Meaning

noun an ambiguity (especially one in the text of a law or contract) that makes it possible to evade a difficulty or obligation

noun a small hole in a fortified wall; for observation or discharging weapons

originFrom Middle English loupe (“opening in a wall”) + hole, from a Germanic source. By surface analysis, loop + hole. Compare Medieval Latin loupa, lobia and Middle Dutch lupen (“to watch”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0