Luce

Flower de Luce. A corruption of fleur-de-lis (q.v.), more anciently written “floure delices, ” a corruption of fiordilisa, the white iris. The French messenger says to the Regent Bedford-

Cropped are the flower de luces in your arms;
Of England's coat one-half is cut away.

Shakespeare: 1 Henry VI., i. 1.

referring of course to the loss of France. The luce or lucy is a full-grown pike. Thus Justice Shallow says- “The luce is the fresh fish, the salt fish is an old coat” —i.e. Lucy is a new name, the old one was Charlecote.

(Merry Wives of Windsor, i. l.) (See Fleurs-De-Lys.)

Luce

the full-grown pike, is the Latin luci-us, from the Greek lukos (a wolf), meaning the wolf of fishes.

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