lothario
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun: A man who is a successful and unscrupulous seducer of women; a charming, selfish womanizer.
Usage
The word "lothario" is used to describe a man who is known for seducing many women, often without sincere emotional commitment. It carries a critical or disapproving tone, implying the man is selfish, manipulative, and primarily interested in his own pleasure or conquests. It is a literary and somewhat formal term.
Examples
- The novel's antagonist is a handsome lothario who breaks hearts across the city.
- He gained a reputation as a lothario after a series of brief, passionate affairs.
- She was warned about the office lothario, who was known for his smooth talk and empty promises.
Advanced Usage
- Archetypal/Proverbial Lothario: Used to describe someone who is the very model or epitome of a seducer.
- He fancied himself a proverbial lothario, but most saw through his act.
Variants and Related Words
- Lotharios (plural noun): The standard plural form.
- The ballroom was filled with aspiring lotharios.
Different Meanings
The word "lothario" has one primary meaning related to a seductive man. It originates from a character, Lothario, in Nicholas Rowe's 1703 play The Fair Penitent, who was a libertine.
Synonyms
- Womanizer: A man who has many casual sexual relationships with women.
- Casanova: A man known for his many romantic and sexual liaisons (from the historical figure Giacomo Casanova).
- Don Juan: A legendary, fictional seducer of women.
- Libertine: A person, especially a man, who behaves without moral principles, particularly in sexual matters.
- Rake: A fashionable or wealthy man of immoral or promiscuous habits (archaic).
Antonyms
- Monogamist: A person who has only one sexual partner or spouse at a time.
- Celibate: A person who abstains from marriage and sexual relations.
Idioms and Phrases
- A regular lothario: An informal phrase emphasizing that someone fits the description perfectly.
- With his new sports car and slicked-back hair, he thinks he's a regular lothario.
Noun
- a successful womanizer; a man who behaves selfishly in his sexual relationships with women