to go before or with to show the way; conduct or escort: to lead a group on a cross-country hike.
2.
to conduct by holding and guiding: to lead a horse by a rope.
3.
to influence or induce; cause: Subsequent events led him to reconsider his position.
4.
to guide in direction, course, action, opinion, etc.; bring: You can lead her around to your point of view if you are persistent.
5.
to conduct or bring (water, wire, etc.) in a particular course.
6.
(of a road, passage, etc.) to serve to bring (a person) to a place: The first street on the left will lead you to Andrews Place.
7.
to take or bring: The prisoners were led into the warden's office.
8.
to command or direct (an army or other large organization): He led the Allied forces during the war.
9.
to go at the head of or in advance of (a procession, list, body, etc.); proceed first in: The mayor will lead the parade.
10.
to be superior to; have the advantage over: The first baseman leads his teammates in runs batted in.
11.
to have top position or first place in: Iowa leads the nation in corn production.
12.
to have the directing or principal part in: The minister will now lead us in prayer. He led a peace movement.
13.
to act as leader of (an orchestra, band, etc.); conduct.
14.
to go through or pass (time, life, etc.): to lead a full life.
15.
Cards. to begin a round, game, etc., with (a card or suit specified).
16.
to aim and fire a firearm or cannon ahead of (a moving target) in order to allow for the travel of the target while the bullet or shell is reaching it.
17.
Football. to throw a lead pass to (an intended receiver): The quarterback led the left end.
–verb (used without object)
18.
to act as a guide; show the way: You lead and we'll follow.
19.
to afford passage to a place: That path leads directly to the house.
20.
to go first; be in advance: The band will lead and the troops will follow.
21.
to result in; tend toward (usually fol. by to): The incident led to his resignation. One remark often leads to another.
22.
to take the directing or principal part.
23.
to take the offensive: The contender led with a right to the body.
24.
Cards. to make the first play.
25.
to be led or submit to being led, as a horse: A properly trained horse will lead easily.
26.
Baseball. (of a base runner) to leave a base before the delivery of a pitch in order to reach the next base more quickly (often fol. by away).
27.
lead back, to play (a card) from a suit that one's partner led.
–noun
28.
the first or foremost place; position in advance of others: He took the lead in the race.
29.
the extent of such an advance position: He had a lead of four lengths.
30.
a person or thing that leads.
31.
a leash.
32.
a suggestion or piece of information that helps to direct or guide; tip; clue: I got a lead on a new job. The phone list provided some great sales leads.
33.
a guide or indication of a road, course, method, etc., to follow.
34.
precedence; example; leadership: They followed the lead of the capital in their fashions.
35.
Theater.
a.
the principal part in a play.
b.
the person who plays it.
36.
Cards.
a.
the act or right of playing first, as in a round.
b.
the card, suit, etc., so played.
37.
Journalism.
a.
a short summary serving as an introduction to a news story, article, or other copy.
b.
the main and often most important news story.
38.
Electricity. an often flexible and insulated single conductor, as a wire, used in connections between pieces of electric apparatus.
39.
the act of taking the offensive.
40.
Nautical.
a.
the direction of a rope, wire, or chain.
b.
Also called leader.any of various devices for guiding a running rope.
41.
Naval Architecture. the distance between the center of lateral resistance and the center of effort of a sailing ship, usually expressed decimally as a fraction of the water-line length.
42.
an open channel through a field of ice.
43.
Mining.
a.
a lode.
b.
an auriferous deposit in an old riverbed.
44.
the act of aiming a gun ahead of a moving target.
45.
the distance ahead of a moving target that a gun must be aimed in order to score a direct hit.
46.
Baseball. an act or instance of leading.
47.
Manège. (of a horse at a canter or gallop) the foreleg that consistently extends beyond and strikes the ground ahead of the other foreleg: The horse is cantering on the left lead.
–adjective
48.
most important; principal; leading; first: lead editorial; lead elephant.
49.
Football. (of a forward pass) thrown ahead of the intended receiver so as to allow him to catch it while running.
50.
Baseball. (of a base runner) nearest to scoring: They forced the lead runner at third base on an attempted sacrifice.
—Verb phrases
51.
lead off,
a.
to take the initiative; begin.
b.
Baseball. to be the first player in the batting order or the first batter in an inning.
52.
lead on,
a.
to induce to follow an unwise course of action; mislead.
b.
to cause or encourage to believe something that is not true.
53.
lead out,
a.
to make a beginning.
b.
to escort a partner to begin a dance: He led her out and they began a rumba.
—Idioms
54.
lead someone a chase or dance, to cause someone difficulty by forcing to do irksome or unnecessary things.
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