leprechaun
UK[ˈleprəkɔːn]US[ˈleprəkɑːn]
n
(in irish folklore) a type of male fairy in the form of a little old man who is said to hide crocks of gold at the end of rainbows.
Etymology
the word 'leprechaun' entered english in the early 17th century from the irish term 'luprachán', itself a variant of middle irish 'luchrupán'. this irish word is believed to derive from the old irish 'luchorpán', a compound of 'lú' (meaning 'small') and 'corp' (meaning 'body'), borrowed from the latin 'corpus'. the literal sense is thus 'a small-bodied creature'. the modern english spelling was influenced by the unrelated irish word 'leithbrágan', meaning 'a kind of sprite'. the iconic association with shoemaking and hidden gold developed within irish folklore, with the english term solidifying this specific mythical archetype.
Analysis
the word is a loanword from irish, adopted into english as a single lexical unit. it is not productively formed from smaller english morphemes.
Examples
the children hoped to catch a glimpse of a leprechaun guarding his pot of gold.
the story featured a clever leprechaun who outwitted a greedy farmer.
he wore a green hat and jacket as part of his leprechaun costume for the st. patrick's day parade.