English word origin

Etymology of lea

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

noun

An open field, meadow, pasture.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English legh, lege, lei (“clearing, open ground”), from Old English lēah (“clearing in a forest”) from Proto-West Germanic *lauh (“meadow”), from Proto-Germanic *lauhaz (“meadow”), from Proto-Indo-European *lówkos (“field, meadow”). Akin to Old Frisian lāch (“meadow”), Old Saxon lōh (“forest, grove”) (Middle Dutch loo (“forest, thicket”); Dutch -lo (in placenames), Old High German lōh (“covered clearing, low bushes”), Old Norse ló (“clearing, meadow”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Root classification mention*lewk-ine-pro
Inherited-form mentionleghenm
Inherited-form mentionlēahang · clearing in a forest
Inherited-form mention*lauhgmw-pro · meadow
Inherited-form mention*lauhazgem-pro · meadow
Inherited-form mention*lówkosine-pro · field, meadow
Cognate mentionlāchofs
Cognate mentionlōhosx
Cognate mentionloodum
Cognate mention-lonl
Cognate mentionlōhgoh
Cognate mentionlónon

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "root",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*lewk-"
      },
      "expansion": ""
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "legh"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English legh"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ang",
        "3": "lēah",
        "t": "clearing in a forest"
      },
      "expansion": "Old English lēah (“clearing in a forest”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gmw-pro",
        "3": "*lauh",
        "t": "meadow"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-West Germanic *lauh (“meadow”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*lauhaz",
        "t": "meadow"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *lauhaz (“meadow”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ine-pro",
        "3": "*lówkos",
        "t": "field, meadow"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Indo-European *lówkos (“field, meadow”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "ofs",
        "2": "lāch",
        "3": "",
        "4": "meadow"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Frisian lāch (“meadow”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "osx",
        "2": "lōh",
        "3": "",
        "4": "forest, grove"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Saxon lōh (“forest, grove”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "dum",
        "2": "loo",
        "3": "",
        "4": "forest, thicket"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle Dutch loo (“forest, thicket”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "nl",
        "2": "-lo"
      },
      "expansion": "Dutch -lo"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "goh",
        "2": "lōh",
        "3": "",
        "4": "covered clearing, low bushes"
      },
      "expansion": "Old High German lōh (“covered clearing, low bushes”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "non",
        "2": "ló",
        "3": "ló",
        "4": "clearing, meadow"
      },
      "expansion": "Old Norse ló (“clearing, meadow”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "legh",
      "legh#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "lege",
      "lege#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "lei",
      "lei#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "lēah",
      "leah#Old_English"
    ],
    [
      "*lauh",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-West Germanic/lauh"
    ],
    [
      "*lauhaz",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/lauhaz"
    ],
    [
      "*lówkos",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/lówkos"
    ],
    [
      "lāch",
      "lach#Old_Frisian"
    ],
    [
      "lōh",
      "loh#Old_Saxon"
    ],
    [
      "loo",
      "loo#Middle_Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "-lo",
      "-lo#Dutch"
    ],
    [
      "lōh",
      "loh#Old_High_German"
    ],
    [
      "ló",
      "ló#Old_Norse"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "An open field, meadow, pasture."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "f63458412ff878cf7dd880e5a888e805b0ae6b6cd709aa87e9aae863b1293b72",
      "rawRecordSha256": "8aae3e51807d87f1d622ad9dda5c82f48f7a68809bd4cf93e4135bbdabdb204f",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 231023
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
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    "lexicalSenses": 0,
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  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

noun

Any of several measures of yarn; for linen, 300 yards (275 m); for cotton, 120 yards (110 m). · A set of warp threads carried by a loop of the heddle.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From Middle English le, lee, ley, of uncertain origin. Compare Old French lier (“to bind”), Old French laisse (“leash, cord”), Old French lïace, lïaz (“bundle”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inherited-form mentionleenm
Cognate mentionlierfro · to bind
Cognate mentionlaissefro · leash, cord
Cognate mentionlïacefro

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "inh",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "enm",
        "3": "le"
      },
      "expansion": "Middle English le"
    },
    {
      "name": "unc",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "nocap": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "uncertain"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "fro",
        "2": "lier",
        "t": "to bind"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French lier (“to bind”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "fro",
        "2": "laisse",
        "t": "leash, cord"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French laisse (“leash, cord”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "fro",
        "2": "lïace"
      },
      "expansion": "Old French lïace"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "le",
      "le#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "lee",
      "lee#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "ley",
      "ley#Middle_English"
    ],
    [
      "lier",
      "lier#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "laisse",
      "laisse#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "lïace",
      "lïace#Old_French"
    ],
    [
      "lïaz",
      "lïaz#Old_French"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Any of several measures of yarn; for linen, 300 yards (275 m); for cotton, 120 yards (110 m).",
        "A set of warp threads carried by a loop of the heddle."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "37d47e80842214cbc94bc759768002f2e6e6f21d7b4db5324973dc5407251426",
      "rawRecordSha256": "58770fa780ff1806e507b037b31996501a10cbd2768498fb7a29d974b0d82856",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 231024
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
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    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for lea →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-bGVh