verb | noun | noun | adjective
leadlead1 /lid/ ●●● S2 W1 verb (led /lɛd/) 1GUIDE [intransitive, transitive] to take someone to a place by walking in front of him or her, or by pulling him or her gently to show the way: lead somebody through/to/along etc. something Dale led us down a dirt path to the farmhouse. She took my hand and led me into the kitchen. Firemen led the families to safety. Mr. Adams led the way to the library.THESAURUSguide – to take someone to or through a place you know well, by going with him or her and showing the way: Julia guided us through the narrow streets of her neighborhood.direct formal – to tell someone where to go or how to get somewhere: The police officer directed them to the train station.point (also indicate formal) – to show someone which direction to go, using your hand or a sign: When I asked where the restaurant was, the man pointed down the street.show – to take someone to a place, especially when it is hard for him or her to find the way: Could you show Mrs. Wright to the conference room, please?escort – to take someone to a place, in order to make sure that he or she gets there safely or does not escape: The president was escorted by his bodyguards.usher formal – to politely show someone where to go by going with him or her, especially as part of your job: His secretary ushered us into his office.2GO IN FRONT [intransitive, transitive] to go in front of a group of people or vehicles: The high school band is leading the parade.3BE IN CHARGE OF [transitive] to be in charge of something such as an important activity, a group of people, or an organization, and therefore influence what people do: Who is leading the investigation? She became the first woman to lead the country. The rebels were led by a former army colonel. The best managers lead by example (=show others what to do by doing it yourself).4ROAD/WIRE [intransitive always + adv./prep., transitive always + adv./prep.] if a path, pipe, wire, etc. leads somewhere or leads in a particular direction, it goes there or goes in that direction: lead (somebody) down/into/toward etc. The road led down to a small lake. The wire led to the surveillance cameras.lead somebody to something The path leads visitors to a small chapel.5DOOR lead (somebody) to/into something if a door or path leads to a particular room or place, you can get there by going through it: The officer opened the door that led to the jury room.6WIN [intransitive, transitive] to be winning a game or competition: With two minutes to play, the Pistons are leading.lead (somebody/something) by something At halftime the Cowboys were leading by 19 points. The mayor leads his opponent by 28 points.7CAUSE something TO HAPPEN [intransitive, transitive] to cause something to happen or cause someone to do something: The chapter talks about the events that led to World War I. Her degree in English led to a career in journalism.lead somebody to do something Several factors led us to sell our business.8CAUSE somebody TO BELIEVE something [transitive] to make someone think something is true, especially when it is not: lead somebody to believe/expect/understand He led me to believe that he had never been married before. Our research led us to the conclusion that the system is unfair.9LIFE [transitive] if you lead a particular kind of life, that is what your life is like: You kids lead such an easy life. Marie imagined leading a life of luxury. She had no idea that her husband had been leading a double life (=keeping important parts of his life secret from family, friends, etc.).10BE MORE SUCCESSFUL [intransitive, transitive] to be more successful than other people, companies, or countries in a particular activity or area of business or study: lead (somebody/something) in something Japan leads the world in life expectancy. His new movie led the field with seven Oscar nominations (=was most successful in a particular group).11DISCUSSION/CONVERSATION [intransitive, transitive] to control the way a discussion, conversation, etc. develops: I tried to lead the discussion back to the topic of money.12INFLUENCE somebody [transitive] to influence the way someone behaves so that he or she does something wrong: lead somebody into something His brother led him into a life of crime.13lead nowhere/not lead anywhere to produce no useful result or bring no useful opportunities: The police investigation seems to have led nowhere.14lead somebody astray to encourage someone to make bad choices or do bad things that he or she would not normally do: Kids can be easily led astray by their friends.15lead somebody by the nose informal to make someone do anything you want him or her to16this leads me/us to... spoken formal used in a speech or discussion to introduce a new subject and connect it with what you have just said: This leads me to our sales targets for next year.17you can lead a horse to water (but you can’t make him drink) used to say that you cannot force anyone to do what they do not want to do18lead somebody down the garden path informal to deceive someone19CARDS [intransitive, transitive] to play a particular card as your first card in one part of a game of cards: lead (with) something He led with the eight of hearts.20DANCING [intransitive, transitive] to be the one of two people that are dancing together who decides which direction they will move: Juan led her slowly around the dance floor.[Origin: Old English lædan]lead into something phrasal verb if one thing leads into another, the second one follows naturally from the first because there is a clear relationship between them: The history lesson can lead nicely into a discussion of modern-day issues.lead off phrasal verb lead something ↔ off to start something such as a meeting, event, or performance by saying or doing something: I’d like to lead off by thanking Dr. Jacobs for visiting us.lead off with something He led off with a few jokes.lead somebody ↔ on phrasal verb to deceive someone, especially by making him or her think that you are romantically interested when you really are not: I don’t want to lead her on.lead to something phrasal verb to make something happen or exist as a result of something else: The police are offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the criminal. One thing led to another, and (=a series of events happened with the result that) we got into a big fight.► see thesaurus at cause2lead up to something phrasal verb1to come before something, often causing it to happen: The lecture was about the events leading up to World War II. Both candidates were in the midwest during the last few days leading up to the election.2to gradually introduce a subject into a conversation, especially a subject that may be embarrassing or upsetting: What I’m leading up to is that we need to rewrite the proposal.lead with something phrasal verb1if a newspaper or television program leads with a particular story, that story is the main one2lead with your left/right to hit someone mainly with your left or right hand in boxing verb | noun | noun | adjective
leadlead2 noun 1RACES the lead the position or situation of being in front of or better than everyone else in a race or competition: Lewis is still in the lead. Kent took the lead (=went ahead of others) in the fifth lap.2ACTION [singular] an action that other people copy, often something that is intended to make other people copy you: The French are following Germany’s lead on this issue. It was young people who took the lead in organizing a peace movement (=they were the first to start doing it).3WINNING AMOUNT [singular] the distance, number of points, etc. by which one competitor is ahead of another: lead over Virginia holds a 12-game lead over Kentucky.lead of In March, the Republican candidate had a lead of 35%.4INFORMATION [countable] a piece of information that may help you to make a discovery or help find the answer to a problem: The police have no leads in the murder investigation. Detectives are following up a number of leads (=taking action as a result of information).5ACTING ROLE [countable] eng. lang. arts the main acting part in a play, movie, etc.: Who’s playing the lead in the school play?6ACTOR [countable] eng. lang. arts the main actor in a movie or play: male/female lead They haven’t chosen their male lead.7NEWS [countable] the first or most important story in a television news program, newspaper, etc., or the first part of such a story8be somebody’s lead to have the right, in a game of cards, to play your card first verb | noun | noun | adjective
leadlead3 /lɛd/ noun 1
[uncountable] (symbol Pb) science, chemistry a soft heavy gray metal which is an element that melts easily, is poisonous, and was used in the past in paints and to make things such as pipes: high levels of lead in the soil2[countable, uncountable] the gray part of a pencil that makes the marks3feel like lead if your legs or arms feel like lead, they feel very heavy because you are tired or ill4a lead foot informal if someone has a lead foot, he or she always drives very fast5get the lead out spoken informal used to tell someone to do something faster6go down like a lead balloon informal if a suggestion or joke goes down like a lead balloon, people do not like it at all7[uncountable] old-fashioned bullets verb | noun | noun | adjective
leadlead4 /lid/ adjective [only before noun] 1lead guitarist/singer/attorney etc. the first or most important person in a group2lead role/part the main acting part in a movie or play: Nicole Kidman was cast in the lead role.3lead story/editorial the article that is given the first or most important place in a newspaper4lead runner/car etc. the person, car, etc. that is in front of a group in a race