Definition
adjLascivious, sexually promiscuous, rude.
Sentence Examples
He was just a lewd old man.
Tom was accused of performing a lewd act in public.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English lewed, lewd, leued (“unlearned, lay, lascivious”), from Old English lǣwede (“unlearned, ignorant, lay”), of uncertain origin. Formally similar to a derivative of the past participle of Old English lǣwan (“to reveal, betray”) in the sense of "exposed as being unlearned" or "easily betrayed, clueless", from Proto-West Germanic *lāwijan, from Proto-Germanic *lēwijaną (“to betray”), from *lēwą (“an opportunity, cause”), from Proto-Indo-European *lēw- (“to leave”). If so, then cognate with Old High German gilāen, firlāen (“to betray”), Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐌻𐌴𐍅𐌾𐌰𐌽 (galēwjan, “to give over, betray”), Gothic 𐌻𐌴𐍅 (lēw, “an opportunity, cause”). Or, according to the OED, probably from Vulgar Latin *laigo-, from Late Latin lāicus (“of the people”), from Ancient Greek λαϊκός (laïkós).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Onstage he was known for ricochet riffs on politics, social issues and cultural matters both high and low; tales of drug and alcohol abuse; lewd commentaries on relations between the sexes; and lightning-like improvisations on anything an audience member might toss at him."
— 2014 August 11, Dave Itzkoff, “Robin Williams, Oscar-Winning Comedian, Dies at 63 in Suspected Suicide”, in New York Times:
"So these great clerks their little wisdom show / To mock the lewd, as learn'd in this as they."
— 1599, John Davies, Nosce Teipsum:
"But the Jews, which believed not, […] took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, […] and assaulted the house of Jason."
— 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Acts 17:5:
"Too lewd to work, and ready for any kind of mischief."
— 1829, Robert Southey, Sir Thomas More; or, Colloquies on the Progress and Prospects of Society:
"Nudes, lewds and smutty outhouse cards, although they can be bought in some of the rowdy joints, are a negligible percentage of the total, and are unobtainable in the chain stores, drugstores and travel stations which are the outlets for […]"
— 1944, The Saturday Evening Post, volume 217, page 25: