lead
noun · verb
Simple meaning
A plummet or mass of lead attached to a line, used in sounding depth at sea or to estimate velocity in knots.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
lehdIPA pronunciation (US)
ˈlɛd
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
countablenautical
A plummet or mass of lead attached to a line, used in sounding depth at sea or (dated) to estimate velocity in knots.
A thin strip of type metal, used to separate lines of type in printing.
countable
The act of leading or conducting; guidance; direction, course
countable
A thin cylinder of graphite used in pencils.
countable
Precedence; advance position; also, the measure of precedence; the state of being ahead in a race; the highest score in an incomplete game.
uncountable
A heavy, pliable, inelastic metal element, having a bright, bluish color, but easily tarnished; both malleable and ductile, though with little tenacity. It is easily fusible, forms alloys with other metals, and is an ingredient of solder and type metal. Atomic number 82, symbol Pb (from Latin plumbum).
verb
intransitive
To guide or conduct, as by accompanying, going before, showing, influencing, directing with authority, etc.; to have precedence or preeminence; to be first or chief; — used in most of the senses of the transitive verb.
To guide or conduct in a certain course, or to a certain place or end, by making the way known; to show the way, especially by going with or going in advance of; to guide somebody somewhere or to bring somebody somewhere by means of instructions.
To draw or direct by influence, whether good or bad; to prevail on; to induce; to entice; to allure.
To influence towards a belief, a conclusion, etc.
transitive
To go or to be in advance of; to precede; hence, to be foremost or chief among.
Travel in front of; go in advance of others
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A1 · Beginner
- Frequency
- Very Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Tend to or result in
Used this way, lead is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
“This remark lead to further arguments among the guests.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Usage note
It most often appears in the pattern “lead to …”, which is worth copying when you use it.
Natural pattern: lead to …
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
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Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
Going or proceeding or going in advance.
A person who rules or guides or inspires others.
Treated or mixed with lead.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A poisonous chromate of lead used as a pigment in paint.
Symptom of chronic lead poisoning and associated with obstinate constipation.
Glass containing lead oxide.
The introductory section of a story.
Plumb line for determining depth.
Teach immoral behavior to.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
The activity of leading.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.