Etymograph

English

lass

Lass may come from Middle English las ‘female infant or child’.

  1. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500las1‘female infant or child’uncertain
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1521–1522lass1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English lass
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1521–1522, John Skelton, Here after Followeth a Litel Boke Called Colyn Cloute, […]: “[T]heyr founders soules / Haue lost theyr beade rolles,…”.

Earlier history uncertain. See Wiktionary.

Lineage

  1. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500lasWiktionary, English lass‘female infant or child’uncertain
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1521–1522lassWiktionary, English lass. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1521–1522, John Skelton, Here after Followeth a Litel Boke Called Colyn Cloute, […]: “[T]heyr founders soules / Haue lost theyr beade rolles,…”

Linked words

through Old Norse lǫskr ‘unmarried’

lusk

Today it means

noun A girl; also (by extension), a young woman.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “lass”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Middle English las / lass

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