Larke

Part of speech: noun, verb

Definitions

1. A small brown songbird that sings while rising high above open fields ; a mischievous prank or carefree adventure ; to romp about or play tricks for fun
2. An old spelling for a songbird of open grassland that flies upward while singing ; a playful bit of mischief or a merry escapade ; to frolic or act playfully
3. The skylark, a ground-nesting bird famed for its song in the air ; a jolly bit of fun or a harmless trick ; to caper about or indulge in high spirits

Etymology: "Larke" is an older spelling of "lark," the songbird, and it was common in Middle and early Modern English. The bird's name goes back to Old English "lāwerce," and its relatives appear across Germanic languages, such as Middle Dutch "laweric" and Middle High German "lerche." Scholars have not settled on a convincing root for the Germanic forms, so the deeper origin remains uncertain. Spelling settled on "lark" over the centuries, but the older form survives in early printed books and in writers who imitated them. The bird's name also gave rise to the sense of "lark" meaning a carefree prank or spree. That sense probably grew from the bird's cheerful, rising song, though the exact path of the connection is not documented.