Noun
tracking the bear back to its lair
She runs the project from her private lair in the suburbs.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Its lair, a form of Labyrinth, lay deep in the guts of America’s economy.—Yanis Varoufakis, Fortune, 11 Feb. 2024 The story is rife with twists and turns and Austin Powers–like villains, including an eyepatch-wearing former Nazi who lives in a lair at the top of a mountain.—Andrea Duncan-Mao, Vulture, 28 Jan. 2024 Meanwhile, his futuristic Left Bank lair on Quai Voltaire—which Vogue ran in its October 2008 issue—features chrome chairs by Marc Newsom and metal stools by Jasper Morrison.—Elise Taylor, Vogue, 22 Jan. 2024 The steps to his lair are also the same as the Evil Queen’s.—Katcy Stephan, Variety, 23 Nov. 2023 Another inconvenience: the daily routine of the Höss household is punctuated by yelps and cries, the chug of trains, the firing of weapons, and a low but discernible roar, as if some beast—a fire-breathing dragon—had its lair beyond the garden wall.—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 8 Dec. 2023 Alex Edelman, a Jewish comic, walked into a lair of neo-Nazis and lived to tell his hilariously funny and politically disturbing tale about the festering swamp of hate in America.—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 4 Dec. 2023 Once assembled, this lair is much bigger than expected, with three levels and a zipline, meaning there’s plenty of room for more than one kiddo to play at once.—Maya Polton, Parents, 7 Nov. 2023 Past a white-walled and concrete-floored gallery space is the duo’s lair.—Laird Borrelli-Persson, Vogue, 30 Nov. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lair.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English, from Old English leger; akin to Old High German legar bed, Old English licgan to lie — more at lie
Verb
Scots lair mire
First Known Use
Noun
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
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