levee

[ lev-ee ]

See synonyms for levee on Thesaurus.com

noun

an embankment designed to prevent the flooding of a river.
Geology. natural levee.

Agriculture. one of the small continuous ridges surrounding fields that are to be irrigated.
History/Historical. a landing place for ships; quay.

verb (used with object),lev·eed, lev·ee·ing.

to furnish with a levee: to levee a treacherous stream.

Origin of levee

An Americanism dating back to 1710–20; from French levée past participle of lever “to raise”; see levee², lever

Words that may be confused with levee

levee , levy

Words Nearby levee

Other definitions for levee (2 of 2)

levee²

[ lev-ee, le-vee ]

noun

(in Great Britain) a public court assembly, held in the early afternoon, at which men only are received.
a reception, usually in someone's honor: a presidential levee at the White House.

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

Origin of levee

First recorded in 1665–75; from French levé, variant spelling of lever “rising (from bed)” (noun use of infinitive); see levee¹, lever

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use levee in a sentence

Those accounting for potential ocean waves, for example, were added in twice, meaning that the resulting levee was built with an extra few feet of clearance.
U.S. Civil Engineers Bent the Rules to Give New Orleans Extra Protection from Hurricanes. Those Adjustments Might Have Saved the City During Ida | Alejandro de la Garza | September 2, 2021 | Time
Some parishes experienced nearly nine feet of storm surge and up to a foot and half of rain, overpowering local levees.
Before and after images show the devastation from Hurricane Ida | Kasha Patel, Laris Karklis, Zach Levitt | September 1, 2021 | Washington Post
Hurricane Ida, which made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane, battered Louisiana, with reports of downed power lines, levee failures and flooding, collapsed buildings and residents trapped on rooftops.
Ida’s death toll reaches 4; officials urge those who evacuated not to return | Paulina Firozi, Tim Craig | August 31, 2021 | Washington Post
The levee system in New Orleans held, but there is massive structural damage to many buildings, multiple hospitals lost generators, and widespread destruction was seen across the state.
Hurricane Ida, the fifth strongest storm to hit mainland US, is headed northeast | Sara Chodosh | August 30, 2021 | Popular-Science
According to Tellman the way forward is to invest in infrastructure that would make flood zones and levees safer to live near as more people gravitate towards those areas.
People are moving into risky flood zones—but they may not have a choice | Sara Kiley Watson | August 12, 2021 | Popular-Science

The Republican governor criticized the suit as beyond the authority of the levee board and is calling for it to be dropped.
Three Years After Gulf Oil Spill, Money Continues to Flow to Region | Filipa Ioannou | July 29, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
Only when government scientists determine there is a risk of flooding will the middle of the levee be put in place.
Welcome to the Politics of Climate Change: Adapt and Avert | Mark Hertsgaard | February 19, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
The relevant government agencies could not locate sufficient funding to build a stronger levee, says Phannavong.
Welcome to the Politics of Climate Change: Adapt and Avert | Mark Hertsgaard | February 19, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
But then they saw the water rise—the result of the failed federal levee system that deluged 80 percent of the city.
Waiting Out Hurricane Isaac in New Orleans | Katy Reckdahl | August 29, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
“Their Heads, which decorate our levee, all the way up the coast… look like crows sitting on long poles,” wrote one traveler.
America's Forgotten Slave Revolt | Daniel Rasmussen | January 9, 2011 | THE DAILY BEAST
levee: a ceremonious visit received by a distinguished person in the morning.
Gulliver's Travels | Jonathan Swift
A crevasse was made in the levee above New Orleans flooding much of the city.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology | Joel Munsell
I observed he looked tired with the levee, and begged to be allowed to write to her another day.
Journal of a Voyage to Brazil | Maria Graham
When the King held his court at Rambouillet, a curtain only separated his chamber and the levee-room.
Travels through the South of France and the Interior of Provinces of Provence and Languedoc in the Years 1807 and 1808 | Lt-Col. Pinkney
The King held a levee of his officers while the Queen-Empress received 120 ladies of the families of the ruling chiefs.
Ways of War and Peace | Delia Austrian

British Dictionary definitions for levee (1 of 2)

levee¹

/ (ˈlɛvɪ) /

nounUS

an embankment alongside a river, produced naturally by sedimentation or constructed by man to prevent flooding
an embankment that surrounds a field that is to be irrigated

a landing place on a river; quay

Origin of levee

C18: from French, from Medieval Latin levāta, from Latin levāre to raise

British Dictionary definitions for levee (2 of 2)

levee²

/ (ˈlɛvɪ, ˈlɛveɪ) /

noun

a formal reception held by a sovereign just after rising from bed
(in Britain) a public court reception for men, held in the early afternoon

Origin of levee

C17: from French, variant of lever a rising, from Latin levāre to raise

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for levee

levee

[ lĕv′ē ]

A long ridge of sand, silt, and clay built up by a river along its banks, especially during floods.
An artificial embankment along a rivercourse or an arm of the sea, built to protect adjoining land from inundation.

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