History of word left - Word и Excel - помощь в работе с программами

English[edit]

Etymology 1[edit]

From Middle English left, luft, leoft, lift, lyft, from Old English left, lyft (“weak, clumsy, foolish”), attested in Old English lyftādl (“palsy, paralysis”), from Proto-Germanic *luft-, from *lubjaną (“to castrate, lop off”) (compare dialectal English lib, West Frisian lobje, Dutch lubben), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)lewp-, *(s)lup- (“hanging limply”). Compare Scots left (“left”), North Frisian lefts, leeft, leefts (“left”), West Frisian lofts (“left”), dialectal Dutch loof (“weak, worthless”), Low German lucht (“left”).

Alternative forms[edit]

(political left): Left

Pronunciation[edit]

(Received Pronunciation, General American) IPA^(key): /ˈlɛft/
Rhymes: -ɛft

Adjective[edit]

left (comparative more left or lefter, superlative most left or leftmost)

Designating the side of the body toward the west when one is facing north; the side of the body on which the heart is located in most humans; the opposite of right. This arrow points to the reader’s left: ←

Synonyms: sinister, sinistral

Antonyms: right, dexter, dextral

The left side.
(geography) Designating the bank of a river (etc.) on one’s left when facing downstream (i.e. facing forward while floating with the current); that is, the north bank of a river that flows eastward. If this arrow: ⥲ shows the direction of the current, the tilde is on the left side of the river.
(politics) Left-wing; pertaining to the political left.
- 1941, George Orwell, The Lion and the Unicorn:
  
  It should be noted that there is now no intelligentsia that is not in some sense «Left«. Perhaps the last right-wing intellectual was T. E. Lawrence. Since about 1930 everyone describable as an “intellectual” has lived in a state of chronic discontent with the existing order.
Antonym: right

The fruit to the viewer’s left is smaller.

Derived terms[edit]

left direction:

left turn (noun)
left-hand
left-handed
left-to-right
leftmost
right-to-left

left-wing (politics):

dirtbag left
far left
left-wing
leftism
leftist
New Left
regressive left
regressive leftism

[edit]

left wing
two left feet

Translations[edit]

west side of the body when one is facing north

Afrikaans: links
Aklanon: waea
Albanian: majtë (sq)
Arabic: يَسَار‎ (yasār), شِمَال‎ (šimāl)

Egyptian Arabic: شمال‎ (šimāl)

Hijazi Arabic: يسار‎ m (yasār), شُمال‎ (šumāl) (dated)
Armenian: ձախ (hy) (jax)
Aromanian: stãngu
Assamese: বাওঁ (baü̃)
Asturian: izquierdu (ast), esquierdu (ast)
Azerbaijani: sol (az)
Bashkir: һул (hul), һулаҡай (hulaqay)
Basque: ezker (eu)
Belarusian: ле́вы (ljévy)
Bengali: বাঁ (bn) (bã)
Bikol Central: wala (bcl)
Bulgarian: ляв (bg) (ljav)
Burmese: ဘယ် (my) (bhai), ဝဲ (my) (wai:)
Buryat: зүүн (züün)
Catalan: esquerre (ca)
Cebuano: wala
Central Dusun: gibang
Chechen: аьрру (ärru)
Chickasaw: please add this translation if you can
Chinese:

Cantonese: 左 (zo²)

Dungan: зуә (zuə)

Mandarin: 左 (zh) (zuǒ)
Cornish: kledh
Czech: levý (cs) m, levá f, levé (cs) n
Danish: venstre (da)
Dutch: links (nl), linker (nl)
Esperanto: maldekstra, liva
Estonian: vasak, pahem
Even: дьэгэнгэг (ʒəgəŋəg)
Evenki: дегинңу
Faroese: vinstra
Fijian: i mawī, mawi
Finnish: vasen (fi)
French: gauche (fr)
Galician: esquerda (gl) f, xiquerda f, seestra f, saestra f, seistra f
Georgian: მარცხენა (marcxena)
German: link (de)

Old High German: winstero, winistro, winstro
Gilbertese: máing
Gothic: 𐌷𐌻𐌴𐌹𐌳𐌿𐌼𐌰 (hleiduma)
Greek: αριστερός (el) m (aristerós)

Ancient: ἀριστερός m (aristerós), λαιός (laiós), εὐώνυμος m (euṓnumos)
Hawaiian: hema
Hebrew: שְׂמֹאל‎ (he) (smol)
Hiligaynon: wala
Hindi: बायाँ (bāyā̃)
Hungarian: bal (hu)
Icelandic: vinstri (is)
Ido: sinistra (io)
Indonesian: kiri (id)

Acehnese: wie

Balinese: kebot

Buginese: abeo

Javanese: kiwa (jv), kering

Madurese: kacer

Makasar: kairi

Minangkabau: kida (min)

Nias: kabera (nia)

Sundanese: kiwa (su)
Ingrian: kura
Ingush: аьрда (ärda)
Interlingua: sinistre (ia), leve
Irish: clé
Italian: sinistro (it)
Japanese: 左 (ja) (ひだり, hidari)
Kalmyk: зүн (zün)
Kashubian: lewi
Kazakh: сол (kk) (sol)
Khmer: ឆ្វេង (km) (chveeng)
Korean: 왼 (ko) (oen), 왼쪽 (ko) (oenjjok)
Kurdish:

Northern Kurdish: çep (ku)
Kyrgyz: сол (ky) (sol)
Ladin: man ciancia f
Ladino: siedra
Lakota: catkayata
Lao: ຊ້າຍ (sāi)
Latgalian: kairuo
Latin: laevus, scaevus, sinister
Latvian: kreiss
Lithuanian: kairioji
Luxembourgish: lénks
Lü: please add this translation if you can
Macedonian: лев (lev)
Malay: kiri (ms)
Maltese: xellug m
Manchu: ᡥᠠᠰᡥᡡ (hashū)
Maori: mauī
Mi’kmaq: inaganeq
Mongolian: зүүн (mn) (züün)
Nanai: деги
Naxi: wai
Neapolitan: sinisto
Norwegian: venstre (no)
Occitan: esquèr (oc)
Ojibwe: namanjinik, namanjinikan pl
Old Church Slavonic:

Cyrillic: лѣвъ (lěvŭ)
Old East Slavic: лѣвъ (lěvŭ)
Old English: winestra
Old Frisian: winstera
Old Javanese: kiwa, keriṅ
Oriya: ବାମ (or) (bamô)
Pangasinan: kawigi
Pashto: يسار‎ (ps) (yasãr)
Persian: چپ‎ (fa) (čap)
Polish: lewy (pl)
Portuguese: esquerdo (pt)
Quechua: lluq’i
Romani:

Vlax Romani: stïngo
Romanian: stâng (ro)
Romansch: seniester
Russian: ле́вый (ru) (lévyj)
Samoan: tau-aŋavale
Sanskrit: सव्य (sa) (savya), वाम (sa) (vāma)
Scottish Gaelic: ceàrr, clì
Serbo-Croatian:

Cyrillic: ле̑вӣ, лије̑вӣ

Roman: lȇvī (sh), lijȇvī (sh)
Shor: сол
Slovak: ľаvý
Slovene: levi
Somali: bidix
Sorbian:

Lower Sorbian: lěwy

Upper Sorbian: lěwy
Southern Altai: сол (sol)
Spanish: izquierda (es)
Swahili: kushoto (sw)
Swedish: vänster (sv)
Tagalog: kaliwa (tl)
Tahitian: ʻaui
Tajik: чап (tg) (čap)
Tamil: இடது (ta) (iṭatu)
Tarantino: mmanghe
Tatar: сул (tt) (sul)
Telugu: ఎడమ (te) (eḍama)
Tetum: karuk
Thai: ซ้าย (th) (sáai)
Tibetan: གཡོན (g.yon), གཡོན་པ (g.yon pa)
Tocharian B: saiwai
Tongan: hema
Turkish: sol (tr)
Turkmen: çep
Tuvan: солагай (solagay)
Udi: дзах (ʒaχ)
Ugaritic: 𐎌𐎎𐎀𐎍 (šmảl)
Ukrainian: лі́вий (lívyj)
Urdu: بایاں‎ (bāyā̃)
Uyghur: سول‎ (ug) (sol), چەپ‎ (chep)
Uzbek: soʻl (uz), chap (uz)
Vietnamese: trái (vi)
Vilamovian: lewo
Waray-Waray: wala
Welsh: chwith (cy)
Yagnobi: чап (čap)
Yakut: хаҥас (qañas)
Yiddish: לינק‎ (link)
Zazaki: çep
Zealandic: lienks
Zhuang: swix

pertaining to the political left

Arabic:

Hijazi Arabic: يساري‎ (yasāri)
Armenian: ձախ (hy) (jax)
Bulgarian: ляв (bg) (ljav)
Catalan: esquerrà (ca)
Czech: levicový (cs) m
Danish: venstre (da), venstreorienteret
Finnish: vasemmistolainen (fi)
Galician: esquerda (gl) f
German: links (de)
Greek: αριστερός (el) m (aristerós)
Hebrew: שׂמאֹלָן‎ (he) m (smolán)
Hungarian: baloldali (hu)
Japanese: 左翼 (ja) (さよく, sayoku), 左派 (ja) (さは, saha)
Latvian: kreiss
Macedonian: лев m (lev), левичарски m (levičarski), лев (lev)
Norwegian: venstre (no)
Persian: اشکلک‎ (fa) (eškelak)
Polish: lewicowy (pl)
Portuguese: de esquerda, liberal (pt), esquerdista (pt)
Russian: ле́вый (ru) (lévyj), либера́льный (ru) (liberálʹnyj)
Spanish: de izquierda
Swahili: kushoto (sw)
Swedish: vänster (sv) c
Ukrainian: лі́вий (lívyj)
Yiddish: לינק‎ (link)

Adverb[edit]

left (not comparable)

On the left side.

Antonym: right
Towards the left side.

Antonym: right

Turn left at the corner. NO! Your other left.
Towards the political left.

Antonym: right

The East Coast of the US leans left in elections.

Derived terms[edit]

left turn (interjection, verb)

Translations[edit]

on the left side

Albanian: majtas (sq)
Arabic: يَسَارًا‎ (yasāran), شِمَالًا‎ (šimālan)
Aromanian: astãnga
Assamese: বাওঁফালে (baü̃phale)
Asturian: a la izquierda, a la esquierda
Bashkir: һулдағы (huldağı), һул яҡ (hul yaq)
Belarusian: зле́ва (zljéva)
Bengali: বাঁপাশে (bãpaśe)
Bulgarian: отля́во (otljávo)
Catalan: esquerre (ca)
Chinese:

Mandarin: 左邊／左边 (zh) (zuǒbiān), 在左邊／在左边 (zài zuǒbiān)
Czech: nalevo, vlevo (cs)
Danish: til venstre, på venstre hånd
Dutch: links (nl)
Esperanto: maldekstra
Faroese: til vinstru
Finnish: vasemmalla (fi)
French: à gauche (fr)
Galician: á esquerda, á seestra, á saestra, asimau, á man esquerda
Georgian: მარცხნივ (marcxniv), მარცხენა მხარეს (marcxena mxares)
German: links (de)
Greek: αριστερά (el) (aristerá)
Hungarian: baloldalt, balra (hu)
Ingrian: kural
Italian: a sinistra
Japanese: 左に (ja) (ひだりに, hidari-ni)
Korean: 왼쪽에 (ko) (oenjjoge)
Latin: a sinistra parte
Latvian: kreisi, pa kreisi
Macedonian: на левата (na levata), одлево (odlevo)
Navajo: nishtłʼajígo
Neapolitan: sinista
Persian: چپ‎ (fa) (čap), در سمت چپ‎ (dar semet čap)
Polish: na lewo (pl) (+ od + genitive), po lewej stronie (+ genitive), z lewej strony (+ genitive)
Portuguese: à esquerda
Romanian: la stânga
Russian: сле́ва (ru) (sléva)
Slovak: na ľavé
Slovene: na levi
Sorbian:

Lower Sorbian: nalěwo
Spanish: a la izquierda
Ukrainian: злі́ва (zlíva), ліво́руч (livóruč)
Vietnamese: ở bên trái
Walloon: a hintche, a gåtche, a pawene
Yiddish: לינקס‎ (links)

towards the left side

Albanian: majtas (sq)
Arabic: إِلَى اَلْيَسَار‎ (ʔilā l-yasār), إِلَى اَلشِّمَال‎ (ʔilā š-šimāl)
Aromanian: astãnga
Assamese: বাওঁফালে (baü̃phale)
Bashkir: һулға (hulğa)
Belarusian: нале́ва (naljéva)
Bengali: বাঁ দিকে (bn) (bã dike)
Bulgarian: наля́во (naljávo)
Chinese:

Mandarin: 向左 (zh) (xiàng zuǒ)
Czech: doleva (cs)
Danish: til venstre
Dutch: links (nl)
Esperanto: maldekstra
Finnish: vasemmalle (fi)
French: à gauche (fr)
Galician: á esquerda, á seestra, á saestra, asimau, á man esquerda
Georgian: მარცხნივ (marcxniv)
German: links (de), nach links (de)
Greek: αριστερά (el) (aristerá)
Hebrew: שמאלה‎ (smóla)
Hindi: बायें (bāyẽ)
Hungarian: balra (hu)
Italian: a sinistra
Japanese: 左へ
Latvian: pa kreisi
Luxembourgish: lénks
Macedonian: лево (levo), налево (nalevo)
Polish: w lewo (pl), na lewo (pl)
Portuguese: esquerdo (pt), sestro (pt)
Romanian: la stânga
Russian: нале́во (ru) (nalévo), вле́во (ru) (vlévo)
Serbo-Croatian:

Cyrillic: на̏ле̄во

Roman: nȁlēvo (sh)
Slovak: vľavo
Slovene: levo
Sorbian:

Lower Sorbian: nalěwo
Spanish: a la izquierda
Ukrainian: налі́во (nalívo)
Walloon: a hintche, a schlintche mwin, so gåtche mwin, so pawene
Yiddish: לינקס‎ (links)

Noun[edit]

left (plural lefts)

The left side or direction.

Synonyms: 9 o’clock, port
(politics) The left-wing political parties as a group; citizens holding left-wing views as a group.

The Left left workers behind, thinking they had a winning demographic coalition. It hasn’t really worked out for them yet.
The left hand or fist.
(boxing) A punch delivered with the left fist.
(surfing) A wave breaking from left to right (viewed from the shore).

Antonym: right

Synonyms[edit]

(political left): left wing, leftists

Derived terms[edit]

lefty

Translations[edit]

the left side

Arabic: يسار‎
Armenian: ձախ (hy) (jax)
Assamese: বাওঁ (baü̃), বাওঁফাল (baü̃phal)
Bashkir: һул (hul)
Basque: ezker (eu)
Bulgarian: левица (bg) (levica)
Burmese: ဘယ် (my) (bhai)
Catalan: esquerra (ca) f
Danish: venstre (da)
Dutch: linkerkant (nl) m
Finnish: vasen (fi), vasen puoli
French: gauche (fr) f
Galician: esquerda (gl) f, xiquerda f, seestra f, saestra f, seistra f, asimau m
Georgian: მარცხენა (marcxena), მარცხენა მხარე (marcxena mxare)
German: Linke (de) f
Greek: αριστερά (el) f (aristerá)
Hungarian: bal oldal
Italian: sinistra (it) f
Japanese: 左 (ja) (ひだり, hidari)
Kurdish:

Central Kurdish: چەپ‎ (ckb) (çep)
Lakota: catkayatan
Latvian: ^{(please verify)} kreisā puse , ^{(please verify)} kreisais sāns
Macedonian: левица f (levica)
Manchu: ᡥᠠᠰᡥᡡ (hashū), ᡥᠠᠰᡥᡡ
ᡝᡵᡤᡳ (hashū ergi)
Maore Comorian: potro
Neapolitan: sinista f
Norman: gauche f
Norwegian: venstresiden c
Pangasinan: kawigi
Persian: چپ‎ (fa) (čap)
Polish: lewa (pl) f
Portuguese: esquerda (pt) f
Romanian: stânga (ro) f
Russian: ле́вый (ru) (lévyj)
Slovak: ľavica f
Spanish: izquierda (es) f
Swahili: kushoto (sw)
Swedish: vänster (sv) c
Telugu: ఎడమ (te) (eḍama)
Turkish: sol (tr)

the ensemble of left-wing political parties

Arabic: يَسَار‎ m (yasār)
Armenian: ձախ (hy) (jax)
Bulgarian: левица (bg) (levica)
Catalan: esquerra (ca) f
Czech: levice (cs) f
Danish: venstrefløjen
Dutch: linkerkant (nl) m, links (nl) n
Finnish: vasemmisto (fi)
French: gauche (fr) f
Galician: esquerda (gl) f
Georgian: მემარცხენეები (memarcxeneebi), მემარცხენეობა (memarcxeneoba)
German: Linke (de) f
Greek: αριστερά (el) f (aristerá)
Hebrew: שְׂמֹאל‎ (he) c
Hungarian: baloldal (hu)
Indonesian: ^{(please verify)} sayap kiri
Italian: sinistra (it) f
Japanese: 左翼 (ja) (さよく, sayoku)
Latvian: kreisie m pl
Macedonian: левица f (levica)
Norwegian: venstresiden c
Occitan: esquèrra (oc) f
Persian: چپگرا‎ (čapgerâ)
Polish: lewica (pl) f
Portuguese: esquerda (pt) f
Romanian: stângă f
Russian: ле́вый (ru) (lévyj)
Serbo-Croatian:

Cyrillic: љѐвица f, лѐвица f

Roman: ljèvica (sh) f, lèvica (sh) f
Slovene: levica
Spanish: izquierda (es) f
Swahili: kushoto (sw)
Swedish: vänster (sv) c, vänstern (sv) c
Turkish: sol (tr)

Translations to be checked

Afrikaans: ^{(please verify)} links
Albanian: ^{(please verify)} majta (sq) f
Esperanto: ^{(please verify)} maldekstra
Mandarin: ^{(please verify)} 左 (zh) (zuǒ)
Sardinian: ^{(please verify)} manca f
Telugu: ^{(please verify)} వామ పక్షం (vāma pakṣaṁ)
Vietnamese: ^{(please verify)} trái (vi), (1) ^{(please verify)} phía bên trái, (2) ^{(please verify)} cánh tả

Etymology 2[edit]

From Middle English left, variant of laft (“remaining, left”), from Old English lǣfd, ġelǣfd, past participle of lǣfan (“to leave”). More at leave.

Verb[edit]

left

simple past tense and past participle of leave (“depart, separate from; (cause or allow to) remain”).
- 1913, Joseph C. Lincoln, chapter 8, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients:
  
  Afore we got to the shanty Colonel Applegate stuck his head out of the door. His temper had been getting raggeder all the time, and the sousing he got when he fell overboard had just about ripped what was left of it to ravellings.
There’s not much food left.

Translations[edit]

remaining

Afrikaans: oor (af)
Arabic:

Hijazi Arabic: بِقِي‎ (bigi)
Armenian: մնացած (hy) (mnacʿac)
Assamese: বাকী (baki), ৰোৱা (rüa)
Bikol Central: tada
Bulgarian: останал (bg) (ostanal)
Chinese:

Mandarin: 餘下／余下 (zh) (yúxià), 剩下 (zh) (shèngxia)
Czech: zbývající (cs) m
Danish: tilbage (da)
Dutch: over (nl)
Esperanto: restaĵo
Faroese: eftir
Finnish: (with verbs signifying movement) jäljelle (fi), (with stative verbs) jäljellä (fi)
French: restant (fr)
Galician: nisco m, murgallo m, rabicho m, tapiñán m, garampallo m
German: übrig (de)
Greek: έμεινα (el) (émeina)
Hindi: बाक़ी (bāqī)
Hungarian: hátralévő, (……van) hátra
Italian: rimasto (it)
Japanese: 残った (ja) (のこった, nokotta)
Kurdish:

Central Kurdish: ماوە‎ (ckb) (mawe)
Macedonian: останат m (ostanat), преостанат m (preostanat)
Maltese: fdal
Maori: toe
Norwegian:

Bokmål: igjen (no), til overs

Nynorsk: igjen, att
Polish: pozostały (pl)
Portuguese: deixado, sobrar (pt), restar (pt)
Romanian: rămas (ro)
Russian: оста́вшийся (ru) (ostávšijsja), остально́й (ru) (ostalʹnój)
Serbo-Croatian:

Cyrillic: прео̀ста̄лӣ

Roman: preòstālī (sh)
Spanish: sobrado (es) m, sobras (es) f
Swahili: kushoto (sw)
Swedish: kvar (sv)
Tagalog: tira
Telugu: మిగిలిన (te) (migilina)

Etymology 3[edit]

From Middle English levit, ilevet, y-levyd, from Old English ġelȳfd, ġelȳfed, past participle of Old English ġelȳfan, lȳfan (“to allow, permit”), equivalent to leave (“to give leave to, allow, grant, permit”) +‎ -ed.

Verb[edit]

left

simple past tense and past participle of leave (“permit”).

We were not left go to the beach after school except on a weekend.

References[edit]

The Concise Dictionary of English Etymology, Walter W. Skeat.

Anagrams[edit]

FELT, Felt, TEFL, felt, flet

Yola[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Middle English left, from Old English lyft.

Adjective[edit]

left

left
- 1927, “ZONG OF TWI MAARKEET MOANS”, in THE ANCIENT DIALECT OF THE BARONIES OF FORTH AND BARGY, COUNTY WEXFORD, line 11:
  
  In durk Ich red virst mee left-vooted shoe.»
  
  In the dark I happened first on my left-footed shoe.»

References[edit]

Kathleen A. Browne (1927) The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland Sixth Series, Vol.17 No.2, Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland, page 129

Источник

Adjective

He felt a pain in his left side.

He hit him with a left hook to the jaw.

the left side of the street

Noun

We read from left to right.

You’ll take two lefts and then a right.

He hit him with two quick lefts to the stomach followed by a right to the jaw.

Recent Examples on the Web

From left to right: an untreated streak of wax, a streak of wax treated with olive oil, and a streak of wax treated with acetone.

—Courtney Linder, Popular Mechanics, 7 Apr. 2023

Nick Gates started at center in the two games that Feliciano missed last season and also started six regular-season and two playoff contests at left guard.

—Mark Inabinett | Minabinett@al.com, al, 7 Apr. 2023

Texas guard transfer Junior Angilau is still limited, explaining the order at left guard.

—oregonlive, 7 Apr. 2023

Museum staff noticed the statue was missing its left thumb in early January.

—Daniel Wu, Washington Post, 6 Apr. 2023

Pick up right hand and foot and move them a few inches to the right, followed by left hand and foot.

—Women’s Health, 6 Apr. 2023

Duplain has the most, starting 35 of his 42 games at left guard the past four seasons.

—Chris Solari, Detroit Free Press, 5 Apr. 2023

Later that year, Democrat Terry McAuliffe lost Virginia’s gubernatorial election to Republican Glenn Youngkin, who ran a campaign of fearmongering about education and crime—another data point suggesting that Democrats had gone too left and too woke.

—Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 5 Apr. 2023

In the first photo, Long is seen excitingly embracing Bosworth, who smiles widely while holding up her left hand, which shimmers with a giant diamond.

—Rosa Sanchez, Harper’s BAZAAR, 5 Apr. 2023

Charlie McAvoy was pulled from the game with 9:32 left in the second period after colliding with Patrice Bergeron.

—Conor Ryan, BostonGlobe.com, 7 Apr. 2023

Hochul’s climate decisions have been similarly alienating to the Democratic left.

—Kate Aronoff, The New Republic, 7 Apr. 2023

On the edge of that patch at the upper left is a bright white spot.

—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 6 Apr. 2023

Leaders of the Democratic left, including Senators Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, endorsed Mr. Johnson, lifting him from obscurity to a second-place finish in the first round of voting.

—Jonathan Weisman, New York Times, 5 Apr. 2023

Clark had 16 minutes for the Hawkeyes at the time but picked up her second foul of the game and had to exit with 3:10 left in the first half.

—Sportsday Staff, Dallas News, 2 Apr. 2023

Durant misses first six shots, Suns down three at half Kevin Durant finally gets on the board with a free throw with 6:32 left in the first half.

—Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 29 Mar. 2023

Walker scored his first touchdown of the season on a 1-yard run as St. Louis took a 23-0 lead with 9:32 left in the third quarter.

—Mark Inabinett | Minabinett@al.com, al, 27 Mar. 2023

James entered the game with 6:32 left in the first quarter.

—Victoria Hernandez, USA TODAY, 26 Mar. 2023

See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word ‘left.’ Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Источник

In Ancient Greek left is «σκαιός, -ά, -όν» skai̯ós (masc.), skai̯ā́ (fem.), skai̯ón (neut.) with cognates the Sanskrit छाया (chāyā), shade, reflection, Latin scævus, from PIE *skeh₂-i-uo- left, inauspicious. According to Beekes:

The semantic development may have been ‘shaded’ > ‘western’, and when referring to hands, ‘shaded hand’ > ‘improper hand = left hand’

In ancient Greek poetry, the preferred name is «λαιός, -ά, -όν» lai̯ós (masc.), lai̯ā́ (fem.), lai̯ón (neut.) with cognates the Lat. lævus, Proto-Slavic *lěvъ, from PIE *leh₂-i-uo- left.

The ancient Greeks replaced the unfavourable «σκαιός» with the euphemism «ἀριστερός, -ρά, -ρόν» ăristĕrós (masc.), ăristĕrā́ (fem.), ăristĕrón (neut.) < Classical adj. «ἄριστος» ắristos —> the best, first, noblest, superlative of the deverbal adj. «ἀρείων» ăreí̯ōn —> better, stronger, nobler < Classical Gr. v. «ἀραρίσκω» ărărískō —> to fit together, construct, equip (PIE *h₂er- to fit cf. Hitt. āra-, proper, arā-, friend, Lyc. ara-, rite, Skt. ऋतु (ṛtu), order, Av. arəm, fitting).
From this, the MoGr name for left, derives: «αριστερός, -ρή, ρό» [a.ɾis.teˈɾɔs] (masc.), [a.ɾis.teˈɾi] (fem.), [a.ɾis.teˈɾɔ] (neut.).

The ancients however, used another euphemism which replaced «ἀριστερός» in every-day usage, the adj. «εὐώνυμος, -μον» eu̯ṓnŭmŏs (masc. & fem.), eu̯ṓnŭmŏn —> of good name.

So, the ancient Greeks used a euphemism of a euphemism for left.

Источник

The words left and right are closely associated with differing “wings” of the political spectrum.

But how did liberal politics become associated with the word left, anyways? And why are conservatives labelled as right?

When we discuss the origins of words, we often warn against origin stories that sound too good to be true. Well, in this case, the history of the terms left and right in the context of politics turns out to be a fascinating exception.

In this article, we’ll discuss the modern meanings of each term and then delve into the quite literal origins of how words for opposite directions came to be associated with opposing political views. We’ll cross the aisle to cover it all—right, left, and center.

**What does left mean?**

In politics, the word left is applied to people and groups that have liberal views. That generally means they support progressive reforms, especially those seeking greater social and economic equality.

The term far left is often used to refer to those who are considered to have more extreme, revolutionary views, such as those who espouse communism and socialism. Collectively, people and groups, as well as the positions they hold, are referred to as the Left or the left wing.

**What does right mean?**

The word right, in contrast, refers to people or groups that have conservative views. That generally means they are disposed to preserving existing conditions and institutions. Or, they want to restore traditional ones and limit change.

The term far right is often used for more extreme, nationalistic viewpoints, including fascism and some oppressive ideologies. People and groups, as well as their positions, are collectively referred to as the Right or the right wing.

WATCH: What Is The Origin Of The Republican Party?

**The origin of left and right in politics**

The origin of the political left and right do actually have to with the physical directions, left and right. Time for a history lesson.

Left and right originally referred to seating positions in the 1789 French National Assembly, the parliament France formed after the French Revolution.

Relative to the viewpoint of the speaker (chair) of this assembly, to the right were seated nobility and more high-ranking religious leaders. To the left were seated commoners and less powerful clergy. The right-hand side (called le côté droit in French) became associated with more reactionary views (more pro-aristocracy) and the left-hand side (le côté gauche) with more radical views (more pro-middle class).

Left and right, as political adjectives, are recorded in English in the 1790s.

What does it mean to be in the center?

Seating positions closer to the center of the 1789 French National Assembly likewise became associated with moderate positions, which is what the word center now conveys in the context of politics.

In other word, people who consider themselves in the center favor moderate positions—those not too far toward either end of the spectrum. People holding these views are often called moderates. Political independents often fall at the center of the political spectrum. Center-left refers to people, groups, or views that are just to the left of the political center in a country. Center-right refers to being a little bit to the right of center. Of course, these labels and their interpretations are subjective and vary from person to person and place to place.

In the US, people often use left as a shorthand for the Democratic Party and right as a shorthand for the Republican Party. But keep in mind that politics is always far more complicated than the labels we give to it—and each other.

Do you know why Democrats and Republicans are donkeys and elephants? After you read this, you will!

Источник

Why is the word “left” so different across romance languages ?

The word for “right” as in the opposite of “left” is somewhat similar across romance languages French : Droite Italian: Destra Spanish: Derecha Portugese: Direita Romanian: Dreapta

While the word for “left” varies wildly French: Gauche Italian: Sinistra Spanish: Izquierda Portuguese: Esquerda Romanian: Stânga

The words for “right” all seem to have the same root and start with the letter D while for “left”, appart from Spanish and Portuguese, the words are very different and dont seem to share a same root. Can somebody explain why that is the case ?

Источник