lace

[ leys ]

/ leɪs /

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See synonyms for: lace / laced / lacing / lacelike on Thesaurus.com

noun

a netlike ornamental fabric made of threads by hand or machine.

a cord or string for holding or drawing together, as when passed through holes in opposite edges.

ornamental cord or braid, especially of gold or silver, used to decorate uniforms, hats, etc.

a small amount of alcoholic liquor or other substance added to food or drink.

verb (used with object), laced, lac·ing.

to fasten, draw together, or compress by or as if by means of a lace.

to pass (a cord, leather strip, etc.), as through holes.

to interlace or intertwine.

to adorn or trim with lace.

to add a small amount of alcoholic liquor or other substance to (food or drink): He took his coffee laced with brandy.

to lash, beat, or thrash.

to compress the waist of (a person) by drawing tight the laces of a corset, or the like.

to mark or streak, as with color.

verb (used without object), laced, lac·ing.

to be fastened with a lace: These shoes lace up the side.

to attack physically or verbally (often followed by into): The teacher laced into his students.

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Origin of lace

1175–1225; (noun) Middle English las<Old French laz, las ≪ Latin laqueus noose; (v.) Middle English lasen<Middle French lacier, lasser, lachier (French lacer) ≪ Latin laqueāre to enclose in a noose, trap

OTHER WORDS FROM lace

lacelike, adjectivelacer, nounre·lace, verb, re·laced, re·lac·ing.well-laced, adjective

Words nearby lace

Lacan, La Canada-Flintridge, Laccadive Islands, Laccadive, Minicoy, and Amindivi Islands, laccolith, lace, lacebark, lace bug, lace-curtain, Lacedaemon, Lacedaemonian

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use lace in a sentence

You remember that doll’s dress as green instead of blue, because when you were that age your mother had a green dress with the same kind of lace collar as the doll’s.
Dark spaces on the map|Katie McLean|December 18, 2020|MIT Technology Review
So in response, we meticulously designed the Clove sneaker with fluid-repellent laces and uppers made from liquid-repellent and stain-resistant Clarino fabric, which can be cleaned easily with the same antibacterial wipes used in the hospital.
This new sneaker brand is meant for health care workers|Rachel King|December 6, 2020|Fortune
They also have a sneaker that has no laces which I love when I really just need to slip something on.
UGG Taps Zuri Marley For Ready-To-Wear Campaign|Nandi Howard|November 23, 2020|Essence.com
The speed laces cinch tight for a secure fit and don’t flap around when I’m swimming, which is a problem with some similar models.
The Gear That Lets Me Enjoy the Last Days of Summer|Graham Averill|September 15, 2020|Outside Online

Parents have declared unequivocally that they want more than higher test scores and yet all funds to public schools are tied to test scores like laces on shoes.
Our Public Schools Have a Customer Service Problem|Thomas Courtney|September 10, 2020|Voice of San Diego
They lifted her up, and when they saw that she was laced too tightly, they cut the stay lace in two.
In New Brothers Grimm 'Snow White', The Prince Doesn't Save Her|The Brothers Grimm|November 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
More items came in time, as funding was available, like a slit-and-lace-up jacket and a line of boxer underwear.
Look Who’s Wearing The Pants: Haute Butch’s Gender-Blending Style|Nina Strochlic|October 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And no amount of fancy lace could ever have competed with the joy of sleep.
Dita Von Teese, Keep Your Hands Off Our Boobs|Emma Mahony|August 6, 2014|DAILY BEAST
One 1918 example, in wispy silk chiffon and lace is even trimmed in mink!
What Lies Beneath: How Lingerie Got Sexy|Raquel Laneri|June 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In the Forum Club, there is taffeta and lace, leather and gold.
Shaq, Year One|Charles P. Pierce|May 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
On his head was the second-hand hat of some parvenu's coachman, gold lace, cockade and all.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
C was a Captain, all covered with lace; D was a drunkard, and had a red face.
Boys and Girls Bookshelf; a Practical Plan of Character Building, Volume I (of 17)|Various
Ramona had covered the box with white cloth, and the lace altar-cloth thrown over it fell in folds to the floor.
Ramona|Helen Hunt Jackson
She rose impatiently and bathed her eyes before ringing for the maid to lace her for dinner—it was long past tea-time.
Ancestors|Gertrude Atherton
She still wore the shabby lace and the artificial bunch of violets on the side of her head.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin

British Dictionary definitions for lace

lace

/ (leɪs) /

noun

a delicate decorative fabric made from cotton, silk, etc, woven in an open web of different symmetrical patterns and figures

a cord or string drawn through holes or eyelets or around hooks to fasten a shoe or garment

ornamental braid often used on military uniforms, etc

a dash of spirits added to a beverage

verb

to fasten (shoes, etc) with a lace

(tr) to draw (a cord or thread) through holes, eyes, etc, as when tying shoes

(tr) to compress the waist of (someone), as with a corset

(tr) to add a small amount of alcohol or drugs to (food or drink)

(tr; usually passive and foll by with) to streak or mark with lines or coloursthe sky was laced with red

(tr) to intertwine; interlace

(tr) informal to give a sound beating to

Derived forms of lace

lacelike, adjectivelacer, noun

Word Origin for lace

C13 las, from Old French laz, from Latin laqueus noose

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

lace

Origin of lace

OTHER WORDS FROM lace

Words nearby lace

Words related to lace

How to use lace in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for lace

Derived forms of lace

Word Origin for lace