1. a vein of metal ore in the earth: "the tin oxide was very thinly scattered within the lode"
▪ a rich source of something:"a rich lode of scandal and alleged crime"
Word OriginOld Englishlād ‘way, course’, variant of load. The term denoted a watercourse in late Middle English and a lodestone in the early 16th century The current sense dates from the early 17th century.