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• lee
  lee

  noun

  protective shelter.
• Lee
  Lee

  noun

  Ann, 1736–84, British mystic: founder of Shaker sect in the United States.

lee

¹ American  

[lee] / li /

noun

lees plural

1. protective shelter.

   The lee of the rock gave us some protection against the storm.

2. the side or part that is sheltered or turned away from the wind.

   We erected our huts under the lee of the mountain.

3. Chiefly Nautical. the quarter or region toward which the wind blows.

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adjective

1. pertaining to, situated in, or moving toward the lee.

idioms

1. by the lee, accidentally against what should be the lee side of a sail.

   Careless steering brought the wind by the lee.

2. under the lee, to leeward.

Lee ² American  

[lee] / li /

noun

1. Ann, 1736–84, British mystic: founder of Shaker sect in the United States.

2. Charles, 1731–82, American Revolutionary general, born in England.

3. Doris Emrick 1905–1986, U.S. painter.

4. Fitzhugh 1835–1905, U.S. general and statesman (grandson of Henry Lee; nephew of Robert E. Lee).

5. Francis Lightfoot 1734–97, American Revolutionary statesman (brother of Richard H. Lee).

6. Gypsy Rose Rose Louise Hovick, 1914–70, U.S. entertainer.

7. Harper, 1926–2016, U.S. novelist.

8. Henry Light-Horse Harry, 1756–1818, American Revolutionary general (father of Robert E. Lee).

9. Kuan Yew 1923–2015, Singapore political leader: prime minister 1959–90.

10. Manfred Bennington Ellery Queen, 1905–71, U.S. mystery writer, in collaboration with Frederic Dannay.

11. Richard Henry, 1732–94, American Revolutionary statesman (brother of Francis L. Lee).

12. Robert E(dward), 1807–70, U.S. soldier and educator: Confederate general in the American Civil War (son of Henry Lee).

13. Sir Sidney, 1859–1926, English biographer and critic.

14. Spike Shelton Jackson Lee, born 1957, U.S. film director, screenwriter, and actor.

15. Tsung-Dao born 1926, Chinese physicist in the United States: Nobel Prize 1957.

16. a town in western Massachusetts: part of the Berkshire resort area.

17. a male or female given name.

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Lee ¹ British  

/ liː /

noun

1. Ang (æŋ). born 1954, Taiwanese film director; his films include Sense and Sensibility (1995), Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000), Brokeback Mountain (2005), and Life of Pi (2012)

2. Bruce, original name Lee Yuen Kam . 1940–73, US film actor and kung fu expert who starred in such films as Enter the Dragon (1973)

3. Gypsy Rose, original name Rose Louise Hovick . 1914–70, US striptease and burlesque artiste, who appeared in the Ziegfeld Follies (1936) and in films

4. Laurie (ˈlɒrɪ). 1914–97, British poet and writer, best known for the autobiographical Cider with Rosie (1959)

5. Richard Henry. 1732–94, American Revolutionary statesman, who moved the resolution in favour of American independence (1776)

6. Robert E ( dward ). 1807–70, American general; commander-in-chief of the Confederate armies in the Civil War

7. Spike, real name Shelton Jackson Lee. born 1957, US film director: his films include She's Gotta Have It (1985), Malcolm X (1992), and the documentary When the Leeves Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts (2008)

8. T ( sung ) -D ( ao ) (tsuːŋ daʊ). born 1926, US physicist, born in China. With Yang he disproved the principle that that parity is always conserved and shared the Nobel prize for physics in 1957

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lee ² British  

/ liː /

noun

1. a sheltered part or side; the side away from the direction from which the wind is blowing

2. nautical so that the wind is blowing on the wrong side of the sail

3. nautical towards the lee

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adjective

1. (prenominal) nautical on, at, or towards the side or part away from the wind Compare weather

   on a lee shore

Lee ³ British  

/ liː /

noun

1. a river in SW Republic of Ireland, flowing east into Cork Harbour. Length: about 80 km (50 miles)

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• lees
  plural

Etymology

Origin of lee

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English hlēo(w) “shelter covering, protection,” cognate with Old Frisian hli, hly, Old Saxon hleo, Old Norse hlé

Example Sentences

It is in sharp contrast to the faith placed in Alexander-Arnold by Lee Carsley, England's Under-21 coach who bridged the gap between Southgate's departure and Tuchel's appointment.

From BBC • Jun. 16, 2026

South Korea's President Lee Jae Myung expressed outrage over "this inhumane and disgraceful conduct" on social media during the backlash last month.

From BBC • Jun. 15, 2026

This email was written by Jinjoo Lee of Heard on the Street, The Wall Street Journal’s home for financial analysis and commentary.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 15, 2026

The Times reached out to a representative for Lee and the Knicks for comment but did not receive an immediate response.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 15, 2026

Then, to demonstrate, Lee brought a local man onstage.

From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock

Related Words

• border
• bottom
• face
• front
• hand
• part
• rear
• sector
• surface
• top
• view