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lame 1 (lām)
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adj. lam·er, lam·est
1. Disabled so that movement, especially walking, is difficult or impossible: Lame from the accident, he walked with a cane. A lame wing kept the bird from flying.
2. Marked by pain or rigidness: a lame back.
3. Weak or ineffectual: a lame attempt to apologize.
4.
a. Informal Dull or unsatisfactory: That movie was so lame!
b. Slang Socially inappropriate; foolish.
tr.v. lamed, lam·ing, lames
To cause to become lame; cripple.
[Middle English, from Old English lama.]
lamely adv.
lameness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
lame 2 (lām)
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n.
A thin metal plate, especially one of the overlapping steel plates in medieval armor.
[French, from Old French, from Latin lāmina, thin plate.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
la·mé (lă-mā)
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n.
A shiny fabric woven with metallic threads, often of gold or silver.
[French, spangled, laminated, lamé, from Old French lame, thin metal plate; see LAME2.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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