leu
/lew/masculine
The Romanian word for "lion" is leu.
leu refers to the big cat Panthera leo.
Meaning: big cat Panthera leo (noun)
How does it change in a sentence?
The word is a masculine noun.
How do you pronounce it?
/lew/
Did you know?
- In Romania, if you want to talk about money, you will use the same word for 'lion' as you do for the national currency, the leu.
- The Romanian word for the national currency, leu, likely owes its name to the Dutch 'leeuwendaalder', a coin from the 17th century that featured a lion.
- While leu refers to a male lion, the word for a female lion is leoaie.
Examples in context
- Leul este regele junglei.The lion is the king of the jungle.This sentence is useful for seeing leu used as the subject of a sentence about the king of the jungle.Tatoeba #2788641 by elenacristina260, translation #29846 by CM
- O pisică este un leu în miniatură care iubește șoarecii, urăște câinii și tolerează oamenii.A cat is a miniature lion that loves mice, hates dogs and tolerates humans.This sentence uses leu in a metaphorical way to describe a cat.Tatoeba #9813136 by elenacristina260, translation #2928615 by raggione
- Un leu trăiește în Brooklyn.A lion lives in Brooklyn.This sentence shows how to use leu to state where an animal lives.Tatoeba #11088894 by janTuki, translation #11087670 by shekitten
- Am văzut un leu în grădina zoologică.I saw a lion in the zoo.
- 3 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Andrei and Maria are visiting the zoo together.
- AndreiUite, Maria, acolo este un leu!Look, Maria, there is a lion!
- MariaEste foarte mare și impunător.It is very big and imposing.
- AndreiÎmi place cum arată acest leu.I like how this lion looks.
- MariaDa, este cel mai frumos animal de aici.Yes, it is the most beautiful animal here.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “lion” translations and entries leu, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries leu, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
