lex

See also: Lex

Translingual

Symbol

lex

1. (international standards) ISO 639-3 language code for Luang.

See also

• Wiktionary’s coverage of Luang terms

English

Pronunciation

• enPR: lĕks; IPA^(key): /lɛks/
• (Received Pronunciation, General American, Canada, Scotland) IPA^(key): /lɛks/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (Australia, New Zealand) IPA^(key): /leks/
• Rhymes: -ɛks
• Homophones: Lex, leks
• Hyphenation: lex

Etymology 1

Clipping of lexical (analysis).

Verb

lex (third-person singular simple present lexes, present participle lexing, simple past and past participle lexed)

1. (computing) To perform lexical analysis; to convert a character stream to a token stream as a preliminary to parsing.
   • 1994, Donna K. Harman, National Institute of Standards and Technology, The Second Text REtrieval Conference (TREC-2):

     Once this is done, each processor parses and lexes its own documents, using conventional programming techniques.

   • 2004, Richard William Sharp, Higher-level hardware synthesis:

     SAFL source is lexed and parsed into an abstract syntax tree.

   • 2007, Don Syme with Adam Granicz and Antonio Cisternino, Expert F#:

     Lexing and parsing do not have to be separated, and there are often convenient .NET methods for extracting information from text in particular formats...

Derived terms

• lexer

See also

• Lex (software) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Noun

lex (plural lexes)

1. (linguistics) A specific inflected form of a word; compare lexeme.

Etymology 2

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *leǵ-

Proto-Indo-European *-s

Proto-Indo-European *lḗǵs?

Proto-Indo-European *legʰ-

Proto-Indo-European *-s

Proto-Indo-European *lḗgʰs?

Proto-Italic *lēks

Latin lēx, lēgeslbor.

English lex

Learned borrowing from Latin lēx, lēges (“law(s)”).

Noun

lex (plural leges)

1. (history, uncommon) A Roman or Latin law (particularly in ancient Rome or in medieval Europe).
   • 1891, William Smith, A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, page 55:

     The 19th and 20th lines of the lex on the tablet (which decree the repeal of the rectigalia) seem to be conclusive in favour of this and against Rudorff's earlier theory.

   • 2018 October 18, Paul R. Hyams, Rancor and Reconciliation in Medieval England, Cornell University Press, →ISBN, page 96:

     Sanctuary arrangements show strong parallels to other regulations in the leges concerning feud and the prosecution of theft.

See also

• de minimis non curat lex
• lex dubia non obligat
• lex lata
• lex talionis

Further reading

• “lex”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Indonesian

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin lēx (“law”).

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: lex

Noun

lex (uncountable)

1. (law) law

   Synonyms: hukum, undang-undang

Derived terms

• lex posterior
• lex specialis
• lex superior

Further reading

• “lex”, in Kamus Besar Bahasa Indonesia [Great Dictionary of the Indonesian Language] (in Indonesian), Jakarta: Agency for Language Development and Cultivation – Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, 2016

Latin

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *leǵ-

Proto-Indo-European *-s

Proto-Indo-European *lḗǵs?

Proto-Indo-European *legʰ-

Proto-Indo-European *-s

Proto-Indo-European *lḗgʰs?

Proto-Italic *lēks

Latin lēx

From Proto-Italic *lēks. The usual etymology derives the term from Proto-Indo-European *lēǵ-s, a root nomen actionis from *leǵ- (“to gather”), whence also legō.

Palmer (1906) proposes an alternative origin in Proto-Indo-European *legʰ-s, root nomen actionis from *legʰ- (“to lie, to be in resting position”). Compare typologically English law, Russian уложе́ние (uložénije) from this PIE root. This alternative etymology is endorsed by Fortson.

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [ˈɫeːks]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [ˈlɛks]

Noun

lēx f (genitive lēgis); third declension

1. the legal machinery of a state, the law

   lēge ― lawfully

   lēge agere ― to go to law; to carry out the law

2. a law, statute, bill

   dūra lēx, sed lēx ― the law is tough but it is the law (proverb)

   • 43 BCE, Publilius Syrus, Sententiae (printed in translation Benham's Book of Quotations 1948):

     Lēx ūniversa est quae iubet nāscī et morī.

     The universal law is that which ordains that we are to be born and to die.

3. (plural) the laws regarded as a body, the constitution
   • 59 BCE, Cicero, Pro Flacco 62:

     Athēniēnsēs, unde hūmānitās, doctrīna, […] lēgēs ortae

     the Athenians, whence we have humanity, learning […] and the constitution

4. legal right or title

   lēge ― by legal right

5. a rule made by any authority, ordinance, regulation, precept
   • 106 BCE – 43 BCE, Cicero, Tusculanae Disputationes 5.108:

     sī […] Epicūrī lēgibus pāruisset

     if […] he followed the precepts of Epicurus

6. a rule or principle of any art or craft, esp. the rules of scansion or versification

   lēx poētica ― the rules of poetry

   numerī lēge solūtī ― rhythm without rules

7. a law or rule established by divine authority or universally accepted by mankind

   lēx bellī ― the custom of war, the right of the conqueror

8. a principle inherent in the nature of a thing, a condition of existence
   • c. 206 BCE – 188 BCE, Plautus, Mercator 817:

     lēge dūrā vīvont mulierēs

     womens' existence is hard

9. what is allowable or right, the due measure, propriety

   lēgem priōrum ēgredī ― to transgress the standards of propriety set by those who came before

10. rule, control, dominion

    ad lēgem ― neatly

    sine lēge ― in disorder, wildly

11. a compact or agreement stipulating the terms for the performance of work, a contract

    lēx operī faciundō (legal formula) ― a contract

12. a necessary condition for the fulfilment of a promise, contract, etc., a term, condition, stipulation

    hāc lēge, eā lēge (ut), hīs lēgibus ― on the condition (that), on these terms

    suā lēge, meā lēge, suīs lēgibus ― on one's own terms, at one’s discretion

13. (plural) terms of peace or friendship
    • c. 37 BCE – 30 BCE, Vergilius, Georgicon 1.510:

      vīcīnae ruptīs inter sē lēgibus urbēs // arma ferunt

      • Translation by H. Rushton Fairclough

        breaking the covenants which bind them, neighbouring cities draw the sword

Declension

Third-declension noun.

	singular	plural
nominative	lēx	lēgēs
genitive	lēgis	lēgum
dative	lēgī	lēgibus
accusative	lēgem	lēgēs
ablative	lēge	lēgibus
vocative	lēx	lēgēs

Derived terms

• dūra lēx, sed lēx
• exlēx
• lēgālis
• lēgifer
• lēgirupa
• lēgisdoctor
• lēgislātiō
• lēgislātor
• lēgisperītus
• lēgitimus
• lēgō
• lēguleius
• lēgumlātor
• lēx monētae
• lēx rēgia
• Lēx Viāria
• mōs prō lēge
• prīvilēgium

Descendants

• →? Albanian: ligj
• Aromanian: leadzi
• Basque: lege
• Emilian: lażż
• Friulian: leç
• Galician: lei
• → German: lege artis
• Italian: legge
  • → Esperanto: leĝo
• Ladin: lege
• Old Leonese: lee, llei
  • Asturian: llei
• Lombard: leg
• Piedmontese: lèj
• Old Occitan: ley
  • Occitan: lei
  • Catalan: llei
• Old French: lei
  • Middle French: loy
    • French: loi
      • ⇒ Haitian Creole: lalwa
      • → Moore: laloa
  • Norman: louai
• Piedmontese: lege
• Portuguese: lei
• Romanian: lege
• Sicilian: liggi
• Old Spanish: ley
  • Spanish: ley
• Venetan: lexe
• Walloon: lwè

See also

• dēcrētum
• ēdictum
• fās
• iūs
• scītum

References

• “lex” on page 1124 of the Oxford Latin Dictionary (2nd ed., 2012)

Further reading

• “lex”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• lex in Georges, Karl Ernst; Georges, Heinrich (1913–1918), Ausführliches lateinisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch, 8th edition, volume 2, Hahnsche Buchhandlung
• R. E. Latham, D. R. Howlett, & R. K. Ashdowne, editors (1975–2013), “lex”, in Dictionary of Medieval Latin from British Sources‎^[1], London: Oxford University Press for the British Academy, →ISBN, →OCLC
• “lex”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• Harm Pinkster, editor (2018), “lex”, in Woordenboek Latijn/Nederlands‎^[2], 7th revised edition, Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, →ISBN, →OCLC
• Latino-Sinicum, in ΛΟΓΕΙΟΝ [Logeion] Dictionaries for Ancient Greek and Latin (in English, French, Spanish, German, Dutch and Chinese), University of Chicago, since 2011
• "lex", in Charles du Fresne du Cange, Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• “lex”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• “lex”, in William Smith et al., editor (1890), A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin
• “lex”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper’s Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
• Carl Meißner; Henry William Auden (1894), Latin Phrase-Book‎^[3], London: Macmillan and Co.
  • to give the state a constitution: rem publicam legibus et institutis temperare (Tusc. 1. 1. 2)
    
  • (a state) has its own laws, is autonomous: suis legibus utitur (B. G. 1. 45. 3)
    
  • a law is adopted: lex perfertur
    
  • the laws of Solon ordained that..: Solonis legibus sanctum erat, ut or ne
    
  • a law is valid: lex rata est (opp. irrita)
    
  • without breaking the law: salvis legibus (vid. sect. X. 7, note Notice...)
    
  • the law orders, forbids (expressly, distinctly): lex iubet, vetat (dilucide, planissime)
    
  • a legislator: legum scriptor, conditor, inventor
    
  • (ambiguous) a legislator: qui leges scribit (not legum lator)
    
  • to free from legal obligations: legibus solvere
    
  • (ambiguous) this is our natural tendency, our destiny; nature compels us: ita (ea lege, ea condicione) nati sumus
    
  • (ambiguous) the rules of speech, grammar: leges dicendi
    
  • (ambiguous) to hold by the letter (of the law): verba ac litteras or scriptum (legis) sequi (opp. sententia the spirit)
    
  • (ambiguous) the constitution: instituta et leges
    
  • (ambiguous) to give the state a constitution: civitati leges, iudicia, iura describere
    
  • (ambiguous) to bring a bill before the notice of the people: legem, rogationem promulgare (Liv. 33. 46)
    
  • (ambiguous) to propose a law in the popular assembly: legem ferre or simply ferre ad populum, ut...
    
  • (ambiguous) to support a bill (before the people): legem suadere (opp. dissuadere)
    
  • (ambiguous) to support a bill (before the people): pro lege dicere
    
  • (ambiguous) to formally propose a law to the people: legem rogare or rogare populum (cf. sect. XVI. 4, note Aulus Gellius...)
    
  • (ambiguous) to carry a law (said of the magistrate): legem perferre (Liv. 33. 46)
    
  • (ambiguous) to reject a bill: legem antiquare (opp. accipere, iubere)
    
  • (ambiguous) to vote for a law: legem sciscere (Planc. 14. 35)
    
  • (ambiguous) to ratify a law (used of the people): legem iubere
    
  • (ambiguous) to let a bill become law (of the people and senate): legem sancire
    
  • (ambiguous) Solo ordained by law that..: Solo lege sanxit, ut or ne
    
  • (ambiguous) to replace an old law by a new: legem abrogare (Att. 3. 23. 2)
    
  • (ambiguous) to abolish a law: legem tollere (Leg. 2. 12. 31)
    
  • (ambiguous) to protest against a law (used of the veto, intercessio, of plebeian tribunes): legi intercedere
    
  • (ambiguous) to bring a law before the notice of the people: legem proponere in publicum
    
  • (ambiguous) to engrave a law upon a brazen tablet: legem in aes incīdere
    
  • (ambiguous) to declare a law valid: legem ratam esse iubere
    
  • (ambiguous) to transgress a law: a lege discedere
    
  • (ambiguous) the law says..: in lege scriptum est, or simply est
    
  • (ambiguous) the spirit of the law: sententia or voluntas legis
    
  • (ambiguous) to make laws (of a legislator): leges scribere, facere, condere, constituere (not dare)
    
  • (ambiguous) a legislator: qui leges scribit (not legum lator)
    
  • (ambiguous) to swear obedience to a law: in legem iurare (Sest. 16. 37)
    
  • (ambiguous) to be bound by a law: lege teneri
    
  • (ambiguous) on condition of..: ea lege, ut
    
  • (ambiguous) a thing is illegal: aliquid contra legem est
    
  • (ambiguous) to upset the whole constitution: omnes leges confundere
    
  • (ambiguous) lawlessness; anarchy: leges nullae
    
  • (ambiguous) to go to law with a person: (ex) iure, lege agere cum aliquo
    
  • (ambiguous) to be condemned under the Lex Plautia: lege Plautia damnari (Sall. Cat. 31. 4)
    

Middle English

Noun

lex

1. (Early Middle English, Worcestershire) alternative form of lax (“salmon”)

Polish

Etymology

Etymology tree

Proto-Indo-European *leǵ-

Proto-Indo-European *-s

Proto-Indo-European *lḗǵs?

Proto-Indo-European *legʰ-

Proto-Indo-European *-s

Proto-Indo-European *lḗgʰs?

Proto-Italic *lēks

Latin lēxlbor.

Polish lex

Learned borrowing from Latin lēx.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈlɛks/
• Rhymes: -ɛks
• Syllabification: lex

Noun

lex f (indeclinable)

2. (Ancient Rome) lex (a Roman or Latin law, particularly in ancient Rome or in medieval Europe)
4. (law, colloquial, sometimes collective) synonym of ustawa (“act; statute; bill; law”) (generally applicable legal act, adopted by the highest state authorities, relating to a specific field) [with nominative]
   • 2018 June 14, Tomasz Żółciak, “Przydrożne drzewa pójdą pod topór. Nadchodzi powtórka z lex Szyszko? [Roadside trees will go under the axe. Is a repeat of “lex Szyszko” coming?]”, in Gazeta Prawna‎^[4], quoted in nowewyrazy.uw.edu.pl:

     Obawia się też, czy prowadzone prace – zwłaszcza jeśli doprowadzą do liberalizacji przepisów – nie skończą się powtórką lex Szyszko, którego efektem była niekontrolowana wycinka zieleni w zeszłym roku. – Wtedy niektórych uwierały przepisy dotyczące wycinki drzew na posesjach i wysokich opłat, więc u ministra wylobbowano kontrowersyjne zmiany.

     The concern is also about whenever the ongoing work—especially if it leads to liberalization of regulations—will not end with a repeat of “lex Szyszko”, which resulted in uncontrolled cutting of greenery last year. — At the time, some people were unhappy with the regulations on felling trees on private property and the high fees involved, so controversial changes were lobbied for with the minister.

   • 2018 August 22, Martyna Kośka, “Lex deweloper wchodzi w życie. Firmy już stoją w kolejce do budowania po nowemu [“Lex developer” comes info force. Companies are already queuing up to build under the new rules]”, in money.pl‎^[5], quoted in nowewyrazy.uw.edu.pl, archived from the original on 22 August 2018:

     Od środy zaczyna obowiązywać większość przepisów ustawy o ułatwieniach w przygotowaniu i realizacji inwestycji mieszkaniowych, zwanej popularnie lex deweloper. Celem specustawy jest uproszczenie procesu budowlanego i zwiększenie dostępności mieszkań dla przeciętnego Kowalskiego.

     From Wednesday, most of the provisions of the law on facilitating the preparation and implementation of housing investments, popularly called “lex developer”, come into force. The purpose of the special law is to simplify the construction process and increase the availability of housing for the average John.

Further reading

• Modern Standard Polish:
  • “lex”, in Polish dictionaries at PWN‎^[6] (in Polish)
  • lex at Obserwatorium językowe Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego

Swedish

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin lēx (“law”). First attested in 1842.

Noun

Examples
lex Maria for Chapter 3 Paragraph 5 of the Patient Safety Law lex Sarah for Chapter 14 Section 3 of the Social Services Law lex Maja for Chapter 10 Section 20 a, of the Public Access to Information and Secrecy Law

lex c

1. (law) Used before a given name to form names, often informal, for certain laws.

Usage notes

• The given name that sometimes follow lex is often from the entity (person, animal, organisation) which gave reason to the need of that specific law.
• The structure involving lex can be compared with those involving the English terms act and in re, for example In re Gault. Note, however, that these legal terms may carry a different meaning.

Derived terms

• lex Bobby
• lex Bratt
• lex generalis
• lex Hildebrand
• lex Hinke
• lex Kockum
• lex lilla hjärtat
• lex Maja
• lex Maria
• lex rei sitae
• lex Sarah
• lex specialis
• lex Thyrén
• lex Uggla
• lex Åberg

References

• “lex”, in Svensk ordbok [Dictionary of Swedish] (in Swedish)

Wolof

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

lex (definite form lex bi)

1. cheek (part of the face)