leeway: Meaning and Definition of

lee•way

Pronunciation: (lē'wā"), [key]
— n.
  1. extra time, space, materials, or the like, within which to operate; margin: With ten minutes' leeway we can catch the train.
  2. a degree of freedom of action or thought: His instructions gave us plenty of leeway.
  3. Also calledthe amount or angle of the drift of a ship to leeward from its heading.
  4. the amount a plane is blown off its normal course by cross winds.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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