leeway

American  

[lee-wey] / ˈliˌweɪ /

noun

1. extra time, space, materials, or the like, within which to operate; margin.

   With ten minutes' leeway we can catch the train.

2. a degree of freedom of action or thought.

   His instructions gave us plenty of leeway.

   Synonyms:

   cushion, flexibility, latitude

3. Also called sag.  Nautical. the amount or angle of the drift of a ship to leeward from its heading.

4. Aeronautics. the amount a plane is blown off its normal course by cross winds.

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leeway British  

/ ˈliːˌweɪ /

noun

1. room for free movement within limits, as in action or expenditure

2. sideways drift of a boat or aircraft

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Etymology

Origin of leeway

First recorded in 1660–70; lee + way ¹

Example Sentences

Nonprofit legal organizations have more leeway to pursue penalties for other allegations employees experienced, even if the individual worker named in the lawsuit did not personally experience all of them.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 26, 2026

Given "the fear of falling behind" the United States and China in developing AI technologies, Prissard said that Europe may succumb to the "temptation to allow more leeway to innovate without obstacles".

From Barron's • Feb. 21, 2026

“We brought in guest speakers to talk about it with a little more leeway about what’s happening right now in our climate, beyond just the basics of our data.”

From Salon • Jan. 30, 2026

That anti-coercion tool would give the bloc significant leeway to implement export controls, place tariffs on services, restrict intellectual-property rights and curb American companies’ ability to bid on public contracts in Europe, among other measures.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 19, 2026

Jus: Man, I’m sick of y'all acting like you got all this leeway.

From "Dear Martin" by Nic Stone