Latvian

Alternative forms

• (dated, 19th-century form) leija

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 studnets 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

Synonyms

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

Antonyms

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

Derived terms

• ieleja
• lejā
• lejtece
• lejup

References

1. ↑ Karulis, Konstantīns (1992), “leja”, in Latviešu Etimoloģijas Vārdnīca (in Latvian), Rīga: AVOTS, ISBN 9984-700-12-7

Swahili

Noun

leja (needs class)

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

Swedish

Verb

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

1. to hire
2. to hire someone to do a piece of heavy, dirty or monotonous work one otherwise would have had to do oneself

Conjugation

Related terms

• lega