The word 'vee' is a straightforward example of a letter name becoming a common noun. It originates from the Late Middle English period, simply as the spoken name for the letter V. This letter itself comes from the Latin letter V, which represented both a vowel and a consonant sound. The noun 'vee' then logically extended to describe any object or formation whose shape resembles this angular letter, such as a vee-neck on a sweater or a flying formation of birds.

The word is a simplex, derived from the name of the letter it represents. It is a direct phonetic spelling of the letter's name.