Meanings
comparative more lecherous · superlative most lecherous
- Given to excessive sexual activity and debauchery.
1 more example
Adam was a perfectly satisfactory dinner companion, if not a bit damp and blandly lecherous (he revealed he had looked at my Instagram before we met and “really liked the photos of me in a bathing suit.”) And now, standing on the street corner, it was unclear how I was going to walk away from this without an awkward shutdown.
2016 March 21, Allison P. Davies, “What I Learned Tindering My Way Across Europe”, in Travel + Leisure, archived from the original on 06 Jan 2018
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectivegiven to excessive indulgence in sexual activity
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*leyǵʰ-“to lick”
- Proto-Germanic*likkōną“to lick”
- Frankish*lekkōn, *likkōn“to lick”
- Old Frenchlecher
- Old Frenchlecherie
- Old French*lecherous
- Middle Englishlecherous
- Englishlecherous
From Middle English lecherous, licherous, from Old French *lecherous (attested in Old French lecherousement (“lecherously”)), from Old French lecherie, licherie (“gluttony, sensuality, lewdness, lechery”), from Old French lecher, lechier, lekier, lescher (“to lick, live in gluttony or sensuality”), from Old Frankish *lekkōn, *likkōn (“to lick”), from Proto-Germanic *likkōną (“to lick”), from Proto-Indo-European *leyǵʰ- (“to lick”), equivalent to lecher + -ous. More at lick.
More words from Middle English, Old French, Frankish
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek λάγνος, μάχλος
- λάγνος (lágnos)given to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- μάχλος (mákhlos)given to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Bulgarian развратен
- развратен (razvraten)given to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Chinese Cantonese 鹹濕 /咸湿
- 鹹濕 /咸湿 (haam⁴ sap¹)given to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Czech chlípný, vilný
- chlípnýgiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- vilnýgiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Danish liderlig, lysten
- liderliggiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- lystengiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- kådgiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Dutch wellustig
- wellustiggiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Finnish irstas, rietas
- irstasgiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- rietasgiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
French lubrique
- lubriquegiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
German lüstern
- lüsterngiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Greek λάγνος, ασελγής
- λάγνος (lágnos)given to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- ασελγής (aselgís)given to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Hungarian züllött
- züllöttgiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Icelandic lostafullur, kynósa
- lostafullurgiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- kynósagiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Italian lascivo, libidinoso
- lascivogiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- libidinosogiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- lussuriosogiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- libertinogiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- licenziosogiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- mandrillogiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Latin salax, cupidus
- salaxgiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- cupidusgiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- libīdinōsusgiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Portuguese lascivo, libidinoso
- lascivogiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- libidinosogiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Russian развра́тный, распу́тный
- развра́тный (razvrátnyj)given to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- распу́тный (raspútnyj)given to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- блудли́вый (bludlívyj)given to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- похотли́вый (poxotlívyj)given to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Spanish libidinoso, lascivo
- libidinosogiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- lascivogiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- licenciosogiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- libertinogiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- lujuriosogiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Swedish liderlig, vällustig
- liderliggiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- vällustiggiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
- lystengiven to a lustful craving of sexual activities
Cite this entry
lecherous. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lecherous
“lecherous.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lecherous. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “lecherous,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/lecherous.
Source: lecherous on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.