leu
noun
a coin and monetary unit of Romania, equal to 100 bani. L.
leu
1 American
[le-oo]
/ ˈlɛ ʊ /
Also
ley
noun
-
lei
plural
Leu
2
American
abbreviation
Biochemistry.
leu
British
/ ˈleɪuː /
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of leu
First recorded in 1875–80; from Romanian: literally, “lion”; based on Turkish arslanlι ( arslan “lion” + -lι adjective suffix), a name given to the Dutch rijksdaalder, which circulated in the later Ottoman Empire and bore the image of a lion ( see lion ( def. ))
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Romania's currency, the leu, fell to a record low against the euro ahead of Tuesday's vote.
From BBC ● May 5, 2026
The Romanian leu , one of the world's worst performing currencies this month, traded flat at 4.9479 to the euro by 1050 GMT.
From Reuters ● Nov. 25, 2021
Otter stated that he had directed the state’s Department of Administration to immediately pay for the entire program through the end of fiscal year 2013-2014 in leu of the withheld federal payments.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 12, 2015
In Sighisoara, young and old lined up in the rain to pay one leu for truly piping-hot covrigi at the sales window of Gigi.
From New York Times ● Jan. 27, 2014
Through a skein of fog, the sun gleamed as hard and silver as a freshly minted leu.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
At Leu Leu, the new California restaurant from “Top Chef” alum Claudette Zepeda, the dessert menu reads like a dream.
From Salon ● May 24, 2025
The man, Sonny Tho Leu, was detained by police in Murrieta after they stopped his vehicle.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 7, 2024
The group merges four private banking units and a securities trading company into Clariden Leu.
From Reuters ● Oct. 27, 2022
“In Moniz’s collection,” our reviewer, Chelsea Leu, wrote, “the ordinary experience of being female is laced with a kind of enchantment.”
From New York Times ● Feb. 11, 2022
The style of living of the Duchess of St. Leu is sumptuous, without that freezing etiquette so commonly met with in the great.
From Hortense Makers of History Series by John S. C. (John Stevens Cabot) Abbott
If you don’t splurge on an airport lei greeting, pick one up at a local Target.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 15, 2026
Since the crisis erupted, the interest rates at which Romania borrows have risen, and the lei currency has depreciated against the euro, which reached an all-time high of 5.21 Romanian lei on Tuesday.
From Barron's ● May 5, 2026
He added a bookshelf, filling it with items, such as Daniel’s boyhood rock collection and a lei from their trip to Maui.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 5, 2025
In return he promised monthly top-up payments of 5,000 Moldovan lei to pensioners, or about £200.
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2024
Wearing the traditional crisp white barong shirt and often sporting a lei of flowers, he looked fit and handsome and was always smiling.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
