levee

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Related to leveeing: levying

levee

embankment to prevent flooding: The levee might fail in hurricane conditions.
Not to be confused with:
levy – to impose a tax: to levy a duty on imports; the amount owed or collected; the conscription of troops
Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree Copyright © 2007, 2013 by Mary Embree

lev·ee 1

 (lĕv′ē)
n.
1. An embankment raised to prevent a river from overflowing.
2. A small ridge or raised area bordering an irrigated field.
3. A landing place on a river; a pier.
tr.v. lev·eed, lev·ee·ing, lev·ees
To provide with a levee.

[French levée, from Old French levee, from feminine past participle of lever, to raise; see lever.]

lev·ee 2

 (lĕv′ē, lə-vē′, -vā′)
n.
1. A reception held, as by royalty, upon arising from bed.
2. A formal reception, as at a royal court.

[From French lever, a rising, from Old French, from lever, to raise, rise; see lever.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

levee

(ˈlɛvɪ)
n
1. (Physical Geography) an embankment alongside a river, produced naturally by sedimentation or constructed by man to prevent flooding
2. (Agriculture) an embankment that surrounds a field that is to be irrigated
3. a landing place on a river; quay
[C18: from French, from Medieval Latin levāta, from Latin levāre to raise]

levee

(ˈlɛvɪ; ˈlɛveɪ)
n
1. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) a formal reception held by a sovereign just after rising from bed
2. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) (in Britain) a public court reception for men, held in the early afternoon
[C17: from French, variant of lever a rising, from Latin levāre to raise]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

lev•ee1

(ˈlɛv i)
n.
1. an embankment designed to prevent the flooding of a river.
2. a natural deposit of sand or mud built up along the side of a river or stream.
3. one of the small continuous ridges surrounding fields that are to be irrigated.
4. a landing place for ships.
v.t.
5. to furnish with a levee.
[1710–20; < French levée < Medieval Latin levāta embankment, n. use of feminine past participle of Latin levāre to raise (see lever)]

lev•ee2

(ˈlɛv i, lɛˈvi)

n.
1. (in Great Britain) a public court assembly, held in the early afternoon, at which men only are received.
2. a formal reception, usu. in someone's honor: a presidential levee; the Governor General's levee.
3. (formerly) a reception of visitors held on rising from bed, as by a royal personage.
[1665–75; < French levé, variant sp. of lever rising < Latin levāre to raise; see levee1]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

lev·ee

(lĕv′ē)
A long ridge of sand, silt, and clay built up by a river along its banks, especially during floods.
The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Levee

 a reception of ten held in the morning; any miscellaneous gathering of guests, 1672.
Example: levees of ministers, 1874.
Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. Copyright 2008 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.levee - a formal reception of visitors or guests (as at a royal court)
reception - a formal party of people; as after a wedding
2.levee - a pier that provides a landing place on a river
pier, wharf, wharfage, dock - a platform built out from the shore into the water and supported by piles; provides access to ships and boats
3.levee - an embankment that is built in order to prevent a river from overflowinglevee - an embankment that is built in order to prevent a river from overflowing
embankment - a long artificial mound of stone or earth; built to hold back water or to support a road or as protection
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
Translations

levee

1 [ˈleveɪ] N (Hist) (= reception) → besamanos m inv, recepción f

levee

2 [ˈlevɪ] N (= bank) → ribero m, dique m
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

levee

1
n (Hist) (on awakening) → Lever nt; (at British court) → Nachmittagsempfang m

levee

2
nDamm m, → Deich m
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

levee

[ˈlɛvɪ] n (esp Am) → argine m
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
References in periodicals archive ?
There are real costs associated with floodplain agriculture that seldom are counted, such as greater flood heights and potential flood damage (due to constriction of the floodplain by levees); increased dredging costs where tributaries that are channelized by levees deliver sediments directly into the main navigation channels; decreased fish, wildlife, and biodiversity because of draining and leveeing of floodplain habitats and migration corridors and alterations of the natural floodpulse that many animal and plants depend upon; and decreased opportunities for outdoor recreation and tourism.