league
UK: liːɡ | US: liːɡ
n. an association of teams or organizations for mutual cooperation or competition
n. a level or class of quality or ability
n. (historical) a unit of distance, roughly 3 miles or 4.8 km
The word "league" traces back to the Latin ligāre (to bind), which evolved into the Old French ligue (alliance or bond). The morpheme leag reflects the core idea of binding or uniting, while -ue is a vestigial suffix from its French form. Over time, "league" shifted from denoting a physical bond (like a treaty) to abstract associations (sports leagues) and even a measure of distance (historically tied to how far one could walk in an hour).
The two companies formed a league to share resources.
She plays in a competitive soccer league.
His skills put him in a league of his own.
The ancient Roman league was about 1.5 miles.
They are out of our league in terms of budget.