Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition


Lief

Lief

(lēf)
,
Noun.
Same as
Lif
.

Lief

(lēf)
,
Adj.
[Written also
lieve
.]
[OE.
leef
,
lef
,
leof
, AS.
leíf
; akin to OS.
liof
, OFries.
liaf
, D.
lief
, G.
lieb
, OHG.
liob
, Icel.
lj[GREEK]fr
, Sw.
ljuf
, Goth.
liubs
, and E.
love
. √124. See
Love
, and cf.
Believe
,
Leave
,
Noun.
,
Furlough
,
Libidinous
.]
1.
Dear; beloved.
[Obs., except in poetry.]
“My liefe mother.”
Chaucer.
“My liefest liege.”
Shak.
As thou art
lief
and dear.
Tennyson.
2.
(Used with a form of the verb to be, and the dative of the personal pronoun.)
Pleasing; agreeable; acceptable; preferable.
[Obs.]
See
Lief
,
adv.
, and Had as lief, under
Had
.
Full
lief
me were this counsel for to hide.
Chaucer.
Death me
liefer
were than such despite.
Spenser.
3.
Willing; disposed.
[Obs.]
I am not
lief
to gab.
Chaucer.
He up arose, however
lief
or loth.
Spenser.

Lief

,
Noun.
A dear one; a sweetheart.
[Obs.]
Chaucer.

Lief

,
adv.
Gladly; willingly; freely; – now used only in the phrases,
had as lief
, and
would as lief
;
as, I had, or would, as
lief
go as not
.
All women
liefest
would
Be sovereign of man’s love.
Gower.
I had as
lief
the town crier spoke my lines.
Shakespeare
Far
liefer
by his dear hand had I die.
Tennyson.
☞ The comparative liefer with had or would, and followed by the infinitive, either with or without the sign to, signifies prefer, choose as preferable, would or had rather. In the 16th century rather was substituted for liefer in such constructions in literary English, and has continued to be generally so used. See
Had as lief
,
Had rather
, etc. , under
Had
.

Webster 1828 Edition


Lief

LIEF

,
Adj.
[See Love.] Dear; beloved. Obs.

LIEF

,
adv.
[supra. This word coincides with love, L. lubet, libet, and the primary sense is to be free, prompt, ready.]
Gladly; willingly; freely; used in familiar speech, in the phrase, I had as lief go as not. It has been supposed that had in this phrase is a corruption of would. At any rate it is anomalous.

Definition 2024


Lief

Lief

See also: lief

Low German

Alternative forms

Noun

Lief n (pl Liever)

  1. body
    1. (in particular) the stomach, the belly; the abdomen, the trunk
      in'n Liev in the guts
      dat in't Lief hebben to have a stomach-ache
  2. (rare) life

Usage notes

The old dative forme Liev survives in the idiomatic expression in'n Liev along with the old article den (contracted in 'n). The modern version is in't Lief and is also used commonly.

Synonyms

lief

lief

See also: Lief

English

Adjective

lief (comparative liefer or liever, superlative liefest or lievest)

  1. (archaic) beloved, dear, agreeable
  2. (archaic) ready, willing

Derived terms

Translations

Adverb

lief (comparative liefer or liever, superlative liefest)

  1. (archaic, except UK dialectal) Readily, willingly.
    • 1826, Thomas Byerly, ‎John Timbs, The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction:
      As far as physiognomy goes, the winners protest that they would as lief have foregone the double points, and the money.
    • 1869, RD Blackmoore, Lorna Doone, II:
      these great masters of the art, who would far liefer see us little ones practice it, than themselves engage [...].
    I'd as lief have one as t'other.

Derived terms

Translations

Quotations

  • For usage examples of this term, see Citations:lief.

Anagrams


Dutch

Pronunciation

  • Rhymes: -if
  • IPA(key): [lif]

Etymology

From Old Dutch *liof, from Proto-Germanic *leubaz, from Proto-Indo-European *lewbʰ-. Compare archaic English lief, German lieb.

Adjective

lief (comparative liever, superlative liefst)

  1. nice, sweet
  2. beloved

Inflection

Inflection of lief
uninflected lief
inflected lieve
comparative liever
positive comparative superlative
predicative/adverbial lief liever het liefst
het liefste
indefinite m./f. sing. lieve lievere liefste
n. sing. lief liever liefste
plural lieve lievere liefste
definite lieve lievere liefste
partitive liefs lievers

Noun

lief n (plural lieven, diminutive liefje n)

  1. one's beloved in a romantic relationship, i.e. a boyfriend or girlfriend

Derived terms

See also

Anagrams


German

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [liːf]
  • Rhymes: -iːf

Verb

lief

  1. Past of laufen ‘to walk

Luxembourgish

Verb

lief

  1. second-person singular imperative of liewen

Norman

Alternative forms

Noun

lief m (plural liefs)

  1. (Jersey) roof

Scots

Alternative forms

  • (contracted) lee

Etymology

From Old English lēof, from Proto-Germanic *leubaz.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [lif]

Adjective

lief (comparative liefer, superlative liefest)

  1. dear, beloved

Yola

Noun

lief

  1. life

References

  • J. Poole W. Barnes, A Glossary, with Some Pieces of Verse, of the Old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy (1867)