adj

lewd

lyood

adj

Sexually indecent or vulgar in a crude, offensive way.

"He was arrested for making lewd comments to passersby."

"The comedian's lewd jokes offended part of the audience."

How to Use Lewd

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishCrude and sexually inappropriate, especially in speech, jokes, or images.

When to use it

A fairly formal or legal-sounding word — often used in news reports and court contexts ("lewd conduct").

Common pairings

lewd comments lewd behavior lewd conduct

Word Forms

lewder comparative, lewded past tense, lewds plural, lewds singular, lewdest superlative

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He was arrested for making _____ comments to passersby.

Etymology

From Old English laewede ("unlearned, lay, not a member of the clergy"). The word originally just meant "uneducated" or "common," and drifted over centuries toward its modern sense of crude and sexually indecent.

Rhymes for lewd

shrewd

See all rhymes for lewd →