Lea ‧ key /ˈliːki/ BrE AmE
a family of British scientists working in the area of ↑ paleontology (=the study of ancient animals and plants that have been preserved in rock): Mary Leakey (1913–96), her husband Louis Leakey (1903–72), and their son Richard Leakey (1944–), all of whom discovered many ↑ fossil s and human bones in Tanzania which have provided important information about how humans first developed