lead-off
adjective
leading off or beginning.
lead-off
American
[leed-awf, -of]
/ ˈlidˌɔf, -ˌɒf /
adjective
lead off
British
/ liːd /
verb
noun
-
an initial move or action
-
a person or thing that begins something
lead off
Idioms
Etymology
Origin of lead-off
First recorded in 1885–90; adj. use of verb phrase lead off
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“We really look for that lead-off to be very steady,” she said.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 5, 2026
It was the lead-off single to “Parade,” the full soundtrack album to Prince’s 1986 vanity lap “Under the Cherry Moon,” in which he directed and starred, and premiered months after “Kiss” became a hit.
From Salon • Feb. 14, 2026
“A lead-off walk, that never ends well,” Miller said.
From Seattle Times • May 11, 2024
Lowe’s two-run homer to left followed Corey Seager’s lead-off walk.
From Washington Times • Aug. 19, 2023
Every one knew it was borrowed, for he had asked about twenty of his friends during the last week whether that wouldn’t be “a showy lead-off for his cricket feast jaw?”
From The Fifth Form at Saint Dominic's A School Story by Reed, Talbot Baines
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
