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Glite Dictionary
Sir Lancelot

Sir Lancelot

3 6.7
A famous knight of King Arthur's Round Table known for bravery and his love for Queen Guinevere
  • proper noun
  • Literature
: Sir Lancelot
  • Many stories describe Sir Lancelot's courage and loyalty to King Arthur.

Examples

  • Children were fascinated by tales of Sir Lancelot and his adventures.

  • Sir Lancelot is a legendary knight.

  • The forbidden love between Sir Lancelot and Queen Guinevere is central to the Arthurian legends.

  • The tale of Sir Lancelot is well-known in Arthurian legend.

  • In Arthurian legend, Sir Lancelot is celebrated for his unparalleled bravery and chivalry.

  • Many tales recount the adventures of Sir Lancelot as he embarks on noble quests.

  • The tragic romance between Queen Guinevere and Sir Lancelot is well-known in folklore.

Synonyms

Lancelot
vsSir Lancelot
  • Literature
23 7.9

A famous knight of King Arthur's Round Table who is Arthur's close friend and loves Queen Guinevere

is the same figure but named with an honorific title

Surface Forms

Sir Lancelot main

Morphology

Sir + Lancelot

Knowing 'Sir' (a title for a knight) plus the proper name 'Lancelot' lets a B1 learner infer this refers to a titled person — likely a knight — so the basic referent is compositionally transparent. However, the specific cultural and legendary properties (famous Knight of the Round Table, chivalry, romance with Guinevere) are not derivable from the words themselves and require prior cultural knowledge, so the expression is only partially transparent.

Etymology

Sir Lancelot comes from old French stories about King Arthur's greatest knight. In those tales he is a very brave, loyal warrior who fell in love with Queen Guinevere, so today Sir Lancelot is a picture of 'a brave, loyal knight' or 'a romantic hero' in a difficult love story.