leja

See also: Leja, lejā, leją, and Leją

Latvian

Alternative forms

• (dated, 19th-century form) leija

Etymology

From earlier (19th-century) leija, from Proto-Baltic *ley-ya-, from *ley-ā, from Proto-Indo-European *l̥-ey, from the zero grade of *el-, *Heh₃l- (“to bend, to incline”) (whence also elkonis (“elbow”), q.v.) with a suffix -ey. The meaning probably evolved as follows: “bent inward” > “inwardly bent earth”, “valley” > “lower area.” Cognates include Gothic 𐌿𐌽𐌳𐌰𐍂𐌻𐌴𐌹𐌾𐌰 (undarleija, “lower, smaller”), Ancient Greek λειμών (leimṓn, “humid, grassy place, humid meadow”) (lower places are often humid).

Pronunciation

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

leja f (4th declension)

1. low area, low place, below (place located below, with respect to something else)

   pa leju mājai garām šaujas motociklets ― a motorcycle ran by in the low area along the house

   Lība palika stāvam un ostīja gaisu: kaut kur no lejas uzvēdīja svešāada smarša ― Lība remained standing and sniffed the air: somewhere from below a strange smell was spreading

2. (in genitive, used adjectivally) lower side, lower part, bottom (of something)

   lejas stāvs ― the lower (i.e., first) floor

   te bija lejas aula baznīca ar zaļo skārda jumtu ― here was the lower village church with a green tin roof

   tumšajā lejas gaitenī klusēdami izklīst skolēnu pulciņi ― the small groups of students silently dispersed in the dark lower corridor

3. (in locative, used adverbially) down, below, at the bottom, in a lower area (of some place)

   lejā pagalmā spēlējās bērni ― down in the yard the children were playing

   izgāju pat uz balkona; dzīli lejā zem manis slīdēja automašīnas un trolejbusi ― I went out on the balcony; deep down under me cars and trolleys slid by

   un tad tepat lejā pie Varžupīte tie karkli ― and then right here (they are), down by the Varžupīte (river), these willows

   tieši zem nišas bija divi galdiņi; nišā varēja dzirdēt katru vārdu, ko tie tur lejā runāja ― right under the niche there were two little tables; in the niche it was possible to hear every word which they said down there

4. (geography) valley

   upes, strauta leja ― river, creek valley

   dziļa leja ― deep valley

   krūmiem aizaugusi leja ― a valley overgrown with bushes

   lejas nogāze ― valley slope

   starp diviem kalniem vēsā lejā / svēts, vientuļš klosteris glabājās ― in a cool valley between two mountains / a holy, lonely monastery kept itself

5. depression in an area or terrain

   miklajā ganību lejā nāca melnakšņu un kārklu krūmi ― in the humid pasture depression there were (lit. came) alder and willow bushes

6. (of rivers; usually with uz, no) mouth, estuary

   no lejas brauc tvaikonis ― from the river mouth came a steamboat

   straume laivu nesa uz leju ― the stream took the boat downstream, to(ward) the estuary

   jo tālāk ejam mēs uz leju, jo vairāk straume izšķir mūs ― the further we go downstream, the more the stream separated us

7. (with uz) down, downward, toward the earth (also metaphorically)

   skatīties uz leju ― to look down

   ceļš ved uz leju ― the path leads down

   Ģirts gāja pa kāpnēm uz leju ― Ģirts walked down the stairs

   svaru kauss sveras uz leju ― the heavy cup weighs down

   Mācītājam Silingam ar veselību ejot uz leju ― Pastor Siling's health, they say, is going down

Declension

Declension of leja (4th)

	singular	plural
nominative	leja	lejas
genitive	lejas	leju
dative	lejai	lejām
accusative	leju	lejas
instrumental	leju	lejām
locative	lejā	lejās
vocative	leja	lejas

Synonyms

• (of "below", "down"): lejā
• (of "lower part"): apakša
• (of "valley"): ieleja
• (of "estuary"): lejtece
• (of "downward"): uz leju, lejup, zemup (rare)

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of “of "lower part"”): augša
• (antonym(s) of “of "down"”): augšā
• (antonym(s) of “of "downward"”): uz augšu, augšup, sauļup (poetic)

Derived terms

• ieleja
• lejā
• lejtece
• lejup

Livonian

Noun

leja

1. obsolete spelling of lejā

References

• Andreas Johan Sjögren, Ferdinand Johann Wiedemann (1861), Livisch-deutsches und deutsch-livisches Wörterbuch

Lower Tanana

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /lətʒæ/

Noun

leja (Toklat-Bearpaw)

1. alternative form of -lesga (“membrane”)

References

• Kari, James et al. (2024), Kari, James, editor, Lower Tanana Dene Dictionary, Fairbanks, Alaska: Alaska Native Language Center, →ISBN, page 277

Polish

Pronunciation

 

• IPA^(key): /ˈlɛ.ja/

• (Greater Poland):
  • (Central Greater Poland) IPA^(key): [ˈlɛ.ja]

• Rhymes: -ɛja
• Syllabification: le‧ja
• Homophone: Leja

Etymology 1

See lej.

Noun

leja f

1. alternative form of lej

Declension

Declension of leja

	singular	plural
nominative	leja	leje
genitive	lei	lei
dative	lei	lejom
accusative	leję	leje
instrumental	leją	lejami
locative	lei	lejach
vocative	lejo	leje

Etymology 2

Etymology tree

Proto-Slavic *lьjati

Polish laćdeverb.

Polish leja

Deverbal from lać.

Noun

leja f

1. (Central Greater Poland) torrential downpour (heavy rain)

Alternative forms

• lija (Central Greater Poland)

Etymology 3

See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

Noun

leja m inan

1. genitive singular of lej

Further reading

• “leja”, in Wielki słownik języka polskiego‎^[2] (in Polish), Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• “leja”, in Polish dictionaries at PWN‎^[3] (in Polish)
• Oskar Kolberg (1877), “leja”, in “Rzecz o mowie ludu wielkopolskiego”, in Zbiór wiadomości do antropologii krajowéj (in Polish), volume 1, III (Materyjały etnologiczne), page 20

Serbo-Croatian

Alternative forms

• lijèha (Ijekavian)
• líha (Ikavian)
• léha (Ekavian)

Etymology

Inherited from Proto-Slavic *lě̄xà, from Proto-Balto-Slavic *láišāˀ, from Proto-Indo-European *lóyseh₂, from *leys-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /lěːja/

Noun

léja f (Cyrillic spelling ле́ја)

1. plot of land for sowing, a partition of agriculturally or horticulturally used earth, farming bed
   • 2015 June 15, “Planiranje vrta [Garden planning]”, in Bio-Vrt‎^[4]:

     Za proizvodnju ranih proljetnih vrsta salate, kao i za snabdjevanje vrta svojim sadnicama, može se napraviti pokrivena topla leja.

     To produce early spring types of salad, as also for provision of the garden with seedlings, one can create a covered warm bed.

Declension

Declension of leja

	singular	plural
nominative	leja	leje
genitive	leje	leja
dative	leji	lejama
accusative	leju	leje
vocative	lejo	leje
locative	leji	lejama
instrumental	lejom	lejama

References

• “ле́ја”, in Речник српскохрватскога књижевног језика [Rečnik srpskohrvatskoga književnog jezika, Dictionary of the Serbo-Croatian Literary Language] (in Serbo-Croatian), Друго фототипско издање [Second Phototype Edition], volume 3, Novi Sad; Zagreb: Matica srpska; Matica hrvatska, 1969, published 1990, page 182
• “ле́ха”, in Речник српскохрватскога књижевног језика [Rečnik srpskohrvatskoga književnog jezika, Dictionary of the Serbo-Croatian Literary Language] (in Serbo-Croatian), Друго фототипско издање [Second Phototype Edition], volume 3, Novi Sad; Zagreb: Matica srpska; Matica hrvatska, 1969, published 1990, page 199

Swahili

Etymology

Borrowed from English ledger.

Pronunciation

• Audio (Kenya):

  (file)

Noun

leja class IX (plural leja class X)

1. ledger (a collection of accounting entries consisting of credits and debits)

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Swedish leghia, from Old Norse leiga, from Proto-Germanic *laigijaną (“to lend”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /lɛja/
• Rhymes: -ɛja

Verb

leja (present lejer, preterite lejde, supine lejt, imperative lej)

1. to hire (on a temporary basis)

   leja en torped

   hire a hitman

Usage notes

Often of illegal or questionable tasks.

Conjugation

Conjugation of leja (weak)

	active		passive
infinitive	leja		lejas
supine	lejt		lejts
imperative	lej		—
imper. plural1	lejen		—
	present	past	present	past
indicative	lejer	lejde	lejs, lejes	lejdes
ind. plural1	leja	lejde	lejas	lejdes
subjunctive2	leje	lejde	lejes	lejdes
present participle		lejande
past participle		lejd

¹ Archaic. ² Dated. See the appendix on Swedish verbs.

Derived terms

• leja ut (“contract out”)

Related terms

• lega

See also

• anlita
• torped

References

• “leja”, in Svenska Akademiens ordlista [Wordlist of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)
• “leja”, in Svensk ordbok [Dictionary of Swedish] (in Swedish)
• “leja”, in Svenska Akademiens ordbok [Dictionary of the Swedish Academy] (in Swedish)
• leja in Elof Hellquist, Svensk etymologisk ordbok (1st ed., 1922)