levee

See also: levée and lévée

English

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA(key): /ˈlɛvi/, /ˈlɛv.eɪ/
  • Rhymes: -ɛvi, -ɛveɪ
  • Homophone: levy (some pronunciations only)
  • (US) enPR: lev'i, IPA(key): /ˈlɛvi/, /ləˈvi/, /ləˈveɪ/
  • Rhymes: -ɛvi
  • Homophone: levy

Etymology 1

From French levée, from lever (“to raise, rise”).

levee

Noun

levee (plural levees)

  1. An embankment to prevent inundation; as, the levees along the Mississippi.
  2. (US) The steep bank of a river.
  3. (US) The border of an irrigated field.
  4. (US) A pier or other landing place on a river.
Synonyms
Translations

Verb

levee (third-person singular simple present levees, present participle leveeing, simple past and past participle leveed)

  1. (US, transitive) To keep within a channel by means of levees.
    to levee a river
Translations

Etymology 2

From French levé variant of the noun lever (“the act of getting up in the morning”).

Noun

levee (plural levees)

  1. (obsolete) The act of rising; getting up, especially in the morning after rest.
    • Gray
      the sun's levee
    • 1749, Henry Fielding, Tom Jones, Folio Society 1973, p. 414:
      The sturdy hind now attends the levee of his fellow-labourer the ox […]
  2. A reception of visitors held after getting up.
  3. A formal reception, especially one given by royalty or other leaders.
    • 1992, Hilary Mantel, A Place of Greater Safety‎, published 1993, →ISBN, page 195:
      At the King's levee on the morning of the 13th, Philippe was first ignored; then asked by His Majesty (rudely) what he wanted; then told, ‘Get back where you came from.’

Verb

levee (third-person singular simple present levees, present participle leveeing, simple past and past participle leveed)

  1. (transitive) To attend the levee or levees of.
    • Young
      He levees all the great.

Old French

Verb

levee

  1. feminine singular of the past participle of lever
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