levee

1 of 3

noun (1)

le·​vee ˈle-vē 

lə-ˈvē,

-ˈvā

1

: a reception held by a person of distinction on rising from bed

2

: an afternoon assembly at which the British sovereign or his or her representative receives only men

3

: a reception usually in honor of a particular person

the years of levees and parades and other suave peacetime occasions

—Gladys B. Stern

levee

2 of 3

noun (2)

lev·​ee ˈle-vē 

1

a

: an embankment for preventing flooding

b

: a river landing place : pier

2

: a continuous dike or ridge (as of earth) for confining the irrigation areas of land to be flooded

levee

3 of 3

verb

lev·​ee ˈle-vē 

leveed; leveeing

transitive verb

: to provide with a levee

Synonyms

Noun (2)

• dam
• dike
• embankment
• head

Examples of levee in a Sentence

Noun (2)

the raging floodwaters were too much for the levee to handle

we tied the boat up at the levee and started unloading the fish we had caught

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

State of play: DSM has spent tens of millions of dollars in levee improvements since 2008 after multiple floods caused billions of dollars in damage across large swaths of the city. —Jason Clayworth, Axios, 15 Aug. 2024

In the Sioux City, Iowa, area, water spilled over the Big Sioux River levee, damaging hundreds of homes, officials estimated. —Alena Botros, Fortune, 27 June 2024

Status of New Orleans' levees and power grid heading into hurricane season. —Carlie Kollath Wells, Axios, 30 July 2024

Earlier on Tuesday, floodwaters breached levees in Iowa, creating dangerous conditions that prompted evacuations. —Prarthana Prakash, Fortune, 26 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

French lever, from Middle French, act of arising, from (se) lever to rise

Noun (2)

French levée, from Old French, act of raising, from lever to raise — more at lever

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1672, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

circa 1720, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

1832, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

levee

noun

lev·​ee

ˈlev-ē

1

: a bank built along a river to prevent flooding

2

: a landing place along a river