Bryson•s Dictionary for Writers and Editors

198
laissez-faire / languid, limpid
entities named for him, particularly the airport. For the record,
Fiorello Henry La Guardia (1882–1947) was a New York congressman
from 1917–1921 and 1923–1933 and mayor of New York City
from 1934–1945.
laissez-faire. (Hyphen.) Policy of noninterference by government in
trade and industry.
Laius. In Greek mythology, the king of Thebes and father of Oedipus.
La Jolla, California.
Lake Wobegon. Fictional town in stories by Garrison Keillor.
lama, Lammas, Ilama. A lama is a Buddhist monk from Tibet or
Mongolia (his dwelling place is a lamasery). Lammas is a type of
harvest festival. The llama is a wool-bearing animal from South
America.
lambaste. Not -bast. To criticize sharply.
Lambeau Field. Home of the Green Bay Packers.
Lamborghini. Italian sports car.
lamb’s wool. Not lambswool.
LAN Airlines. Principal airline of Chile; formerly LanChile.
Lancelot/Launcelot. Both spellings have been used for the Arthurian
knight, the first notably by Tennyson and the second notably by
Malory.
Land Rover, Range Rover (two words, no hyphen) for the British
cars.
Land’s End, Cornwall, England, but Lands’ End for the clothing company.
Langtry, Lillie. (1853–1929) British actress; but her nickname was “The
Jersey Lily.”
Languedoc-Roussillon. Region of France; capital Montpellier.
languid, limpid. Not to be confused. Limpid means clear, calm, untroubled
(“a limpid stream”). It has nothing to do with being
limp or listless—meanings that are covered by languid.