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lute

LOOT · noun

Origin

English lute comes from Middle French lut (modern luth), from Old French leüt, probably from Old Occitan laüt, which likely comes from Arabic al-ʕūd, meaning 'wood' — probably reflecting an Andalusian or North African pronunciation.

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Journey

The name traveled from Arabic through Occitan and French before settling into English, staying attached the whole way to the same stringed instrument.

Related words

Lute is a doublet of oud, lavta, and laouto — all descend from that same Arabic root, just filtered through different languages.

More words

From Old Occitan

Nearby, A–Z

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