limp
English
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
From Middle English limpen (“to fall short”), from Old English limpan, from Proto-Germanic *limpaną (“to hang down”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)lemb-, *(s)lembʰ- (“to hang loosely, hang limply”). Cognate with Low German lumpen (“to limp”), Middle High German limpfen (“to hobble, limp”), dialectal German lampen (“to hang down loosely”), Icelandic limpa (“limpness, weakness”).
Verb
limp (third-person singular simple present limps, present participle limping, simple past and past participle limped)
- (intransitive) To walk lamely, as if favouring one leg.
- 2011 April 11, Phil McNulty, “Liverpool 3 - 0 Man City”, in BBC Sport[1]:
- Dirk Kuyt sandwiched a goal in between Carroll's double as City endured a night of total misery, with captain Carlos Tevez limping off early on with a hamstring strain that puts a serious question mark over his participation in Saturday's FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United at Wembley.
- (intransitive, figurative, of a vehicle) To travel with a malfunctioning system of propulsion.
- The bomber limped home on one engine.
- (intransitive, figurative) To move or proceed irregularly.
- limping verses
- (poker slang, intransitive) To call.
Derived terms
Translations
|
Noun
limp (plural limps)
- An irregular, jerky or awkward gait.
- She walks with a limp.
- A scraper for removing poor ore or refuse from the sieve.
Translations
|
Etymology 2
From (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Middle English *limp, *lemp, from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Old English *lemp (recorded only in compound lemphealt (“limping”), from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Proto-Germanic *limpaną (“to hang down”), from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Proto-Indo-European *(s)lemb-, *(s)lembʰ- (“to hang loosely, hang limply”). Cognate with German lampecht (“flaccid, limp”), Icelandic lempinn, lempiligur (“pliable, gentle”). See above.
Adjective
limp (comparative limper, superlative limpest)
- flaccid; flabby, like flesh.
- lacking stiffness; flimsy
- a limp rope
- (of a penis) not erect
- (of a man) not having an erect penis
- physically weak
- 2011, Tom Fordyce, Rugby World Cup 2011: England 12-19 France [2]
- Another line-out was stolen, and when the ball was sent left Clerc stepped and spun through limp challenges from Wilkinson, Chris Ashton and Foden to dive over and make it 11-0.
- 2011, Tom Fordyce, Rugby World Cup 2011: England 12-19 France [2]
Derived terms
Translations
|
|
|
|
Verb
limp (third-person singular simple present limps, present participle limping, simple past and past participle limped)
- (intransitive) To be inadequate or unsatisfactory.
Noun
limp (plural limps)
- A scraper of board or sheet-iron shaped like half the head of a small cask, used for scraping the ore off the sieve in the operation of hand-jigging.
Etymology 3
From Middle English limpen, from Old English limpan (“to happen, occur, exist, belong to, suit, befit, concern”), from Proto-Germanic *limpaną (“to glide, go, suit”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)lemb-, *(s)lembʰ- (“to hang loosely, hang limply”). Cognate with Scots limp (“to chance to be, come”), Middle Dutch limpen (“to happen”), Middle Low German gelimpen (“to moderate, treat mildly”), Middle High German limfen (“to suit, become”).
Verb
limp (third-person singular simple present limps, present participle limping, simple past lamp or limped, past participle lump or limped)
- (obsolete, intransitive) To happen; befall; chance.
- (obsolete, transitive) To come upon; meet.
Derived terms
Etymology 4
Phrase
(deprecated template usage) limp
- (Can we verify(+) this sense?) (historical) Acronym of Louis XIV, James II, Queen Mary of Modena and the Prince of Wales. (a code-word among Jacobites) [1]
- 1915, Thomas Babington Macaulay Baron Macaulay, Charles Harding Firth, The History of England: From the Accession of James the Second:
- Even if he were set at liberty, what could he do but haunt Jacobite coffeehouses, squeeze oranges, and drink the health of Limp?
References
- ^ Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, Millennium Edition, art. "Limp"
Anagrams
Dalmatian
Alternative forms
Etymology
From a derivative of Latin lampas. Compare Italian lampo.
Noun
limp m
- English 1-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English terms with audio links
- Rhymes:English/ɪmp
- English terms inherited from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle English
- English terms inherited from Old English
- English terms derived from Old English
- English terms inherited from Proto-Germanic
- English terms derived from Proto-Germanic
- English terms derived from Proto-Indo-European
- English lemmas
- English verbs
- English intransitive verbs
- English terms with quotations
- en:Poker
- English nouns
- English countable nouns
- English adjectives
- English terms with obsolete senses
- English transitive verbs
- English phrases
- English terms with historical senses
- English acronyms
- en:Gaits
- Dalmatian terms inherited from Latin
- Dalmatian terms derived from Latin
- Dalmatian lemmas
- Dalmatian nouns
- Dalmatian masculine nouns