Wiktionary

loaf

English

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Two loaves (1) of bread

Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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    Etymology tree
    Proto-Germanic *hlaibaz
    Proto-West Germanic *hlaib
    Old English hlāf
    Middle English lof
    English loaf

    Noun

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    loaf (plural loaves)

    2. (also loaf of bread) A block of bread after baking.
      • 1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter VIII, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y., London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC:
        Philander went into the next room […] and came back with a salt mackerel that dripped brine like a rainstorm. Then he put the coffee pot on the stove and rummaged out a loaf of dry bread and some hardtack.
    3. Any solid block of food, such as meat or sugar.
      • 1627 (indicated as 1626), Francis [Bacon], “IV. Century.”, in Sylua Syluarum: Or A Naturall Historie. In Ten Centuries. […], London: […] William Rawley […]; [p]rinted by J[ohn] H[aviland] for William Lee […], →OCLC:
        sugar-loaf
    4. (Cockney rhyming slang) Ellipsis of loaf of bread: the brain or the head.[1]
      Synonyms: (slang) bonce, noddle, nut; see also Thesaurus:head
      use one's loaf
      • 1960, P[elham] G[renville] Wodehouse, “VIII AND XII”, in Jeeves in the Offing, London: Herbert Jenkins, →OCLC:
        It is frequently said of Bertram Wooster that he is a man who can think on his feet, and if the necessity arises he can also use his loaf when on all fours. [...] “Why didn't the idiot tell her not to open it?” “It was his first move. ‘I've found a letter from you here, precious,’ she said. ‘On no account open it, angel,’ he said. So of course she opened it.” She pursed the lips, nodded the loaf, and ate a moody piece of crumpet. “So that's why he's been going about looking like a dead fish.”
    5. A solid block of soap, from which standard bar soap is cut.
    6. (cellular automata) A particular still life configuration with seven living cells.
      • 1989 November 20, Dean Hickerson, “Life: glider gun origin”, in comp.theory.cell-automata‎[1] (Usenet):
        It runs for 17331 generations before stabilizing as 136 blinkers, 109 blocks, 65 beehives, 18 loaves, 18 boats, 7 ships, 4 tubs, 3 ponds, 2 toads, and 40 gliders.
      • 1992 September 10, David Bell, “Spaceships in Conway's Life (Part 3b)”, in comp.theory.cell-automata‎[2] (Usenet):
        Running a LWSS into it can produce various debris. One of these reactions produces a loaf. When the loaf is properly hit with other LWSSs, it can be pulled backwards.
      • 1998 January 27, Ian Osgood, “Life: looking for smallest ancestor of a quad-loaf”, in comp.theory.cell-automata‎[3] (Usenet):
        I am looking for the smallest ancestor of the following four loaf pattern in Conway's Game of Life:
    7. (informal, slang) A catloaf.
    Derived terms
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    Descendants
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    • → Bengali: লোফ (lōph)
    • → Marshallese: ļoob
    • → Norwegian Bokmål: loff
    • → Norwegian Nynorsk: loff
    • → Scottish Gaelic: lofa
    Translations
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    References
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    1. ^ “loaf (of bread) n.”, in Green’s Dictionary of Slang, Jonathon Green, 2016–present
    • (soap) Miller, J.L. "Customers believe in downstate Soap Fairy", The News Journal, B10, January 10, 2006.

    Verb

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    loaf (third-person singular simple present loafs, present participle loafing, simple past and past participle loafed)

    1. (Cockney rhyming slang) To headbutt

    Etymology 2

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    Probably a back-formation from loafer.

    Verb

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    loaf (third-person singular simple present loafs, present participle loafing, simple past and past participle loafed)

    1. (intransitive) To do nothing, to be idle.
      loaf about, loaf around
      • 2015, Elizabeth Royte, Vultures Are Revolting. Here’s Why We Need to Save Them., National Geographic (December 2015)[4]
        They don’t (often) kill other animals, they probably form monogamous pairs, and we know they share parental care of chicks, and loaf and bathe in large, congenial groups.
    Synonyms
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    Derived terms
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    Descendants
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    Translations
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    Anagrams

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