leman

/ˈlɛmən/

//ˈlɛmən// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"leman" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“leman” is uncommon English (frequency #66,039 among 2,297 “L” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#66,039
frequency rank, English
2,297
“L” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - One beloved; a lover, a sweetheart of either sex (especially a secret lover; a gallant or mistress).

Corpus desk

Index EN-leman · leman · English

leman · rank #66,039 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #66,039
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,297
  • PHOTO-FINISH legless

Nearest frequency peer: legless (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “leman”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “leman” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for leman
PropertyValue
Headwordleman
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈlɛmən/
Letters5
Frequency rank#66,039
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “leman” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).lemanfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “legless” (#66,038), “Leadville” (#66,037), “LFL” (#66,041). Among 2,297 “L” headwords, “leman” is #66,039. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

leman is uncommon English at frequency #66,039 among 2,297 “L” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈlɛmən/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for leman, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Etymologically, the entry records: 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”). The correct English form is leman, spelled L-E-M-A-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    One beloved; a lover, a sweetheart of either sex (especially a secret lover; a gallant or mistress).
  2. 2
    A paramour.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how leman appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. 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. The prisoner I speak of is better booty—a jolly monk riding to visit his leman, an I may judge by his horse-gear and wearing apparel.

Etymology

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”).

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "leman"?
"leman" is spelled L-E-M-A-N. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈlɛmən/.
What does "leman" mean?
As a noun, "leman" means: One beloved; a lover, a sweetheart of either sex (especially a secret lover; a gallant or mistress).
How do you pronounce "leman"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "leman" is /ˈlɛmən/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "leman"?
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 [mal... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "leman", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Latam#66,033kriss#66,023Lukes#66,056Lydon#66,059

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list