Oxford Thesaurus - An A-Z Dictionary Of Synonyms
.pdfforemost, paramount, primary: A leading politician hinted today that interest rates might go down soon. 2 best, outstanding, pre-eminent, greatest, supreme, peerless, matchless, unequalled, unrivalled, unsurpassed: He was the leading writer of his time.
leaflet n. folder, circular, brochure, handbill, bill, booklet, advertisement, US and Canadian throw-away, flier or flyer, Colloq Brit advert: The candidate gave out leaflets urging us to vote for him.
leafy |
adj. green, verdant, bosky, woody, shady, shaded, arborescent: |
We lay beneath the leafy bowers and dreamed of summers past. |
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league |
n. 1 confederation, association, alliance, combination, |
coalition, federation, confederacy, guild, society, fraternity, union, band, fellowship, club: The teams in the south favour forming a football league of their own. 2 in league (with). allied (with), united (with), associated (with), leagued (with), federated (with), collaborating (with), conspiring (with), in collusion (with), Colloq in cahoots (with): The suspects are said to be in league with saboteurs.
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--v. 3 ally, unite, associate, band, combine, collaborate, join |
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(forces), conspire, collude: Did most people league with the |
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rebels or the official government? |
leak |
n. 1 leakage, leaking, discharge, trickle, escape, seepage, |
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seeping, oozing, exudation: We have to stop leaks of |
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radioactive waste from power plants. 2 hole, fissure, crack, |
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chink, crevice, aperture, opening, puncture, cut, break, split, |
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gash, rent, tear, gap, flaw: There was a leak in the balloon |
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and it began to descend. 3 disclosure, revelation: The press |
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knew about his defection because of a security leak. |
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--v. 4 escape, discharge, spill, trickle, drip, seep, ooze, |
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exude, extravasate: Oil was leaking out through a hole in the |
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container. 5 disclose, divulge, let slip, release, give away |
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(the game), make known or public, let (something or it) be |
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known, Colloq spill the beans (about); let the cat out of the |
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bag: Someone as yet unidentified leaked the scandal to a |
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reporter. 6 leak out. transpire, become known, come out, be |
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revealed: Their secret relationship has leaked out. |
leap I was on the other side. 6 jump, increase, (up)surge, rise, upswing, growth, escalation: The figures show a leap in inflation for the month. 7 by leaps and bounds. rapidly, quickly, swiftly, speedily: The plans for the new theatre are progressing by leaps and bounds.
learn v. 1 Often, learn of. find out, discover, hear (of), chance or hit upon, understand, gather, have revealed to one; determine, ascertain, uncover: I learned today that you are leaving. I learned of your plans yesterday. 2 be taught, be instructed in, master, become proficient (in), acquire knowledge (of): I learned German at school. 3 understand, see the light, get the picture, Colloq catch on, get the idea, get it, Brit twig: No matter how often they are told, some people never learn. 4
memorize, commit to memory, learn by heart: Bolton was told to learn his part by the next day.
learned adj. (well-)informed, erudite, knowledgeable, au fait, cultured, intellectual, highbrow, (well-)educated, scholarly, academic, scholastic, lettered, experienced, skilled, practised, accomplished, expert, literate, well-read, (well-)versed, (well-)trained, (well-)grounded: The consultants to the encyclopedia are all learned people.
learner n. student, pupil, scholar, trainee, apprentice, novice, tiro or tyro, abecedarian, beginner, initiate, neophyte: Learners of English as a second language will benefit from this book.
learning n. knowledge, erudition, culture, scholarship, lore, information, wisdom: You have the advantage of being able to draw on centuries of learning.
lease n. 1 rental agreement or contract, sublease, sublet: A new ten-year lease will be signed tomorrow.
--v. 2 rent (out), let (out), sublet (out), sublease (out), charter (out), hire (out): They leased their home to us for the summer. We arranged to lease their boat for the weekend.
leave° v. 1 go (away or off), depart, set off, be off, get away or off, retire, retreat, withdraw, decamp, (make an) exit, run, be
gone, bid (someone or something) goodbye, say goodbye or adieu (to), take (one's) leave (of), quit, desert, pull out, check
out, fly, Colloq push or shove off, take off, skedaddle, flit, disappear, do a disappearing act, pull up stakes, up-anchor, Slang beat it, scram, vamoose, split, Brit beetle off, do a bunk, do a moonlight flit, hop it, Taboo slang Brit bugger off:
Please leave at once. May I leave the room? She left him alone. 2 go or run off, deviate from: The car left the road and hit a tree. 3 forget, mislay, lose: I left my car keys somewhere in the house. 4 abandon, desert, take leave of, wash one's hands of, turn one's back on; quit, resign from, give up, renounce, drop (out of): She left him because he mistreated her. I left school at sixteen. 5 make, render, cause to be or become or remain: The beauty of the place left me speechless. 6 bequeath, will, hand down, devise, demise, transfer: Her aunt left some valuable paintings to my wife. 7 entrust, commit, assign, cede, relinquish, give over or up, consign, resign:
They are leaving all the responsibility to me. 8 cause or allow to remain, have as a remainder, yield, give: Seven from eleven leaves four. 9 leave off. stop, cease, desist, forbear, give
up, refrain from, discontinue, abstain (from), renounce: He won't leave off gossiping about her. 10 leave out. omit, disregard, ignore, neglect; count out, reject, exclude, eliminate, bar, except: You left out the best part. Don't leave me out of the fun!
leaveý n. 1 permission, authorization, consent, freedom, liberty, licence, sanction, dispensation: Who gave you leave to borrow my car? 2 furlough, leave of absence, time off, sabbatical, recess, holiday, vacation: I am overworked and badly in need of some leave. 3 departure: He took his leave of us at last.
lecherous adj. lewd, lascivious, salacious, libidinous, sensual, lubricious or lubricous, lustful, concupiscent, licentious, prurient, dirty-minded, filthy-minded, carnal, goatish, hircine, randy, libertine, wanton, profligate, depraved, degenerate, decadent, dissolute, Slang horny: The lecherous villain dared to proposition my wife.
lecture n. 1 speech, address, talk, discourse, disquisition, treatise, dissertation, paper, lesson, instruction, sermon, declamation, harangue, diatribe, philippic, screed: The preacher delivered a lecture on the evils of drink. 2 reproof, reprimand, rebuke, criticism, censure, reproach, scolding, upbraiding, chiding, berating, tongue-lashing, remonstration, Colloq dressing-down,
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telling-off, Slang Brit wigging, US and Canadian chewing-out: I |
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had to listen to another lecture about staying out late. |
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--v. 3 make or deliver or give a speech or address or talk, |
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discourse; sermonize, hold forth, moralize, pontificate, orate, |
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preach, declaim, expound, go on about, harangue: She lectures |
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on Chinese art of the 18th century. He insists on lecturing to |
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everyone he meets. 4 reprove, reprimand, rebuke, reproach, |
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scold, upbraid, berate, chide, tongue-lash, remonstrate with, |
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rail at, fulminate against; admonish, warn; Colloq dress down, |
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tell off, send (someone) away or off with a flea in his or her |
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ear, Slang Brit wig, US and Canadian chew out: She is always |
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lecturing me about keeping my room tidy. |
ledge |
n. shelf, projection, step, mantel or mantle, mantelpiece or |
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mantlepiece, overhang, sill: We stood on a small ledge of rock |
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unable to move. |
leer |
v. 1 ogle, eye: He leers at every pretty girl. |
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--n. 2 ogle, the eye, Colloq once-over, Slang glad eye: She |
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was repelled when he gave her a leer. |
leery |
adj. suspicious, sceptical, dubious, doubtful, doubting, |
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distrustful, wary, cautious, chary, careful: I was very leery |
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of his story. |
leeway n. space, elbow-room, room, play, scope, slack, latitude, wide
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berth; freedom: We allowed him some leeway to make changes in |
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the manuscript. |
left |
adj. 1 left-hand, sinistral, Nautical port, (formerly) |
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larboard, Heraldry sinister: In most countries, the driver sits |
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on the left side. 2 leftist, left-wing, progressive, liberal, |
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socialist(ic), pink; radical, communist(ic), red: The party's |
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platform has become a bit too left for my taste. |
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--n. 3 left side or hand or fist, Nautical port, port side, |
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(formerly) larboard: The fort is on the left as you enter the |
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bay. The champion has a powerful left. |
left-handed
adj. 1 clumsy, awkward, gauche, fumbling, maladroit,
cack-handed: He has a left-handed way of doing things. 2 insulting, disparaging, derisive, uncomplimentary, insulting, paradoxical, ambiguous, questionable, dubious, doubtful: Calling her piano-playing 'not bad' was a left-handed compliment.
leftover n. 1 Usually, leftovers. remainder(s), remnant(s), rest, residue, residuum, balance, surplus, excess, superfluity, overage; scrap(s), leavings, crumbs, odds and ends, debris or d‚bris, refuse, waste, rubbish, rubble, detritus, Archaic orts: I'm just having leftovers for dinner tonight.
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--adj. 2 remaining, residual, extra, excess, unused, uneaten: |
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Save some of the leftover ice-cream for later. |
leg |
n. 1 limb, member, Colloq pin, peg, stump, Slang gam: I have a |
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touch of arthritis in my left leg. 2 support, brace, prop, |
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upright, standard, column, pillar: One of the legs of this |
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table is about to collapse. 3 part, portion, segment, stretch, |
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stage, section, length, lap: The first leg of my journey passed |
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without incident. 4 a leg up. boost, assistance, push, help, |
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helping hand, advance, support, US and Canadian assist: Let me |
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give you a leg up over the wall. Gordon might give you a leg up |
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in getting a job. 5 leg it. run, hurry, hasten, scurry, Colloq |
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scoot, skedaddle: He legged it down the street to catch the |
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bus. 6 not a leg to stand on. defenceless, unsupported, |
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insupportable or unsupportable, indefensible, unjustifiable, |
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untenable, invalid: She insists she's right, but she hasn't got |
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a leg to stand on. 7 on one's or its last legs. decrepit, |
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failing, exhausted, dying, worn out, run-down, falling apart or |
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to pieces, broken-down, the worse for wear; dilapidated, |
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rickety, shabby, ramshackle, crumbling, tumbledown: George |
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looked as if he was on his last legs. My car is on its last |
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legs. 8 pull (someone's) leg. tease, mock, jeer at, taunt, gibe, |
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make fun of, chaff, guy, fool, deceive, Chiefly Brit twit, |
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Colloq rib, kid, rag: We were just pulling his leg, but he took |
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it seriously. 9 shake a leg. a hurry (up), hasten, rush, |
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Colloq get going or moving or cracking, look alive or lively: |
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You'll have to shake a leg to catch that train. b dance, trip |
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the light fantastic (toe), Slang hoof it, US cut a rug: What do |
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you say we go out and shake a leg tonight? 10 stretch one's |
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legs. (take or go for a) walk, (take some) exercise: After |
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sitting for so long, I have to stretch my legs. |
legal adj. 1 lawful, licit, statutory, acceptable, permissible, permitted, admissible, authorized: The police officer was found to have exceeded his legal authority. 2 legitimate, proper, right, rightful, sound, constitutional, authorized, Slang legit:
I question whether his business is legal. Who is the legal heir? 3 judicial, juridical, judiciary, forensic: The case is without legal precedent.
legalistic
adj. narrow(-minded), disputatious, contentious, litigious, literal, strict, niggling, hair-splitting, cavilling, quibbling, Jesuitical, pettifogging, nice, fine, subtle, Colloq nit-picking: Her argument is legalistic and ignores the spirit of the law.
legend n. 1 epic, saga, myth, story, (folk) tale, romance, narrative, fable, tradition, fiction, Scandinavian Edda: There are scores of legends woven into the cultural fabric of our lives. 2 celebrity, phenomenon, tradition, wonder, luminary, personage,
somebody: Someone said that Rudolph had become a legend in his own mind. 3 key, table of symbols, code, explanatory note:
Refer to the legend for explanations of symbols used in the map. 4 motto, slogan, inscription, caption, title: The legend reads, 'Dieu et mon droit'.
legendary adj. 1 fabled, storied, traditional; heroic, epic, mythic: Legendary tales have been identified in every culture. 2 fanciful, imaginary, fabulous, mythical, romantic, fictional: Was King Arthur a real person or a legendary figure? 3 famous, celebrated, noted, famed, well-known, renowned, illustrious, immortal, prominent, eminent, great, acclaimed, noteworthy: Irena became known for her legendary dinner parties.
legible adj. readable, decipherable, clear, understandable, plain, distinct: The handwriting is legible, but I don't know what language it's in.
legitimate
adj. 1 valid, proper, right, rightful, authorized, legal, genuine, real, true, authentic: Which one of them was the legitimate Anastasia? 2 lawful, licit, legal, by law, de jure, statutory: Bonnie Prince Charlie claimed to be the legitimate
ruler of Scotland. 3 commonsensical, sensible, reasonable, proper, correct, acceptable, valid, logical, justifiable, just, fair: The question is perfectly legitimate and deserves a proper answer.
--v. 4 legitimize, legitimatize, legalize, authorize, sanction, warrant, validate, certify: By signing before two witnesses, she legitimated her will.
leisure n. 1 spare or free time, time (off), liberty, freedom, opportunity: How many people these days have the leisure to do what they like? 2 holiday, vacation, respite, relief, rest, recreation, relaxation, ease, breathing-space, quiet,
tranquillity, repose, US military rest and recreation, R and R: Everyone needs a few days of leisure now and then. 3 at leisure. a unoccupied, inactive, retired, resting, free, on holiday or chiefly US and Canadian vacation; at liberty, available, unemployed: I have been at leisure for a year now. b Often, at one's leisure. at one's convenience, when convenient, unhurriedly, in one's own time: I shall mow the lawn at my leisure.
--adj. 4 recreational: The 'leisure industry' is booming with theme parks opening throughout the country. 5 free, unoccupied, non-working, unencumbered, idle, holiday, vacation: How do you usually spend your leisure time?
leisured adj. wealthy, rich, affluent, prosperous, moneyed or monied,
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well-to-do, leisured: Yachts of that size are strictly for the |
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leisured classes. |
lend |
v. 1 make a loan of, loan, advance: The bank agreed to lend me |
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the money for a boat. 2 impart, furnish, bestow, give, confer, |
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contribute, add: The silk scarf lends cachet to the whole |
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outfit. 3 lend itself to. suit, fit, be fitted or appropriate |
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or suitable (to or for), be applicable or adaptable (to or for): |
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The book lends itself well to film adaptation. |
length |
n. 1 extent, measure, span, reach, size, magnitude, dimension, |
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measurement: What is the length of a piece of string? The pool |
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is 25 metres in length and 15 metres in width. 2 duration, |
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stretch, term, period, space: What length of time did he spend |
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in prison? 3 at full length. fully, completely, to the fullest |
extent: They were stretched out at full length on the floor. 4 at length. a finally, at (long) last, eventually, after a
(long) time or while, ultimately; in the long run: At length, the doctor emerged from his office. b for a long time, interminably, for ages: He read to her at length, till she dozed off. c in depth, thoroughly, completely, exhaustively, extensively, to the fullest or greatest extent, in detail: I haven't the time to go into the story at length just now.
lengthen |
v. make longer, extend, elongate; stretch, drag out, draw out, |
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prolong, protract, expand, continue: I need to lengthen the |
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skirt an inch. The ten-minute interview lengthened into an hour. |
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They lengthened the playing field. |
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lengthy |
adj. long, over-long, long-drawn(-out), protracted; endless, |
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interminable, prolonged, long-winded, wordy, prolix, verbose, |
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garrulous, talkative, loquacious, boring, dull, tedious: He |
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underwent a lengthy operation for removal of the clot. She |
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launched into a lengthy description of the life cycle of a frog. |
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lenient |
adj. gentle, kind, kindly, easy, sparing, merciful, tender, |
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humane, tender-hearted, kind-hearted, indulgent, permissive, |
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forgiving, easygoing, tolerant, patient, compassionate, |
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forbearing, understanding, magnanimous, generous, charitable: |
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Do you think they were lenient in their treatment of prisoners |
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caught while escaping? |
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lesson |
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n. 1 exercise, drill, reading, lecture, recitation; assignment, |
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homework, task: The pupils are having an English lesson at the |
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moment. You must finish your lessons before you can go out and |
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play. 2 class, session; instruction, teaching, tutoring, |
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schooling; practice: I take piano lessons on Tuesday |
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afternoons. 3 example, exemplar, model, guide, maxim, paragon, |
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message, deterrent, discouragement; warning, admonition; moral, |
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precept: Norman's punishment should be a lesson to you. 4 |
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punishment, chastisement, chastening, castigation, scolding, |
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chiding, rebuke, reprimand, reproof: If she does that again, |
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I'll give her a lesson she won't forget in a hurry! |
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let° |
v. 1 allow (to), permit (to), sanction (to), give permission or |
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leave (to), authorize (to), license (to), suffer (to): Don't |
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let him go alone. Let George do it. 2 cause (to), arrange for, |
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enable (to): Let me know if you have any difficulty. Let me |
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help you. Let the police know of any crime. 3 Sometimes, let |
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out. rent (out), hire (out), lease (out), charter (out); |
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contract (out), subcontract (out), farm (out), job (out): Mrs |
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Finney lets rooms by the week. Much of the work is let out to |
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people who work at home. 4 let down. disappoint, fail, |
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frustrate; disenchant, dissatisfy, disillusion: He promised to |
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be here at nine, but he let me down. 5 let in. admit, allow in; |
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include, take in, receive, welcome, induct, install or instal: |
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I'll just open a window and let in some fresh air. I wouldn't |
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want to be a member of a club that would let in someone like me. |
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6 let off. a pardon, forgive, excuse, release, discharge, let |
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go: They let him off with only a severe reprimand. b |
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exonerate, absolve, clear, acquit, vindicate, Slang let off the |
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hook: When the real culprit confessed, she was let off. c |
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detonate, explode, detonate, discharge, fire, set off: Don't |
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let off those fireworks so near the haystack. d emit, give out |
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or off, release, throw off or out, let loose, exude: Some |
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plastics let off an awful smell when they burn. 7 let on. a |
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confess, admit, disclose, divulge, reveal, expose, let it be |
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known, let out, say, tell, give away, let slip, betray; leak: |
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I'll never let on that you are to blame. b feign, affect, |
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pretend, fake, (put on an) act, simulate, dissemble, |
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dissimulate: He let on that he had a bad leg and couldn't play |
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in the match, when in fact he just wanted to go away for the |
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weekend. 8 let out. a See 7 (a), above. b (let) loose, |
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liberate, (set) free, release, let go, discharge: He served |
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three years before being let out. Let the cat out, will you. c |
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emit, give vent to, produce: She let out a scream that could |
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have woken the dead. d end, stop, break up, finish, close, |
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terminate: When does school let out for the Christmas holidays? |
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9 let up. decrease, abate, ease (up), slacken, diminish, lessen, |
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mitigate, subside, moderate: Perhaps we can still go if the |
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rain lets up soon. 10 let up on. ease up on, slack off on: He |
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didn't let up on haranguing us for an hour. |
letý |
n. hindrance, impediment, obstruction, obstacle: People can |
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now cross the border without let or hindrance. |
let-down n. disappointment, disillusionment, disenchantment: She had practised so hard that losing was all the more of a let-down.
lethal adj. deadly, fatal, mortal: The lethal blow was delivered by a blunt instrument.