▪ I. † lite, n.1 Obs.
Also 4 lijt, lit, litte, 4–5 lyte, lytt.
[f. lite v. Cf. let n.]
Delay, tardiness; frequent in phr. without lite.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 4776 Iacob wen he was mast in sijt God lighted him, wit-outen lijt. Ibid. 5790 Þar-to sal be now na lang lite. a 1350 St. Cecilia 353 in Horstm. Altengl. Leg. (1881) 163 And at þe last withouten lite All þaire heuides he gert of smite. c 1400 Ywaine & Gaw. 1620 So lang gaf sho him respite, And thus he haves hir led with lite. c 1460 Towneley Myst. ix. 225 Fast for to fle outt of my land, Byd thaym, withouten lyte. |
▪ II. † lite, n.2 Sc. and north. dial. Obs.
In 5 lyit, lyte.
[Aphetic var. of elite n.1 Cf. leet n.2]
A bishop-elect; = elite n.1
| c 1425 Wyntoun Cron. vii. v. 741 He stud as Lyte twa yhere owre, And Byschape thretty yhere and foure. c 1450 St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 6519 And cuthbert to hexham lyte. 1497 Halyburton Ledger (1867) 83 Johne Fressall, factor to Master John Fressall, lyit of Roys. |
▪ III. † lite, n.3 Sc. Obs. rare—1.
[ad. L. līt-em, līs.]
Strife.
| 1493 Sc. Acts Jas. IV (1814) II. 232/2 Exhorting and praying þame to leif þair contentiounnis, litis and pleyis. |
▪ IV. lite, n.4, a., and adv. Obs. exc. arch. or dial.
Forms: 1 l{yacu}t, 2–3 lutte, 3–4 lut, 3–5 lute, luyte, 3, 5–6, 8–9 lit, 4 liȝt, luite, 4–7 lite, lyte, 4, 9 lyt, 5–6 litte, 6 lyght, lytte, 8 loyt, 9 leet, light, loit.
[Partly repr. OE. l{yacu}t n., adj., adv. (= OS. lut n.), and partly the synonymous ON. l{iacu}tt adv., contraction of l{iacu}tet, neut. of l{iacu}tell: see little.]
A. n.
1. Little, not much. unto lite: very nearly.
| a 1000 Runes 22 (Gr.) Wen ne bruceþ, ðe can weana lyt, sares and sorᵹe. 12.. Prayer Our Lady 24 in O.E. Misc. 193 Muchel ich habbe ispened, to lite ich habbe an horde. c 1290 Life of Jesus 632 Ȝiueth us, heo seiden, of ouwer eoli... Nai, seiden þe oþere, þere were to luyte to us alle. 13.. Guy Warw. (A.) 640 Of mi liif is me bot lite. 1377 Langl. P. Pl. B. xiii. 149 He that loueth the lelly lyte of thyne coueiteth. c 1386 Chaucer Man of Law's T. 11 Thy neighebore thou wytest synfully And seist thou hast to lite, and he hath al. a 1420 Hoccleve De Reg. Princ. 930 Vpon þis woful thoght I..muse so, that vn-to lite I madde. 1513 Douglas æneis i. Prol. 38, I knaw tharin full lyte. a 1575 Friar & Boy 59 in Hazl. E.P.P. III. 63 He sayd he wolde ete but lyte, Tyll nyght that he home came. 1867 Rock Jim an' Nell lxv. (E.D.S. No. 76), And Joe an' Will have each a-bro't A main peart o' the leet they've got, Gosh, 'e'll ha quite a vortin. |
b. (a, by) lite and lite: (by) little and little. Also erroneously, by lithe and lithe.
| c 1290 S.E. Leg. I. 313/465 So þat þe sonne bi-fore geth luyte and luyte i-wis. c 1325 Song of Yesterday 44 in E.E.P. (1862) 134 Heo ne schal fade as a flour Luyte and luyte leosen hir beute. c 1386 Chaucer Sompn. T. 527 (Cambr. MS.) Euere it wastith lyte & lyte awey. 1406 Hoccleve Misrule 92 A lyte & lyte to withdrawen it. a 1577 Gascoigne Don Barth. Wks. (1587) 104 By lite and lite his fits away gan flie. 1592 Dee Comp. Rehears. (Chetham Soc.) 23 Not long after..by lithe and lithe I became hindered. |
c. a lite (in early texts often written alite): a little. Used also advb.
| c 1290 Beket 1896 in S. Eng. Leg. I. 161 A luyte [v.r. lute] bi-fore cristemasse to þe kinge heo come. c 1290 St. Kenelm 318 ibid. 354 Huy comen into one wode: a luyte bi este þe toune. c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 435 (Kölbing) For þe barouns were hende Bi Salesbiri biside a lite Al redi bataile to smite. c 1369 Chaucer Dethe Blaunche 249 If he wol make me slepe a lyte,..I wil yive him a fether-bed. a 1420 Hoccleve De Reg. Princ. 1240, I have but a lite, And likly am herafter to have lesse. c 1430 Two Cookery-bks. 17 Þe ȝolke an þe whyte y-strainyd a lyte. 1513 Douglas æneis viii. Prol. 3, I slaid on a swevynnyng slummerand a lite. 1530 Lyndesay Test. Papyngo 766 Wyll the deith a lyte withdrawe his darte. 1584 Lodge Alarum (1879) 73 Such stately knees as when they bend a lite, All knees doo bend. 1674 Ray N.C. Words 30, A Lite: a few, a little. 1746 Exmoor Courtship 561 (E.D.S.) Es hire ya lick a lit about ma Cozen Magery. |
2. (In OE. followed by genit. pl. with sing. vb.; subsequently ellipt. as subj. to plural vb.) Few.
| Beowulf 2882 Werᵹendra to lyt þrong ymbe þeoden. a 1200 Moral Ode 104 Hwi boð fole iclepede, and swa lut icorene. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 123 Lit ben þat þus understonden and bishechen god. c 1205 Lay. 4045 Her wes muchel mon-qualm Þat lut her quike bi-lefden. a 1300 K. Horn 658 (Harl. MS.) Of þat þer were o ryue he lafte lut o lyue. c 1375 Cursor M. 8496 (Fairf.) Þis write wiþ many was rede and sene bot lite [Cott. fa, Gött. fone] wiste quat hit walde mene. |
B. adj. (Uninflected in OE.)
1. Few. Also, a lite = a few (see few 2 a).
| a 1000 Be Domes Dæᵹe 61 He mid lyt wordum ac ᵹeleaf⁓fullum his hæle beᵹeat. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 105 We wilen bi godes wissinge and bi his helpe þerof cuþen ȝiu þese lit word. c 1230 Hali Meid. 19 Þe hehscipe of þe mede þat tis ilke lut wordes bicluppen abuten. c 1375 Cursor M. 27864 (Fairf.) Þer ar synnis lite [Cott. foun]..worre to amende þen is þis. c 1380 Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 211 Lite prestis or none ben clene of þis symonye. c 1400 Destr. Troy 1312 Soght to þe Citie on soppes to-gedur Tho þat left were on lyue þogh þai lite were. c 1420 Liber Cocorum (1862) 47 With a lite grotes put hom þer in And sethe hom wele. ? a 1550 Scotish ffielde 9 in Furnivall Percy Folio I. 212 There were lite Lords in this land: that to that Lord longed. 1860 Waugh Yeth-Bobs iii. 47 ‘It'll be within a light (few) minutes o' noon, aw'll be bund.’ 1870 Brierley Ab-o'-th' Yate on Times & Things 48 If anybody had axt me heaw mony friends I had,..I should ha' bin bothered to ha' said how loit (few). |
2. Little in amount; not much of.
| c 1175 Lamb. Hom. 29 Iþencheð hu lutte hw(i)le ᵹe beoð here. a 1250 Owl & Night. 763 Oft spet wel a lute lyste, Thar muche strengthe sholde miste. c 1290 S. Eng. Leg. I. 87/24 Deol and sor and luyte gladnesse. 1297 R. Glouc. (Rolls) 2041 Is poer lute was vor þe king was euere aboue. a 1300 K. Horn 1211 (Cambr. MS.) Wyn nelle ihc, Muche ne lite, Bute of cuppe white. c 1300 Havelok 276 Soþlike, in a lite þrawe Al engelond of him stod awe. a 1375 Joseph Arim. 554 Luyte wonder hit was so þey wrouȝt haden. 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) III. 423 Lite fortune and povert and scarste of riches makeþ me a þeef. 1423 Jas. I. Kingis Q. xiii, I..in my tyme more Ink and paper spent To lyte effect. 1508 Dunbar Gold. Targe 71 Your aureate tongis both bene all to lyte, For to compile that paradise complete. 1796 [R. Walker] Plebeian Politics (1801) 31 Hoo..knokt eawt whot loyt breans he had. 1837 Mrs. Palmer Devon. Dial. 22 The leet money I've a croop'd up I be a shirk'd out o'. |
3. Little in magnitude; small. Often coupled with great or much.
| c 1205 Lay. 22208 Þa wes Walwain lute child. a 1225 Ancr. R. 280 Holie men þet holðet ham lutte & of lowe liue. c 1300 St. Brandan 184 Tho fleȝ ther up a lute fowel. ? a 1366 Chaucer Rom. Rose 532 Upon this dore I gan to smyte, That was [so] fetys and so lyte. c 1384 ― H. Fame iii. 279 Me thougt she was so lyte That the lengthe of a cubite Was lengere than she. c 1391 ― Astrol. Prol., Latin ne canstow yit but smal, my lyte sone. 14.. Lydg. Temple of Glass 1291 For al my life it were to lit a space. a 1450 Myrc 1268 Any mon myche or luyte. a 1575 Friar & Boy 226 in Hazl. E.P.P. III. 71 Though I be lyte, Yonder byrde wyll I smyte. 1600 Fairfax Tasso ix. lxxxi. 175 Yet blossom'd out her flowres, small or lite. 1802 Wolcot (P. Pindar) Middlesex Elect. Wks. 1816 IV. 172 Vor now I'll screw my fiddle-strings Forsooth, a leet bit higher. 1877 Tugwell Hand-bk. N. Devon 253 Jan, do'e zee the lit woman standing by the bed? |
| absol. c 1320 Seuyn Sag. (W.) 1137 He let of-sende moche and lite, Hise neyebours him to visite. 1600 Fairfax Tasso xi. xxvi, From this exploit he spar'd nor great nor lite. |
C. adv. Little; in a small degree, to a small extent.
| a 1000 Cædmon's Gen. 1566 (Gr.) He lyt onᵹeat, Þæt him on his inne swa earme ᵹelamp. 1340 Ayenb. 31 Þe uerste [zenne] is þonneliche, huanne þe man loueþ lite and lheucliche oure lhord. c 1380 Sir Ferumb. 708 Charlis wiþ þe hore berde doþ þe lite Auaylle. c 1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 86 Þanne thou nedyste a medycine þat ys lyte dryinge. c 1430 Lydg. Compl. Bl. Knt. 413 In straunge lande ryding, ne travayle, Ful lyte or nought in love doth avayle. |
▪ V. lite, n.5
(laɪt)
[Phonetic respelling of light n. Cf. nite n.2]
= light n. in various senses, esp. in commercial use; spec., a lamp, spotlight, etc. Cf. Scotchlite n.
| 1955 M. Reifer Dict. New Words 122 Lite-lift.., a..forwarding arm device which permits immediate raising and lowering of a spotlight. 1970 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 28 Sept. 27/7 (Advt.), Vinyl roof, hidden lites. 1973 Black World June 63 Strobe lites flickering all over the place. 1990 Gus Home Shopping Catal. No. B726. 16 (caption) Magnetic lite. |
▪ VI. lite a.2 and n.6
(laɪt)
[Phonetic respelling of light a.1]
A. adj.
1. Occas. in advertisements: = light a.1 18 a.
| 1954 Los Angeles Times 21 Mar. 3/2 (Advt.), Clerk-lite steno..$200 start. |
2. Comm. Designating a manufactured product that is lighter (in weight, calorie content, etc.) than the ordinary variety, esp. (with capital initial) low-calorie beer. Freq. used postpositively. Cf.*light a.1 10.
| 1962 L. S. Sasieni Optical Dispensing i. 17 On light-weight spectacles a small joint known as the ‘Lite-Elete’ is sometimes used. 1967 N.Y. Times 14 Sept. 65/3 The leotards match the packaging and labeling of Meister Brau Lite, a no-carbohydrate beer to be introduced this week. 1971 Official Gaz. (U.S. Patent Office) 30 Nov. tm283 Lite... For beer with no available carbohydrates... First use May 15, 1967. 1975 Business Week 13 Oct. 116/1 Lite beer, the low-calorie brew introduced by Miller Brewing Co...last February. 1984 M. Amis Money 304, I sit in a bar drinking lite beer. 1990 T. Robbins Skinny Legs & All 391 He was sipping from a can of Miller Lite. 1991 Public Works Nov. 32/1 (Advt.), Efficiency Production Ultra-Lite Aluminum Trench Boxes let you use small backhoe/loaders to lift, swing, and place them in the ditch easily. 1992 Men's Health May–June 44/1, It does little good to switch to the ‘lite’ versions of bologna made from turkey or chicken. |
3. fig. Designating a simplified or moderated version of something; so (dismissively), lacking in substance; over-simplified, facile. Freq. used postpositively, in humorous imitation of brand names (see sense *2 above). U.S. colloq.
| 1989 Spy (N.Y.) Mar. 96/1 Whereas camp during the fifties and sixties emerged from the more passionate, fabled art forms of ballet, opera and Joan Crawford vehicles, Camp Lite is almost purely the spawn of fifties and sixties television, with its bland sitcom chuckles. 1990 Omni Dec. 92/3 Blum's view that the government knows little more than we do about UFOs is a decidedly ‘lite’ version of the cover-up. 1991 Creem Apr.–May 78 With substantial songs inspired by real-life situations, Breathe are quickly putting behind them the notion that they're merely the lite fodder for teenaged dreams. 1992 Newsweek 27 Apr. 58/3 USA Today is still dogged by the perception among many would-be advertisers and the media elite that it remains News Lite, a triumph of marketing over substance. 1992 Playboy Sept. 37/2, I am the happy feminist, the feminist who likes men, the feminist lite. 1995 Internet World Feb. 14/3 InternetWorks has a suggested retail price of $129 and includes an electronic version of New Rider's Internet Yellow Pages. A lite version is available via FTP. |
B. n. Low-calorie beer. orig. U.S.
| 1975 Business Week 13 Oct. 118/2 Lite actually tastes like beer. 1978 Esquire 18 July 76/3 Lite also has less alcohol than regular beer. |
▪ VII. lite, v.1 Obs. exc. dial.
Also 4 lit, 5 litte, lytyn, 6 lyte, 8 light.
[app. a. ON. hl{iacu}ta to trust.]
1. intr. To expect, wait, delay.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 2821 (Cott.) Quen þai sagh loth be to litand þai tok him-self bi þe hand. a 1300–1400 Ibid. 10209 (Gött.) Child to gete þai litid [Cott. has littend] lang. a 1400–50 Alexander 801 Þen littid þai na langer bot laschid out swerdis. 1413 Pilgr. Sowle (Caxton 1483) i. xxii. 24 They lyte the redy weyes for to lerne. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 308/1 Lytyn, or longe taryyn, moror. 1855 Robinson Whitby Gloss. s.v., To wait in expectation of proceeding. ‘I have been liting o' you this half hour’. |
2. To rely on, to trust to.
| 1570 Levins Manip. 151/11 To Lyte, or trust, fretus esse. 1674 Ray N.C. Words 30 To Lite on: to Rely on. 1683 G. Meriton Yorksh. Dial. 91 (E.D.S. No. 76), I lited on Hobb, and he lited on me. 1788 W. Marshall Yorksh. II. 340 Gloss., Light, to rest, depend, or rely. ‘It is not to light on’; it is not to be depended upon. 1855 Robinson Whitby Gloss. s.v., ‘I suppose, then, I may lite o' you’. |
Hence † liting vbl. n., delay.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 26631 Þou sal shriue þe als sone als þou has euer þi synne done,..for liting is ful selcouþ ille. |
▪ VIII. † lite, v.2 Obs.
Also lit.
[Aphetic f. delite, the earlier form of delight v.]
refl. To delight.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 1560 Amang kaym kyn Þat lited [Fairf. delitet, Trin. delited] þam noght bot in sin. Ibid. 25950 Þe thrid [sin] es wers of alle we rede, to lig and lit vs in vr sake, And siþen wil na mendes make. |
▪ IX. lite
obs. form of light v.1