löje

See also: loje, lojë, lője, łoje, and łoję

Swedish

Etymology

Old Swedish löghe, from Old Norse hlœgi (“ridicule”), from Proto-Germanic *hlōgijaną (“to make laugh”), from Proto-Germanic *hlahjaną (“to laugh”). Compare Danish løjer, Icelandic hlægja.

Noun

löje n

1. contemptuous glee (at something or someone considered ridiculous), ridicule
2. (obsolete) a smile, a grin

   le ett litet, svagt löje

   smile slightly (faintly), give a slight (a faint; the ghost of a) smile

   • Tolstoy, Anna Karenina, part 1, chapter 28

     Dolly kunde med möda hålla tillbaka ett löje.

     Dolly could scarcely suppress a smile.

3. (obsolete) laughter
4. (obsolete) merriment
   • Swedish lyrics 1821 by Bernhard Crusell to the aria Non più andrai, from Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro (1786); Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte

     Säg farväl, lilla fjäril, åt nöjen, / åt kurtiser, åt lekar och löjen!

     Bid farewell, little butterfly to joys / to flirtations, games and merriments.

Declension

Declension of löje

		nominative	genitive
singular	indefinite	löje	löjes
	definite	löjet	löjets
plural	indefinite	löjen	löjens
	definite	löjena	löjenas

Synonyms for obsolete senses

• leende
• skratt
• munterhet

Derived terms

• ett löjets skimmer (“an air of mockery”)

Related terms

• hånlöje
• löjeväckande
• löjlig
• åtlöje

References

• löje in Elof Hellquist, Svensk etymologisk ordbok (1st ed., 1922)
• löje in Walter E. Harlock, Svensk-engelsk ordbok : skolupplaga (1964)
• “löje”, in Svenska Akademiens ordlista [Wordlist of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)
• “löje”, in Svenska Akademiens ordbok [Dictionary of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)
• “löje”, in Svensk ordbok [Dictionary of Swedish] (in Swedish)