Leaflet
(Leaf"let) n.
1. A little leaf; also, a little printed leaf or a tract.
2. (Bot.) One of the divisions of a compound leaf; a foliole.
3. (Zoöl.) A leaflike organ or part; as, a leaflet of the gills of fishes.
Leaf-nosed
(Leaf"-nosed`) n. (Zoöl.) Having a leaflike membrane on the nose; — said of certain bats,
esp. of the genera Phyllostoma and Rhinonycteris. See Vampire.
Leafstalk
(Leaf"stalk`) n. (Bot.) The stalk or petiole which supports a leaf.
Leafy
(Leaf"y) a. [Compar. Leafier ; superl. Leafiest.]
1. Full of leaves; abounding in leaves; as, the leafy forest. "The leafy month of June." Coleridge.
2. Consisting of leaves. "A leafy bed." Byron.
League
(League) n. [Cf. OE. legue, lieue, a measure of length, F. lieue, Pr. lega, legua, It. & LL.
lega, Sp. legua, Pg. legoa, legua; all fr. LL. leuca, of Celtic origin: cf. Arm. leo, lev Ir. leige (perh.
from English); also Ir. & Gael. leac a flag, a broad, flat stone, W. llech, — such stones having perh.
served as a sort of milestone ]
1. A measure of length or distance, varying in different countries from about 2.4 to 4.6 English statute
miles of 5,280 feet each, and used (as a land measure) chiefly on the continent of Europe, and in the
Spanish parts of America. The marine league of England and the United States is equal to three marine,
or geographical, miles of 6080 feet each.
The English land league is equal to three English statute miles. The Spanish and French leagues vary
in each country according to usage and the kind of measurement to which they are applied. The Dutch
and German leagues contain about four geographical miles, or about 4.6 English statute miles.
2. A stone erected near a public road to mark the distance of a league. [Obs.]
League
(League) n. [F. ligue, LL. liga, fr. L. ligare to bind; cf. Sp. liga. Cf. Ally a confederate, Ligature.]
An alliance or combination of two or more nations, parties, or persons, for the accomplishment of a purpose
which requires a continued course of action, as for mutual defense, or for furtherance of commercial,
religious, or political interests, etc.
And let there be
'Twixt us and them no league, nor amity.
Denham. A league may be offensive or defensive, or both; offensive, when the parties agree to unite in attacking
a common enemy; defensive, when they agree to a mutual defense of each other against an enemy.
The Holy League, an alliance of Roman Catholics formed in 1576 by influence of the Duke of Guise
for the exclusion of Protestants from the throne of France. — Solemn League and Covenant. See
Covenant,2. — The land league, an association, organized in Dublin in 1879, to promote the interests
of the Irish tenantry, its avowed objects being to secure fixity of tenure, fair rent, and free sale of the
