leper
Use Leper in a sentence
ər Origin:
1350–1400; Middle English lepre leprosy < Latin lepra < Greek lépra, noun use of feminine of leprós scaly, akin to lépos scale, lépein to peel
1350–1400; Middle English lepre leprosy < Latin lepra < Greek lépra, noun use of feminine of leprós scaly, akin to lépos scale, lépein to peel
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To leper
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World English Dictionary
leper (ˈlɛpə) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | a person who has leprosy |
| 2. | a person who is ignored or despised |
| [C14: via Late Latin from Greek lepra, noun use of lepros scaly, from lepein to peel] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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00:10
Leper
is always a great word to know.
So is bezoar. Does it mean:
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
leper
"one afflicted with leprosy," late 14c., from L.L. lepra, from Gk. lepra "leprosy," from fem. of lepros (adj.) "scaly," from leops "a scale," related to lepein "to peel," from lopos "a peel," from PIE base *lep- "to peel, scale" (see leaf). Originally the word for the disease
itself (mid-13c.); because of the -er ending it came to mean "person with leprosy," so leprosy was coined 16c. from adj. leprous.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary
leper lep·er (lěp'ər)
n.
One who has leprosy.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Example sentences
She speaks wistfully of a long-abandoned plan to work in a leper colony, and before the end of the novel she gets her wish.
Researchers say that the ancient leper provides clues to how the disease spread through the human population.
However the word leper carries a pejorative connotation and should no longer be used in medical texts.
In his own heroic way, he refused to be the great celebrity leper.
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