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.
It is not uncommon for Berta to lean on intermediaries to conduct negotiations, although the approach has had varying degrees of success.
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026
I can think of several ways to end this column, but at the risk of repeating myself, I don’t think I can do better than to lean on this reminder:
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2026
Management expressed confidence that could it lean on planned investments to cut prices over this year to gain market share.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026
We could lean on Congress and say: “Once upon a time in 1966, Congress established the statutory protection for handling gifts.”
From Slate ● Aug. 17, 2026
And she could not lean on her country for help.
From "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates
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.
