lair

[ lair ]

/ lɛər /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR lair ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a den or resting place of a wild animal: The cougar retired to its lair.

a secluded or hidden place, especially a secret retreat or base of operations; a hideout or hideaway: a pirate's lair.

British. a place in which to lie or rest; a bed.

verb (used with object)

to place in a lair.

to serve as a lair for.

verb (used without object)

to go to, lie in, or have a lair.

Origin of lair

before 900; Middle English leir, Old English leger; cognate with Dutch, Old High German leger bed, camp; akin to lie²

Words nearby lair

lain, laine, laing, laingian, laipse, lair, lairage, laird, lairy, laisser-aller, laissez aller

Definition for lair (2 of 4)

lair ²

[ lair ]

/ lɛər /

noun

British Dialect. mud; mire.

verb (used without object)

Scot. to sink or stick in mud or mire.

Origin of lair

1250–1300; v. use of Middle English lair clay, mire < Old Norse leir clay, loam

Definition for lair (3 of 4)

lair ³

[ lair ]

/ lɛər /

noun Chiefly Scot.

lore; learning.

Origin of lair

Middle English (north and Scots) lare, Old English lār lore¹

Definition for lair (4 of 4)

lair ⁴

[ lair ]

/ lɛər /

noun Australian Informal.

a man who dresses garishly and is crude or vulgar; showoff.

Origin of lair

⁴

First recorded in 1930–35; back formation from lairy

Example sentences from the Web for lair

“The lair of the laser loves all of you,” he tells a visiting Atlas Obscura tour group.

New York’s Hologram King Is Also the City’s Last Pro Holographer |Nina Strochlic |May 27, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
In January the actor kidnapped Kimmel, tying him up in his lair.

8 Best Jimmy Kimmel Viral Videos |Nina Strochlic |November 5, 2013 |DAILY BEAST
He was not a recluse, however, as the documents and electronic chips recovered by the SEALs from his lair revealed.

Peter Bergen’s Manhunt: The Decade-Long Hunt for Osama bin Laden |Bruce Riedel |April 29, 2012 |DAILY BEAST
Reuters got hold of photos taken by a Pakistani security official reportedly only an hour after the U.S. stormed bin Laden's lair.

Day 4: Breaking News on Osama bin Laden's Death |The Daily Beast |May 5, 2011 |DAILY BEAST

His lair is not normal, but it can at least pass for a suburban house.

Villains as Fashion Heroes |Sean Macaulay |July 8, 2010 |DAILY BEAST
Shut up in this ruin like a wild beast in his lair, he would not permit the slightest infringement of what he called his rights.

The House of the Combrays |G. le Notre
A Lion asleep in his lair was waked up by a Mouse running over his face.

Aesop's Fables |Aesop
The other division of malaria-hunters pursued the trail of the Anopheles to her lair.

Preventable Diseases |Woods Hutchinson
That night he slept near their lair, but they left him and went hunting.

Lady Into Fox |David Garnett
There was the lair from whence all those men, proud and strong as lions, issued forth!

Taras Bulba and Other Tales |Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol

British Dictionary definitions for lair (1 of 3)

lair ¹

/ (lɛə) /

noun

the resting place of a wild animal

informal a place of seclusion or hiding

an enclosure or shed for farm animals

Scot the ground for a grave in a cemetery

verb

(intr) (esp of a wild animal) to retreat to or rest in a lair

(tr) to drive or place (an animal) in a lair

Word Origin for lair

Old English leger; related to lie ² and Old High German leger bed

British Dictionary definitions for lair (2 of 3)

lair ²

/ (ler) /

noun, verb

a Scot word for mire

Word Origin for lair

from Old Norse leir mud

British Dictionary definitions for lair (3 of 3)

lair ³

/ (lɛə) Australian slang /

noun

a flashy man who shows off

verb

(intr; foll by up or around) to behave or dress like a lair

Word Origin for lair

perhaps from leer

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

lair