loath
1loath — loath; loath·er; loath·ful; loath·ing; loath·ing·ly; loath·ness; loath·some; loath·some·ly; loath·some·ness; loath·ly; …
2Loath — (l[=o]th), a. [OE. looth, loth, AS. l[=a][eth] hostile, odious; akin to OS. l[=a][eth], G. leid, Icel. lei[eth]r, Sw. led, G. leiden to suffer, OHG. l[=i]dan to suffer, go, cf. AS. l[=i][eth]an to go, Goth. leipan, and E. lead to guide.] 1.… …
3loath — loth [ləuθ US louθ] adj [: Old English; Origin: lath] be loath to do sth formal to be unwilling to do something = ↑reluctant ▪ Sarah was loath to tell her mother what had happened …
4loath — [ louθ ] adjective FORMAL very unwilling to do something: RELUCTANT: loath to do something: Officials are loath to acknowledge the extent of their involvement …
5loath — meaning ‘averse, reluctant’, as in loath to comment, is spelt loath, not loth, and is pronounced lohth (like both). It should be distinguished from the verb loathe meaning ‘to hate’, which is pronounced lohdh. The adjective loathsome, meaning… …
6loath — [lōth, lōth] adj. [ME loth < OE lath, hostile, hateful, akin to Ger leid, sorrow (orig. adj.) < IE base * leit , to detest, abhor > Gr aleitēs, sinner] unwilling; reluctant: usually followed by an infinitive [to be loath to depart] SYN.… …
7loath — (adj.) O.E. lað hated; hateful; hostile; repulsive, from P.Gmc. *laithaz (Cf. O.S., O.Fris. leth loathsome, O.N. leiðr hateful, hostile, loathed; M.Du. lelijc, Du. leelijk ugly; O.H.G. leid sorrowful, hateful, offensive, grievous, Ger. Leid sor …
8loath — (also loth) ► ADJECTIVE ▪ reluctant; unwilling: I was loath to leave. ORIGIN Old English, «hostile» …
9loath|ly — loath|ly1 «LOHTH lee», adjective. = loathsome. (Cf. ↑loathsome) ╂[Old English lāthlīc < lāth hostile] loath|ly2 «LOHTH lee, LOHTH », adverb. unwillingly; reluctantly. Also, lothly. ╂[Old English lāthlīce < lāth hostile] …
10loath — index averse, disinclined, disobedient, dissident, hesitant, renitent, restive Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton …
