"Lesbian rule" meaning in English

See Lesbian rule in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

Forms: Lesbian rules [plural]
Etymology: The rules were originally made from pliable lead found on Lesbos. Head templates: {{en-noun}} Lesbian rule (plural Lesbian rules)
  1. (rare) A flexible leaden mason's rule that can be bent around the curves of a molding, and thus used to measure or reproduce irregular curves. Tags: rare
    Sense id: en-Lesbian_rule-en-noun-nGeN75ph
  2. (by extension) A flexible principle, one which may be bent to accommodate or fit different circumstances. Tags: broadly
    Sense id: en-Lesbian_rule-en-noun-59mDrzse Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 31 69

Inflected forms

Alternative forms

Download JSON data for Lesbian rule meaning in English (3.9kB)

{
  "etymology_text": "The rules were originally made from pliable lead found on Lesbos.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "Lesbian rules",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "Lesbian rule (plural Lesbian rules)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1957, AIA Journal, American Institute of Architects",
          "text": "Or, with a Lesbian rule—that strip of soft lead which could be pressed into a particularly satisfying molding to record its profile—we explored buildings that interested us.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1994, The Journal of the Legal Profession",
          "text": "Instead , the good architect would use a \"Lesbian\" rule, which \"adapts itself to the shape of the stone and is not rigid.\"",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A flexible leaden mason's rule that can be bent around the curves of a molding, and thus used to measure or reproduce irregular curves."
      ],
      "id": "en-Lesbian_rule-en-noun-nGeN75ph",
      "links": [
        [
          "flexible",
          "flexible"
        ],
        [
          "leaden",
          "leaden"
        ],
        [
          "mason",
          "mason"
        ],
        [
          "rule",
          "rule"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(rare) A flexible leaden mason's rule that can be bent around the curves of a molding, and thus used to measure or reproduce irregular curves."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "rare"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "31 69",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1850, The Gentleman's Magazine and Historical Review, page 36",
          "text": "He asks: “Is Scripture become a Lesbian rule and bowed to our fancies? But this is the very answer that a classical brother gave me […]",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1853, Jacobus Arminius, The Works of James Arminius, page 152",
          "text": "[…] that it may exercise authority as a rule for the direction of life, and for prescribing some limits to liberty, and not that it may be slavishly subservient to the wills of men, like a Lesbian rule, which may be accommodated to every condition; since these are some of the properties of religion, man is not permitted to stipulate concerning it, […]",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1861, The Law Magazine and Review: A Quarterly Review of Jurisprudence, page 19",
          "text": "[…] and cemented by a thousand links of union, the law of marriage should be a Lesbian rule, which shifts according to the circumstances of place; and that acts which in England would be absolutely null may be binding marriages in Scotland […]",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1869, Dorus Clarke, The Oneness of the Christian Church, page 32",
          "text": "Lesbian rules — rules which accommodate themselves to the wishes of men, and bend to all the demands of denominational prejudice — have been quite too long employed to elucidate, or rather to misinterpret, the Scriptures.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1891, Albert Edward Waffle, The Interpreter with His Bible, page 41",
          "text": "[…] have Lesbian rules of interpretation - rules which he can bend to his wishes and so apply as to make the Scriptures yield the meaning he desires. But these rules are not of that kind. They are meant to be just and impartial.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1991, Jens Andersen Sinning, Oratio de Studiis, Museum Tusculanum Press, page 90",
          "text": "This is certainly using a Lesbian rule, to adapt Christ in such a way as to bring Him into accord with Aristotle, rather than Aristotle with Christ.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A flexible principle, one which may be bent to accommodate or fit different circumstances."
      ],
      "id": "en-Lesbian_rule-en-noun-59mDrzse",
      "links": [
        [
          "flexible",
          "flexible"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(by extension) A flexible principle, one which may be bent to accommodate or fit different circumstances."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "broadly"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "Lesbian rule"
  ],
  "word": "Lesbian rule"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English nouns"
  ],
  "etymology_text": "The rules were originally made from pliable lead found on Lesbos.",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "Lesbian rules",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "Lesbian rule (plural Lesbian rules)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with rare senses",
        "Quotation templates to be cleaned"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1957, AIA Journal, American Institute of Architects",
          "text": "Or, with a Lesbian rule—that strip of soft lead which could be pressed into a particularly satisfying molding to record its profile—we explored buildings that interested us.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1994, The Journal of the Legal Profession",
          "text": "Instead , the good architect would use a \"Lesbian\" rule, which \"adapts itself to the shape of the stone and is not rigid.\"",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A flexible leaden mason's rule that can be bent around the curves of a molding, and thus used to measure or reproduce irregular curves."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "flexible",
          "flexible"
        ],
        [
          "leaden",
          "leaden"
        ],
        [
          "mason",
          "mason"
        ],
        [
          "rule",
          "rule"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(rare) A flexible leaden mason's rule that can be bent around the curves of a molding, and thus used to measure or reproduce irregular curves."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "rare"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English terms with quotations",
        "Quotation templates to be cleaned"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1850, The Gentleman's Magazine and Historical Review, page 36",
          "text": "He asks: “Is Scripture become a Lesbian rule and bowed to our fancies? But this is the very answer that a classical brother gave me […]",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1853, Jacobus Arminius, The Works of James Arminius, page 152",
          "text": "[…] that it may exercise authority as a rule for the direction of life, and for prescribing some limits to liberty, and not that it may be slavishly subservient to the wills of men, like a Lesbian rule, which may be accommodated to every condition; since these are some of the properties of religion, man is not permitted to stipulate concerning it, […]",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1861, The Law Magazine and Review: A Quarterly Review of Jurisprudence, page 19",
          "text": "[…] and cemented by a thousand links of union, the law of marriage should be a Lesbian rule, which shifts according to the circumstances of place; and that acts which in England would be absolutely null may be binding marriages in Scotland […]",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1869, Dorus Clarke, The Oneness of the Christian Church, page 32",
          "text": "Lesbian rules — rules which accommodate themselves to the wishes of men, and bend to all the demands of denominational prejudice — have been quite too long employed to elucidate, or rather to misinterpret, the Scriptures.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1891, Albert Edward Waffle, The Interpreter with His Bible, page 41",
          "text": "[…] have Lesbian rules of interpretation - rules which he can bend to his wishes and so apply as to make the Scriptures yield the meaning he desires. But these rules are not of that kind. They are meant to be just and impartial.",
          "type": "quotation"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1991, Jens Andersen Sinning, Oratio de Studiis, Museum Tusculanum Press, page 90",
          "text": "This is certainly using a Lesbian rule, to adapt Christ in such a way as to bring Him into accord with Aristotle, rather than Aristotle with Christ.",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A flexible principle, one which may be bent to accommodate or fit different circumstances."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "flexible",
          "flexible"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(by extension) A flexible principle, one which may be bent to accommodate or fit different circumstances."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "broadly"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "Lesbian rule"
  ],
  "word": "Lesbian rule"
}

This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-05-03 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-05-02 using wiktextract (f4fd8c9 and c9440ce). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

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