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lore

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lore¹

  • /lɔː/ UK
  • /loɹ/ US
  • /lo(ː)ɹ/
  • /loə/

Sounds like law (non-rhotic, horse–hoarse merger), lure (some accents with the horse–hoarse merger) · Rhymes with -ɔː(ɹ)

Where it comes from

From Middle English lore, from Old English lār, from Proto-West Germanic *laiʀu, from Proto-Germanic *laizō, from *laizijaną (“to teach”). Cognate with Dutch leer, German Lehre, Swedish lära and Danish lære. See also learn.

noun lores

  1. countable, uncountable All the facts and traditions about a particular subject that have been accumulated over time through education or experience. the recondite lore of the Ancient Egyptians
  2. countable, slang, uncountable The backstory, especially for a character or setting, created around a fictional universe. Lore documents reveal that she was backstabbed by her subordinate, who wanted to become king, and she feels vengeful about it.
  3. Internet, broadly, countable, slang, uncountable Trivia shared by a person about themselves. It's Ashot lore that I used to have a priv where I posted pictures of weird animals I found on the street.
  4. countable, obsolete, uncountable Workmanship. In her right hand a rod of peace shee bore, / About the which two serpents weren wound; / Entrayled mutually in lovely lore, / And by the tailes together firmely bound […]

lore²

  • /lɔː/ UK
  • /loɹ/ US
  • /lo(ː)ɹ/
  • /loə/

Sounds like law (non-rhotic, horse–hoarse merger), lure (some accents with the horse–hoarse merger) · Rhymes with -ɔː(ɹ)

Where it comes from

From Latin lorum (“thong, strap”).

noun lores

  1. The region between the eyes and nostrils of birds, reptiles, and amphibians. He’s sticky and encrusted on one side below his beak and amongst the lores around his eyes by the pips and juices he has dined upon, the pith and pulp of feeding.
  2. The anterior portion of the cheeks of insects.

lore³

  • /lɔː/ UK
  • /loɹ/ US
  • /lo(ː)ɹ/
  • /loə/

Sounds like law (non-rhotic, horse–hoarse merger), lure (some accents with the horse–hoarse merger) · Rhymes with -ɔː(ɹ)

verb

  1. obsolete, participle, past simple past and past participle of lose
  2. obsolete, participle, past simple past and past participle of lose, used in the sense of "left" Neither of them she found where she them lore.
  3. obsolete, participle, past simple past and past participle of lese

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: traditional knowledge, erudition, knowledge, learning, history, legend, wisdom, folktale, tradition, folklore, caption, stories, traditions, mythology, heritage, mythos

Translations

Every language

noun the backstory created around a fictional universe

Españolleyenda, acervo, mitología, etnografía, logía, raigambre
中文設定 /设定 shèdìng
Françaisunivers, lore
DeutschSaga, Hintergrund
Русскийлор lor, преда́ние predánije

noun all the facts and traditions about a particular subject

Españolsabiduría, tradición, erudición, acervo, etnografía, mitología
Portuguêssaber, sabedoria, tradição
Françaistraditions, savoir-faire
DeutschWissen, Überlieferung, Kunde, Lehre, Weisheit, Regeln
Русскийзна́ние znánije

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Cite this
MLA

"lore." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/lore. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

lore. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/lore

Chicago

"lore." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/lore.

BibTeX
@misc{lore_2026,
  title = {lore},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/lore},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}