Ladleful
(La"dle*ful) n.; pl. Ladlefuls A quantity sufficient to fill a ladle.
Ladrone
(La*drone") n. [Sp. ladron, L. latro servant, robber, Gr. a servant.] A robber; a pirate; hence,
loosely, a rogue or rascal.
Lady
(La"dy) n.; pl. Ladies [OE. ladi, læfdi, AS. hl&aemacrfdige, hl&aemacrfdie; AS. hlaf loaf + a root
of uncertain origin, possibly akin to E. dairy. See Loaf, and cf. Lord.]
1. A woman who looks after the domestic affairs of a family; a mistress; the female head of a household.
Agar, the handmaiden of Sara, whence comest thou, and whither goest thou? The which answered, Fro
the face of Sara my lady.
Wyclif 2. A woman having proprietary rights or authority; mistress; — a feminine correlative of lord. "Lord or
lady of high degree." Lowell.
Of all these bounds, even from this line to this, . . .
We make thee lady.
Shak. 3. A woman to whom the particular homage of a knight was paid; a woman to whom one is devoted or
bound; a sweetheart.
The soldier here his wasted store supplies,
And takes new valor from his lady's eyes.
Waller. 4. A woman of social distinction or position. In England, a title prefixed to the name of any woman whose
husband is not of lower rank than a baron, or whose father was a nobleman not lower than an earl. The
wife of a baronet or knight has the title of Lady by courtesy, but not by right.
5. A woman of refined or gentle manners; a well-bred woman; — the feminine correlative of gentleman.
6. A wife; — not now in approved usage. Goldsmith.
7. (Zoöl.) The triturating apparatus in the stomach of a lobster; — so called from a fancied resemblance
to a seated female figure. It consists of calcareous plates.
Ladies' man, a man who affects the society of ladies. — Lady altar, an altar in a lady chapel. Shipley.
— Lady chapel, a chapel dedicated to the Virgin Mary. — Lady court, the court of a lady of the
manor. — Lady crab (Zoöl.), a handsomely spotted swimming crab (Platyonichus ocellatus) very common
on the sandy shores of the Atlantic coast of the United States. — Lady fern. (Bot.) See Female
fern, under Female, and Illust. of Fern. — Lady in waiting, a lady of the queen's household, appointed
to wait upon or attend the queen. — Lady Mass, a Mass said in honor of the Virgin Mary. Shipley.
Lady of the manor, a lady having jurisdiction of a manor; also, the wife of a manor lord. Lady's maid,
a maidservant who dresses and waits upon a lady. Thackeray. — Our Lady, the Virgin Mary.
Lady
(La"dy), a. Belonging or becoming to a lady; ladylike.
"Some lady trifles." Shak.
Ladybird
(La"dy*bird`) n. [Equiv. to, bird of Our Lady.] (Zoöl.) Any one of numerous species of small
beetles of the genus Coccinella and allied genera (family Coccinellidæ); — called also ladybug, ladyclock,
lady cow, lady fly, and lady beetle. Coccinella seplempunctata in one of the common European species.
See Coccinella.
The ladybirds are usually more or less hemispherical in form, with a smooth, polished surface, and often
colored red, brown, or black, with small spots of brighter colors. Both the larvæ and the adult beetles of
most species feed on aphids, and for this reason they are very beneficial to agriculture and horticulture.
