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 was flat against the euro on the day but down 1.7% overall this year, the region's worst performer.
From Reuters ● Sep. 28, 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
I slipped my watch chain through my waistcoat buttonhole and straightened the fob, a Romanian silver leu whose details were worn to shadows.
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 couple plans to invite family and friends to their religious ceremonies, including two adult children Leu shares with his ex-wife and a two-and-a-half-year-old granddaughter.
From Reuters ● Jul. 1, 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
When Leu once began talking it was always hard for her to leave off, and perhaps now she was afraid of staying in the kitchen all alone.
From The Patriot Piccolo Mondo Antico by Antonio Fogazzaro
Mayor Rex Richardson, wearing a rainbow lei and holding a Pride flag, marched down the street with gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra as Bad Bunny’s “BAILE INoLVIDABLE” rang out.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 17, 2026
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
In return he promised monthly top-up payments of 5,000 Moldovan lei to pensioners, or about £200.
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2024
“I don’t want to be lei off the hook.”
From "Fallen Angels" by Walter Dean Myers
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.
