noun

lass

LASS/læs/

A girl or young woman, especially in Scottish or Irish usage.

The lass walks along the grassy village lane in the Scottish story.

A young woman walks through a grassy village lane, natural portrait.

Etymology

A Scandinavian source akin to an Old Swedish expression for “unmarried woman” is considered probable, but the ancestry remains unsettled. The meaning “girl or young woman” is recorded from its earliest appearances.

In context

Enhanced Public Domain309:34

now father may I marry my lass he asked not unless you can keep her replied the father

1800s Fiction: Joseph Jacobs - English Fairy Tales (Audiobook)

More examples

A young lass greeted the visitors.
Two lasses appear in the old ballad.
He used lass as an affectionate regional term.

Forms

lass · lasses

Similar words

girl: Girl is ordinary American usage.
lassie: Lassie adds an affectionate regional ending.