lea
1
[ lee, ley ]
/ li, leɪ /
noun
a tract of open ground, especially grassland; meadow.
land used for a few years for pasture or for growing hay, then plowed over and replaced by another crop.
a crop of hay on tillable land.
adjective
untilled; fallow.
Also
ley.
Origin of lea
1
before 900; Middle English
lege, lei, Old English
lēah; cognate with Old High German
lōh, dialectal Dutch
loo (as in
Waterloo), Latin
lūcus
Words nearby lea
Definition for lea (2 of 4)
lea
2
[ lee ]
/ li /
noun
a measure of yarn of varying quantity, for wool usually 80 yards (73 meters), cotton and silk 120 yards (110 meters), linen 300 yards (274 meters).
Textiles.
- a unit length used to ascertain the linear density of yarns.
- a count or number representing units of linear measure per pound in linen or cotton yarn: a 20-lea yarn.
Origin of lea
2
1350–1400; perhaps back formation from Middle English
lese, variant of
leash
Definition for lea (3 of 4)
Lea
[ lee for 1; lee-uh for 2 ]
/ li for 1; ˈli ə for 2 /
noun
Definition for lea (4 of 4)
Example sentences from the Web for lea
British Dictionary definitions for lea (1 of 3)
lea
1
/ (liː) /
noun
poetic
a meadow or field
land that has been sown with grass seed
Word Origin for lea
Old English
lēah; related to German dialect
loh thicket
British Dictionary definitions for lea (2 of 3)
lea
2
/ (liː) /
noun
a unit for measuring lengths of yarn, usually taken as 80 yards for wool, 120 yards for cotton and silk, and 300 yards for linen
a measure of yarn expressed as the length per unit weight, usually the number of leas per pound
Word Origin for lea
C14: of uncertain origin
British Dictionary definitions for lea (3 of 3)
LEA
abbreviation for (in Britain)
Local Education Authority