leman

¹ American  

[lem-uhn, lee-muhn] / ˈlɛm ən, ˈli mən /

noun

Archaic.

1. a sweetheart; lover; beloved.

2. a mistress.

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Leman ² American  

[lee-muhn] / ˈli mən /

noun

1. Lake. Lake of Geneva.

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leman ¹ British  

/ ˈliː-, ˈlɛmən /

noun

1. a beloved; sweetheart

2. a lover or mistress

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Léman ² British  

/ lemɑ̃ /

noun

1. the French name for (Lake) Geneva

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Etymology

Origin of leman

1175–1225; Middle English lemman, earlier leofman. See lief, man

Example Sentences

For long did the king gaze upon his dead leman; then, he softly touched with his fingers her brow, already losing the warmth of life, and with slow steps withdrew from the chamber.

From Sulamith: A Romance of Antiquity by Kuprin, A. I. (Aleksandr Ivanovich)

But thou shalt journey in the same coach whereon thy leman clambered up to the trap-door, and Master Hansen shall sit on the coach-box and drive thee himself.

From Sidonia, the Sorceress : the Supposed Destroyer of the Whole Reigning Ducal House of Pomerania — Volume 1 by Meinhold, Wilhelm

A common plot is the story of the faithful leman, whose lord brings home "a braw new bride," and who recovers his affection at the eleventh hour.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Part 1, Slice 2 "Baconthorpe" to "Bankruptcy" by Various

And yf he dwelleden þer outh— Þat fel hauelok ful wel on þouth— Men sholde don his leman shame, 1192 Or elles bringen in wicke blame.

From The Lay of Havelok the Dane by Unknown

But there are some words of this ending, which, not being compounds of man, are regular: as, German, Germans; Turcoman, Turcomans; Mussulman, Mussulmans; talisman, talismans; leman, lemans; caiman, caimans.

From The Grammar of English Grammars by Brown, Goold