lean on
Britishverb
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Also: lean upon. to depend on for advice, support, etc
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informal to exert pressure on (someone), as by threats or intimidation
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Rely on, depend on, as in He's leaning on me for help . [Mid-1400s]
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Exert pressure on one, especially to obtain something or make one do something against his or her will. For example, The gangsters were leaning on local storekeepers to pay them protection money . [ Colloquial ; mid-1900s]
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.
The book does lean on two major Rainey biographies, by Sandra Lieb and Dick Spottswood, but paired with the strongly enhanced recordings it is a significant contribution to getting the story told.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
In this respect, the site of El Sidrón, in northern Spain, provides a particularly strong basis which we can lean on.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 7, 2026
They lean on each other and they admire each other so much.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 26, 2026
There is concern that there is not enough human oversight as companies lean on cheaper automated tools and consolidate regional expertise into teams covering vast, diverse areas.
From BBC ● Jun. 21, 2026
They’re okay except don’t lean on the candy counter.
From "The House on Mango Street" by Sandra Cisneros
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.
