lea

¹

[ lee, ley ]

noun

1. a tract of open ground, especially grassland; meadow.
2. land used for a few years for pasture or for growing hay, then plowed over and replaced by another crop.
3. a crop of hay on tillable land.

adjective

1. untilled; fallow.

lea

²

[ lee ]

noun

1. 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).
2. Textiles.
   1. a unit length used to ascertain the linear density of yarns.
   2. a count or number representing units of linear measure per pound in linen or cotton yarn:

      a 20-lea yarn.

Lea

³

[ lee lee-uh ]

noun

1. Homer, 1876–1912, U.S. soldier and author: adviser 1911–12 to Sun Yat-sen in China.
2. a female given name, form of Leah or Lee.

lea.

⁴

abbreviation for

1. league.
2. leather.

LEA

¹

abbreviation for

1. Local Education Authority

lea

²

/ liː /

noun

1. 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
2. a measure of yarn expressed as the length per unit weight, usually the number of leas per pound

lea

³

/ liː /

noun

1. poetic.
   a meadow or field
2. land that has been sown with grass seed

Word History and Origins

Origin of lea¹

before 900; Middle English lege, lei, Old English lēah; cognate with Old High German lōh, dialectal Dutch loo (as in Waterloo ), Latin lūcus

Origin of lea²

1350–1400; perhaps back formation from Middle English lese, variant of leash

Word History and Origins

Origin of lea¹

C14: of uncertain origin

Origin of lea²

Old English lēah; related to German dialect loh thicket

Example Sentences

Below us, the mountains rested under a knitted duvet of forest green, its smoothness only occasionally disturbed by the dropped stitch of a house or a small pea-green lea.

From Washington Post

It was a very grey day; a most opaque sky, “onding on snaw,” canopied all; thence flakes fell at intervals, which settled on the hard path and on the hoary lea without melting.

From Literature

And flow down to the vales and leas;

From Washington Times

I hope she earns a few leas for the stress of participating in this exhibition.

From Literature

It's back for at leas two more seasons: http://variety.com/2016/tv/news/power-renewed-for-two-more-seasons-by-st...

From New York Times

Related Words

• farmland
• garden
• grassland
• green
• ground
• meadow
• pasture
• range
• terrain
• territory