 6) …   English terms dictionary

  • Low — Low: Low  альбом Testament Low  сингл Келли Кларксон Low  сингл Flo Rida Low американская инди рок группа из Дулута, штат Миннесота Low одиннадцатый альбом британского музыканта Дэвида Боуи, изданный в 1977 году …   Википедия

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