From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishloafloaf1 /ləʊf $ loʊf/ ●●● S3 noun (plural loaves /ləʊvz $ loʊvz/) 1 
DF[countable] bread that is shaped and baked in one piece and can be cut into slices a loaf of breadwhite/wholemeal/granary etc loaf British Englisha sliced loaf British English2 DFF[countable, uncountable] food that has been cut into very small pieces, pressed together, and baked a meat loaf3 → use your loaf
DF[countable] bread that is shaped and baked in one piece and can be cut into slices a loaf of breadwhite/wholemeal/granary etc loaf British Englisha sliced loaf British English2 DFF[countable, uncountable] food that has been cut into very small pieces, pressed together, and baked a meat loaf3 → use your loafExamples from the Corpus
loaf• A cloth was spread on the ground, candles placed in jam jars on the corners, a loaf in the middle.• It is a braided loaf with nuts, raisins, cherries and chopped citrus rind.• She still wore a bun on the top of her head, which made her look rather like a nicely-rounded cottage loaf.• To make loaves, follow the directions on page 18.• a nut loaf• The extra rises will affect the crust, texture, and flavor, usually giving a crustier, slightly more sour loaf.• He was glad Rebel had gone off towards the road, though he had probably run back by now for the loaf.• The kitchen bread-bin yielded three loaves of wrapped sliced white bread, and a single granary loaf.• What emerges from that tainted oven will likely be a typical loaf of local politics leavened by big money.loaf of bread• There was a table with a bottle of wine and a loaf of bread and a sausage on it.• We follow him as he walks down Portobello Road, carrying a loaf of bread.• On a small scale it re-creates the effects of a brick oven on a loaf of bread.• Next, the king told Simpleton to find a man who could eat up the biggest loaf of bread in the kingdom.• It obviously precluded its use in everyday transactions, such as buying loaves of bread.• Those were distant days, when the fishermen on my island had long woven baskets like loaves of bread.• For twenty years they had baked a small loaf of bread for each child in the parish as a First Communion gift.• She also finished the loaf of bread.loafloaf2 verb [intransitive] writtenLAZY to spend time somewhere and not do very much SYN hang around/roundloaf around/about They spend all day loafing around on street corners.→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
loaf• I've been loafing a bit for the last few days.• No loafing around here; it takes 10 minutes to clean and replace a comfort stations, he said.• Would I loaf around in Piccadilly Circus?• Most of the time they just loaf around preening or sleeping off some heavy fish meal.loaf around/about• No loafing around here; it takes 10 minutes to clean and replace a comfort stations, he said.• Would I loaf around in Piccadilly Circus?• Most of the time they just loaf around preening or sleeping off some heavy fish meal.Origin loaf1 Old English hlaf loaf2 (1800-1900) Probably from loafer 