Words starting with L

313 words from the Lexfall vocabulary, each with a definition and an example sentence.

labile Describing mood or emotion that shifts rapidly and easily from one state to another.
labile mood A mood that shifts rapidly and disproportionately, often with abrupt swings between...
lability An excessive instability of emotion, with rapid and disproportionate shifts of mood.
labour market The arena in which employers seek to hire and workers seek to sell their labour.
labyrinthine Intricate and confusingly maze-like.
labyrinthitis Inflammation of the membranous labyrinth of the inner ear, causing vertigo and often...
laceration A tear or jagged wound in the tissues, such as a perineal tear sustained during birth.
laches An unreasonable delay in asserting a right that bars the claim in equity.
lachrymose Tearful or given to weeping; inducing tears.
lacks capacity Describing a patient unable to understand, retain, weigh or communicate a decision about...
laconic Using very few words; concise to the point of seeming terse.
lacrimation The production and secretion of tears by the eye.
lactate A metabolite whose elevated blood level in sepsis reflects tissue hypoperfusion and...
lactate clearance The fall in blood lactate over time, used as a marker of improving tissue perfusion...
lactation The production and secretion of milk from the breasts to feed an infant.
lacuna A gap or missing part, especially in an argument, text or body of knowledge.
lacustrine Relating to, formed in, or living in lakes.
laddering Spreading bond maturities evenly so that a portion matures at regular intervals.
laggard A company that trails its peers in performance or in adopting new methods.
lagging indicator A metric that confirms a trend only after it has already happened, reflecting past...
lagophthalmos Incomplete closure of the eyelids, predisposing the exposed cornea to drying and...
laissez-faire Advocating that the economy works best when the state refrains from intervening in...
lambaste To criticise or mock harshly and at length.
lambent Glowing or flickering with a soft, radiant light.
lameness An abnormality of gait or stance arising from pain or a mechanical problem in one or more...
laminectomy Surgical removal of the vertebral lamina to decompress the spinal cord or nerve roots.
laminitis A painful inflammatory condition of the sensitive tissues within the hoof, seen...
lampoon To mock publicly with sharp satire.
lancinating Describing pain that is sharp, sudden, and piercing.
land-and-expand A strategy of winning a small initial deal and then growing the account through follow-on...
land registry The public body that records the ownership of land and the interests affecting it.
landed cost The total cost of a product once it reaches the buyer, including price, freight, duties,...
landlord The person who grants a lease and owns the reversion of the property.
languish To remain in an unpleasant or unwanted situation for a long time without improvement.
languishing A state of stagnation and low motivation that stops short of clinical burnout.
languor A pleasant, dreamy tiredness or lack of activity.
lanugo The fine, soft hair that covers a foetus and is often still present on a preterm baby.
laparoscopy A minimally invasive technique in which the abdomen is examined and operated on through...
laparotomy A surgical incision through the abdominal wall to gain access to the peritoneal cavity.
lapping A fraud in which a receipt from one customer is used to conceal the earlier theft of...
lapse To cease to have effect, especially where renewal fees for a right are not paid.
larceny The unlawful taking and carrying away of another's personal property with intent to...
large-bore cannula A wide intravenous catheter that allows rapid infusion of fluids or blood.
largesse Generosity in giving money or gifts.
laryngectomy The surgical removal of the larynx, usually for advanced laryngeal carcinoma.
laryngomalacia A congenital softness of the supraglottic laryngeal cartilages causing inspiratory...
laryngoscopy Direct or video-assisted visualisation of the larynx, typically to facilitate tracheal...
laryngospasm A reflex sustained closure of the vocal cords, often triggered by airway irritation...
lashing The securing of cargo with straps, chains, or ropes to prevent it from shifting in...
lassitude A state of physical or mental weariness and lack of energy.
last-chance agreement A final written accord letting a rule-breaking employee keep their job on strict...
last mile The final leg of delivery from a distribution hub to the customer's door, typically the...
latch The way a baby takes the breast into the mouth to feed effectively.
latch on The way a baby takes the breast into its mouth to feed effectively.
latency A dormant state in which a pathogen persists without producing active disease.
latent ambiguity An ambiguity not apparent on the face of a contract's wording but emerging when it is...
lateral transshipment Moving stock sideways between peer locations to cover a shortage rather than reordering...
laud To praise someone or something highly, especially in a public setting.
laudable Deserving praise and commendation.
laudatory Describing a term that merely commends goods and is therefore usually refused as lacking...
lavage The therapeutic washing out of a body cavity or hollow organ with fluid.
lawful basis One of the six legal grounds under Article 6 on which processing of personal data may...
laxative A medicine used to relieve or prevent constipation.
laxity Looseness or excessive slackness in a ligament or joint.
lay a foundation To establish the preliminary facts that render a subsequent piece of evidence admissible.
lay-off A period during which an employee is provided no work and no pay while the contract...
layaway An arrangement in which a shop holds goods while the customer pays for them in...
layering Stacking deceptive orders at several price levels to fabricate the appearance of depth.
layperson A person without professional or specialist knowledge of a particular subject.
laytime The period allowed to the charterer under a voyage charter for loading and discharging...
lead A person or company that has shown some interest and may become a customer.
lead by example To set the standard for behaviour through one's own conduct rather than instruction.
lead generation The process of attracting and capturing interest from potential customers.
lead investor The investor who sets the terms of a funding round, contributes the largest share and...
lead magnet A free resource offered in exchange for a prospect's contact details.
lead supervisory authority Under the one-stop-shop mechanism, the authority with primary responsibility for a...
lead time The elapsed time between placing an order and receiving it.
leading indicator A metric that changes before an outcome does and therefore helps predict where a result...
leading question A question that suggests the desired answer or assumes a disputed fact, generally...
leakage Revenue or margin quietly lost through unmanaged discounts, credits, or unbilled usage.
lean Describing an operating approach focused on eliminating waste and maximising value to the...
leapfrog To overtake a rival by skipping an intermediate stage and adopting a superior technology...
leapfrog appeal An appeal that bypasses an intermediate court to proceed directly to the highest court on...
lease A contract granting exclusive possession of property for a fixed term in return for rent.
leaseback An arrangement in which an owner sells a property and immediately leases it back from the...
leasehold An estate in land held for a fixed term of years under a lease granted by the freeholder.
leave to appeal The court's permission required before an appeal against a decision may proceed.
ledger A record in which accounting transactions are posted and summarised under individual...
legal advice privilege The limb of legal professional privilege protecting confidential lawyer-client...
legal burden The ultimate obligation to prove a fact in issue to the required standard, which never...
legal causation The requirement that the harm be sufficiently connected to the breach to justify imposing...
legal charge A registered charge that gives a lender an enforceable security interest over the...
legal professional privilege The rule protecting confidential communications between lawyer and client, and certain...
legally valid prescription A prescription that meets all the statutory requirements for particulars such as the...
legerdemain Skilful deception or sleight of hand, literal or figurative.
legible Clear enough to be read easily, especially of handwriting in notes.
legislative competence The scope of subject matter on which a legislature is lawfully empowered to make laws.
legitimate aim A permissible objective, such as national security or public health, that may justify...
legitimate expectation An expectation of a benefit or procedure arising from a clear promise or established...
legitimate interests A lawful basis permitting processing that is necessary for the controller's or a third...
legitimate interests assessment A documented three-part test weighing the purpose, necessity and balance of a...
leiomyosarcoma A malignant tumour arising from smooth muscle.
leitmotif A recurring musical phrase or theme associated with a particular character, idea or...
lek A patch of ground where male birds gather to display competitively to females.
leniency programme A regime granting immunity from or reduction of fines to cartel members who report the...
lenity The principle that genuinely ambiguous criminal statutes are read in the defendant's...
lentigo A small, sharply defined pigmented macule caused by increased melanocytes at the...
leptokurtic Describing a distribution with fatter tails and a sharper peak than the normal...
lesion A region of damaged or abnormal tissue.
lessee The party to whom a lease of property is granted.
lesser included offense A crime whose elements are wholly contained within a more serious charged crime.
lessons learned The insights captured after a phase or project about what worked and what to improve next...
lessor The party who grants a lease of property.
let me just check I've understood you correctly A phrase used to introduce a summary and confirm that the clinician has grasped the...
let me know if An invitation for the patient to report any change.
let me play that back To restate what someone has said to confirm you have understood it correctly.
let's park that To deliberately set a topic aside to return to it later so a meeting can stay on track.
let sleeping dogs lie To avoid interfering in a situation that is currently causing no trouble, in case doing...
lethality The degree to which a method or plan is likely to cause death.
lethargic Lacking energy and feeling sluggish or unusually tired.
lethargy A state of marked tiredness, sluggishness and lack of energy reported or observed.
letter before action A formal pre-action letter setting out the claim and demanding a remedy before court...
letter before claim A pre-action letter setting out the proposed challenge and inviting the public body to...
letter of indemnity An undertaking given to a carrier, typically to secure delivery of cargo without...
letter of intent A document recording the parties' intention to contract, usually not itself binding.
leucocytosis An elevated white blood cell count above the reference interval.
leucoerythroblastic Describing a blood picture containing immature white cells and nucleated red cells,...
leukaemia A malignant proliferation of haematopoietic cells that typically originates in the marrow...
leukapheresis A procedure that removes white blood cells from the circulation.
leukocoria An abnormal white reflection from the pupil, classically signalling retinoblastoma in...
leukocytosis An elevation of the total white blood cell count above the reference range.
leukopenia A reduction in the total white blood cell count below the normal range.
leukoplakia A white patch on a mucous membrane that cannot be wiped off and may be potentially...
leukostasis Obstruction of small vessels by aggregates of white blood cells.
level of consciousness The degree to which a patient is awake and aware of their surroundings.
leverage To fund an acquisition or operation largely with borrowed money.
leverage ratio A financial covenant measuring total net debt against earnings before interest, tax,...
leveraged buyout The acquisition of a company financed largely with borrowed money, with the target's own...
levity Humour or lack of seriousness, often ill-timed.
levothyroxine The synthetic thyroid hormone used to treat an underactive thyroid.
levy The imposition and compulsory collection of a tax, or the sum so raised.
lex arbitri The procedural law of the seat that governs the conduct and supervision of the...
lexicon The distinctive vocabulary used by a brand or community.
liability Legal responsibility for one's acts or omissions that requires the wrongdoer to...
liable Legally responsible for something.
liaise To communicate and cooperate with another person or team to coordinate care.
liaison Communication and cooperation between different services or teams.
libel Defamation expressed in a permanent form, typically written, printed or broadcast.
liberalisation The removal of government restrictions on trade or capital flows.
liberalise To relax or remove restrictions on trade, prices, or the movement of capital.
liberty clause A clause in a bill of lading or charterparty permitting the carrier to depart from the...
libretto The complete text or words of an opera, operetta or other extended vocal work.
licence A permission granted by a rights holder allowing another to use the intellectual property...
licensee The party who receives permission to use an intellectual property right under a licence.
licensor The party who grants a licence to use an intellectual property right.
licentious Disregarding accepted rules of morality, especially in sexual matters.
lichenification Thickening of the skin with accentuation of its normal creases, produced by chronic...
lidocaine A rapidly acting amide local anaesthetic also used intravenously for its antiarrhythmic...
lie The relationship of the long axis of the fetus to the long axis of the uterus, described...
lien A right to keep property until a debt on it is paid.
lien on cargo The right of a shipowner to retain possession of cargo until outstanding freight,...
life estate An interest in land that lasts only for the duration of a person's life.
life expectancy The length of time a person is expected to live, given their condition.
life tenant A person entitled to possession of land for the duration of their own or another's life.
life-threatening Capable of causing death if not treated immediately.
lifetime value The total net revenue a business expects to earn from a customer over the entire...
lift The ratio measuring how much a model, campaign, or rule improves an outcome over a...
ligament A band of fibrous tissue that connects two bones and stabilises a joint.
ligand A molecule that binds specifically to a receptor or other target macromolecule.
ligate To tie off a blood vessel or duct with a suture or clip to prevent bleeding or leakage.
ligature A thread or cord tied tightly around a blood vessel or duct to occlude it.
lightening The descent of the foetal head into the pelvis in the weeks before labour, easing...
lighterage The transfer of cargo between ship and shore using barges.
lightheaded Feeling faint, dizzy, or as though one might lose balance.
lightheadedness A sensation of feeling faint or dizzy, often caused by a temporary drop in blood flow to...
likelihood of confusion The risk that the public would mistakenly believe that goods bearing similar marks come...
lilt A pleasant, gentle rise and fall of the voice or of a melody.
limbus The border region where the transparent cornea meets the white sclera.
limerence The giddy, obsessive state of being infatuated with someone.
liminal Occupying a position at, or on both sides of, a boundary or threshold.
limit pricing Setting price low enough to make entry look unprofitable to potential rivals.
limitation The statutory period within which a claim must be brought, after which it becomes...
limitation of liability A provision that caps the amount or restricts the categories of loss for which a party...
limitation period The time limit within which a legal claim must be brought.
limited liability The principle that a shareholder's financial responsibility for company debts is capped...
limpid (Of writing or music) clear and transparent in expression; also, (of a liquid) perfectly...
linchpin A person or element that is vital to holding an operation or team together.
line manager The manager with direct responsibility for an employee's work, appraisal and day-to-day...
linehaul The long-distance movement of freight between distant terminals, as opposed to local...
lingual Relating to the tongue or the tooth surface facing the tongue.
lipaemia The presence of excess lipids in the blood, giving serum a milky, turbid appearance that...
lipaemic Describing serum or plasma that appears milky owing to a high lipid content.
lipohypertrophy Localised swelling of subcutaneous fat caused by repeated insulin injection at the same...
lipophilicity The tendency of a compound to dissolve in fats and lipids rather than in water.
liquidated Of a sum, fixed or ascertainable by calculation rather than requiring assessment.
liquidated damages A sum fixed in advance as the agreed measure of loss for a specified breach.
liquidation The winding up of a company by selling its assets to pay creditors.
liquidation preference A term giving preferred shareholders the right to be repaid before common shareholders...
liquidator The officeholder appointed to conduct the winding-up of a company, realise its assets and...
liquidity How easily an asset can be converted into cash.
liquidity trap A situation where rates are so low that further monetary easing fails to spur any...
liquor The amniotic fluid surrounding the foetus within the membranes.
lis pendens The jurisdiction's continuing control over property that is the subject of a pending...
lissom Slim, supple and graceful in movement.
list of documents The document by which a party gives disclosure, identifying the documents within its...
listicle An article structured as a numbered or bulleted list.
lithe Thin, supple and able to move easily and gracefully.
lithotripsy The fragmentation of urinary calculi, classically by focused shock waves applied through...
litigant A person involved in a lawsuit.
litigate To bring or pursue a claim in a court of law.
litigation The process of resolving a dispute through legal proceedings in court.
litigation friend A person who conducts legal proceedings on behalf of a party lacking capacity to do so.
litigation privilege The protection from disclosure of communications made for the dominant purpose of pending...
litigious Inclined to bring lawsuits or to dispute matters formally.
litotes Ironic understatement in which an affirmative is expressed by negating its opposite.
littoral Of or on the shore, especially the zone between high and low tide.
livedo A mottled, net-like reddish-blue discolouration of the skin caused by disturbed cutaneous...
livery The characteristic visual styling, colours, and get-up by which a business's goods or...
livery of seisin The ceremonial delivery of possession that formerly completed a conveyance of freehold...
living wage A wage high enough to afford a basic but decent standard of living.
Lloyd's Open Form A standard salvage agreement, based on the 'no cure, no pay' principle, under which the...
loading An amount added to the base premium to reflect above-average risk, expenses or a required...
loading dose An initial higher dose given to reach a therapeutic drug level quickly before switching...
loam A fertile soil of clay, sand and organic matter in balanced proportion.
loan-to-own A strategy of buying a troubled company's distressed debt intending to convert it into...
loan-to-value The ratio of debt secured against a property to its appraised value.
lobectomy The surgical excision of a single lobe of the lung.
local anaesthetic An injected agent that numbs a specific area of the mouth so a procedure can be carried...
local anaesthetic systemic toxicity A potentially fatal reaction to excessive plasma levels of local anaesthetic, causing...
localization The adaptation of a company's products, marketing, or operations to suit the specific...
lochia The vaginal discharge of blood, mucus, and uterine tissue that follows childbirth for...
lock-in A situation in which switching costs keep customers tied to a supplier.
lock-in agreement An agreement obliging a party to continue negotiating exclusively toward a deal.
lock-out agreement A collateral promise not to negotiate with anyone else for a defined period.
lock-up A period after a flotation or deal during which insiders are barred from selling shares.
locked-box A deal mechanism that fixes the purchase price at a past balance-sheet date, with no...
locked-box mechanism A pricing structure that fixes equity value at a pre-signing balance-sheet date with no...
lockout An employer's exclusion of workers from the workplace during an industrial dispute to...
lockup A contractual period after a listing or acquisition during which major shareholders are...
locus standi The legal right to bring or be heard in a particular proceeding.
lodestar A guiding principle that directs decisions and strategy.
log-roll To turn a trauma patient as a single unit to keep the spine aligned while examining the...
logistics The detailed coordination and management of the transport, storage, and movement of goods.
logit The logarithm of the odds of an outcome, used as the scale in logistic models.
lognormal Describing a variable whose logarithm follows a normal distribution, as often assumed for...
logorrhoea An excessive, often incoherent flow of speech that is difficult to interrupt.
logrolling Trading concessions across issues so each side wins on what it values most.
loin pain Pain felt in the flank over the region of the kidney.
loll To sit, lie or hang in a relaxed, lazy, drooping way.
lollop To move forward in a series of clumsy, ungainly bounds or strides.
long-acting insulin An insulin preparation that provides a steady background effect over many hours.
long-stop date A final deadline by which specified conditions must be satisfied, failing which the...
long tail The large body of niche products that individually sell little but collectively rival the...
longanimity Patient endurance of hardship or provocation without resentment.
longevity The risk that people live longer than expected, raising the cost of paying pensions and...
longitudinal Relating to observation or data gathered over an extended period.
longlist An initial, broad list of candidates from which a shortlist is later drawn.
longstop A final deadline by which a deal must close or either party may walk away.
lookahead A short forward-looking schedule that surfaces the tasks and constraints coming due in...
lookalike audience A targetable group built to resemble a brand's existing high-value customers.
loop back on To return to an earlier topic or thread to provide an update or resolution.
loop in To include someone in a conversation or email thread so they are kept informed.
loophole An ambiguity or omission in a rule or law that allows it to be evaded.
lope To run or move with a long, easy, bounding stride.
loquacious Tending to talk a great deal; talkative.
lordosis An inward curvature of the spine, most commonly in the lower back.
lore The accumulated backstory of a person, fandom, or running joke.
loss aversion The tendency to feel losses more acutely than equivalent gains.
loss causation The requirement that a plaintiff show the defendant's misrepresentation, and not other...
loss leader A product sold cheaply to draw customers who then buy more.
loss of a chance Damages for the lost opportunity of a favourable outcome, valued by the probability that...
loss of amenity The reduction in a claimant's ability to enjoy life or use a faculty, compensated as a...
loss of consciousness A period during which a person is unaware and unresponsive to their surroundings.
loss of control The partial defence to murder requiring a qualifying trigger and a loss of self-mastery.
loss of earnings The income a claimant has lost, and will lose in future, as a result of the injury.
loss of resistance The sudden give felt on the plunger as the epidural needle passes from the ligamentum...
loss portfolio transfer A deal in which an insurer cedes a block of existing claim liabilities to a reinsurer for...
loud budgeting Openly declaring what you won't spend money on - and being proud of it.
love bombing Overwhelming early affection used to gain influence over a partner.
low-hanging fruit The easiest, quickest wins available that deliver disproportionate value for minimal...
low mood A persistently sad or flat emotional state that is milder or more transient than clinical...
lowball To make a deliberately low offer as an opening move.
loyalty Firm and constant support for or allegiance to a person or cause.
lucency A darker area on an image where less radiation has been absorbed than in the surrounding...
lucid Expressed clearly and easy to understand; mentally clear.
lucidity The state of being clear-minded and able to think and communicate coherently.
lucrative Producing a great deal of profit.
lucre Money or profit, especially when regarded as sordid or ill-gotten.
Lucullan Lavishly and luxuriously extravagant, especially of a feast.
ludic Showing spontaneous and undirected playfulness.
lugubrious Looking or sounding mournful, often to an exaggerated degree.
lumbar puncture A procedure in which a needle is inserted into the lower spine to collect cerebrospinal...
lumber To move heavily, slowly and clumsily.
luminous Giving off or full of light; radiant.
lump sum order A court order requiring one party to pay the other a single fixed sum of money.
lumpectomy Breast-conserving surgery removing only the tumour and a rim of surrounding tissue.
lumpy Describing demand, investment, or costs that arrive in large, discrete chunks rather than...
lurch To make an abrupt, uncontrolled, unsteady movement.
luscious Having a rich, sweet and highly pleasing taste, smell or appearance.
lusitropy The rate or capacity of the myocardium to relax during diastole.
lustrous Having a soft, radiant sheen; glossy in an attractive way.
luxuriant Growing thickly, richly and profusely.
lymphadenectomy Surgical removal of one or more lymph nodes, often to assess or treat tumour spread.
lymphadenopathy Enlargement of the lymph nodes, often detected by palpation.
lymphoblast An immature precursor cell that develops into a mature lymphocyte.
lymphocytosis An increase in the absolute number of circulating lymphocytes.
lymphoedema Swelling of a limb caused by a build-up of lymph fluid, often after removal of lymph...
lymphoma A malignant neoplasm arising from lymphocytes, usually presenting within lymph nodes or...
lymphopenia An abnormally low count of circulating lymphocytes, often reflecting viral infection,...
lymphoproliferative Marked by abnormal proliferation of lymphoid cells.
lymphovascular Relating to both lymphatic and blood vessels, especially as a route of tumour spread.
lytic Describing an area where bone has been destroyed and appears darker than normal.
lytic lesion An area of bone destruction that appears lucent, or darker, on a radiograph.

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