Join free

leman

English · Français

AI In plain words

Writing a short explanation…

Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.

leman¹

  • /ˈlɛmən/
  • /ˈliːmən/

Sounds like lemon · Rhymes with -ɛmən

Where it comes from

From Middle English lemman, variant of leofman, from Old English *lēofmann ("lover; sweetheart"; attested as a personal name), equivalent to lief + man ("beloved person"). In the past, incorrectly asserted to derive from French l'aimant (“the [male] lover”).

noun lemans · leaman · lemman · lemon

  1. archaic One beloved; a lover, a sweetheart of either sex (especially a secret lover; a gallant or mistress). Faire Venus seemde vnto his bed to bring Her, whom he waking euermore did weene, To be the chastest flowre, that ay did spring On earthly braunch, the daughter of a king, Now a loose Leman to vile seruice bound[…].
  2. often, pejorative A paramour. '...They are lost, I tell thee, they are lost. For them there is no heaven nor hell, and in neither shall they praise God’s name.’ ‘Father,’ cried the young Fisherman, ‘thou knowest not what thou sayest. Once in my net I snared the daughter of a King. She is fairer than the morning star, and whiter

Leman²

Where it comes from

From Middle English Leman, from Old English Leofmann.

proper noun Lemans · Lemman · Leeman · Leaman · Letman

  1. A surname.

Talk about this word

Cite this
MLA

"leman." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/leman. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

leman. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/leman

Chicago

"leman." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/leman.

BibTeX
@misc{leman_2026,
  title = {leman},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/leman},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}