lad

noun

ˈlad How to pronounce lad (audio)
Synonyms of ladnext
1
: a male person of any age between early boyhood and maturity : boy, youth
2
: fellow, chap

Synonyms of lad

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Examples of lad in a Sentence

Life was hard when I was a lad. Well, lad, I hope you won't make the same mistake again! He's a good lad at heart. They can't treat us like that, can they, lads?!
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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
That young lad would gave the old lady the unfortunate hit stick would be UMass stud safety Jahmad Harmon, for those who aren't up to date on all things Minutemen football. — Zach Dean Outkick, FOXNews.com, 4 Sep. 2026 Kyle Walker and even some of the foreign lads were taking the p***. — Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 23 Aug. 2026 The bit culminates with a real working-class lad recognizing her from the piece, only to offer his assessment that the magazine was better when Graydon Carter was in charge. — Maxwell Adler, Vanity Fair, 19 Aug. 2026 About how many pounds of fish do each of these strapping, 1,100-lb lads eat per day? — Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 17 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for lad

Word History

Etymology

Middle English ladde

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of lad was in the 14th century

Rhymes for lad

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Browse Nearby Words

lacy
lad
lad's-love
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Cite this Entry

“Lad.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lad. Accessed 7 Sep. 2026.

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