Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A chain, rope, or strap attached to the collar or harness of an animal, especially a dog, and used to lead it or hold it in check.
  • noun A strap or cord attached to a harness worn by a small child, used to prevent the child from wandering off.
  • noun A strap, cord, or other line used to keep an object close to its user or in a designated location.
  • noun Control or restraint.
  • noun A range of allowable behavior or responsibility.
  • noun A set of three animals, such as hounds.
  • noun A set of three.
  • transitive verb To restrain with or as if with a leash.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A band, lace, or thong; a snare.
  • noun Especially— The line used to hold hounds or coursing-dogs until the time comes to set them on the game.
  • noun A pack of hounds.
  • noun A light line used to give the falcon a short flight without releasing her altogether. It is secured to the varvels on the bird's ankle.
  • noun Among sportsmen, a brace and a half; three creatures of any kind, especially greyhounds, foxes, bucks, or hares; hence, three things in general.
  • noun In weaving, one of the threads, cords, or wires extending between the parallel bars or shafts of the heddles and having a loop or eye in the middle for the reception of a warp-thread. See heddle.
  • noun In physiology, an aggregation of similar cord-like structures, such as fibers, nerves, blood-vessels, etc.
  • To bind or secure by a leash.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A thong of leather, or a long cord, by which a person may hold or restrain an animal, such as a falconer holding his hawk, or a courser his dog. For dogs and cats, the leash is commonly attached to a collar around the neck of the animal.
  • noun (Sporting) A brace and a half; a tierce; three; three creatures of any kind, especially greyhounds, foxes, bucks, and hares; hence, the number three in general.
  • noun (Weaving) A string with a loop at the end for lifting warp threads, in a loom.
  • noun to maintain close control over the activities of (a person).
  • transitive verb To tie together, or hold, with a leash.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A strap, cord or rope with which to restrain an animal, often a dog.
  • noun A brace and a half; a tierce.
  • noun A set of three; three creatures of any kind, especially greyhounds, foxes, bucks, and hares; hence, the number three in general.
  • noun A string with a loop at the end for lifting warp threads, in a loom.
  • noun surfing A leg rope.
  • verb To fasten or secure with a leash.
  • verb figuratively to curb, restrain

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun restraint consisting of a rope (or light chain) used to restrain an animal
  • noun a figurative restraint
  • verb fasten with a rope
  • noun the cardinal number that is the sum of one and one and one

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English lees, lesh, from Old French laisse, from laissier, to let go; see lease.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English leesshe, leysche, lesshe, a variant of more original lease, from Middle English lees, leese, leece, lese, from Old French lesse (modern French laisse), from Latin laxa ("thong, a loose cord"), feminine form of laxus ("loose"); compare lax.

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Examples

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  • "Among sportsmen, a brace and a half; three creatures of any kind, especially greyhounds, foxes, bucks, or hares; hence, three things in general."

    --Cent. Dict.

    August 13, 2012