Lads

How to spell lads

4 letters · 1 syllable

How to pronounce lads

What does lads mean?

1. nounBoys or young men, especially a group of male friends or workmates.

Lads in a sentence

• The lads headed to the pub after their shift ended.

• She packed extra sandwiches for the lads working on the roof.

Where does lads come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

The singular 'lad' first appears in Middle English around the 1300s, where it meant a serving man, a young man of low birth, or simply a boy. Its earlier origins are genuinely murky: it does not connect cleanly to any single attested source, though some scholars have linked it to Old Norse roots suggesting a young man who is led or follows, while others see possible Celtic connections. Over the centuries the word lost any sense of servitude and settled into a warm, informal term for a boy or young man, especially in British usage. The plural 'lads' became a familiar collective for a group of male friends or workmates, particularly in phrases about going out with the lads. The spelling is phonetically straightforward; the only thing to remember is the simple -s plural with no doubling or vowel change.

How the word is built

• lad (boy, young man)
• -s (plural)