levee

¹ American  

[lev-ee] / ˈlɛv i /

noun

1. an embankment designed to prevent the flooding of a river.

2. Geology. natural levee.

3. Agriculture. one of the small continuous ridges surrounding fields that are to be irrigated.

4. History/Historical. a landing place for ships; quay.

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verb (used with object)

leveed, leveeing

1. to furnish with a levee.

   to levee a treacherous stream.

levee ² American  

[lev-ee, le-vee] / ˈlɛv i, lɛˈvi /

noun

1. (in Great Britain) a public court assembly, held in the early afternoon, at which men only are received.

2. a reception, usually in someone's honor.

   a presidential levee at the White House.

3. History/Historical. a reception of visitors held on rising from bed, as formerly by a royal or other personage.

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levee ¹ British  

/ ˈlɛvɪ, ˈlɛveɪ /

noun

1. a formal reception held by a sovereign just after rising from bed

2. (in Britain) a public court reception for men, held in the early afternoon

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levee ² British  

/ ˈlɛvɪ /

noun

1. an embankment alongside a river, produced naturally by sedimentation or constructed by man to prevent flooding

2. an embankment that surrounds a field that is to be irrigated

3. a landing place on a river; quay

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levee Scientific  

/ lĕv′ē /

1. A long ridge of sand, silt, and clay built up by a river along its banks, especially during floods.

2. An artificial embankment along a rivercourse or an arm of the sea, built to protect adjoining land from inundation.

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Etymology

Origin of levee¹

An Americanism dating back to 1710–20; from French levée past participle of lever “to raise”; levee ² ( def. ), lever

Origin of levee²

First recorded in 1665–75; from French levé, variant spelling of lever “rising (from bed)” (noun use of infinitive); levee ¹, lever

Example Sentences

Arvin-Edison Water Storage District, near Bakersfield, started building levees and digging basins for imported water in the 1960s.

From Los Angeles Times

Still, with all the arriving stresses, the stock market’s levees haven’t broken as yet, and U.S. benchmarks continue to trade within a few percentage points of both their January highs and their late October levels.

From Barron's

“We’re on the levee you were telling me about. Part of the refuge.”

From Literature

Next arrived atmospheric rivers—intense weather systems that broke levees, flooded towns and killed at least one in Western Washington.

From The Wall Street Journal

And there’s no better classic rock band than Led Zeppelin, a group famously resistant to licensing their songs until recently when the levee has apparently broken.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• dam