leap

[ leep ]
See synonyms for: leapleapedleapingleapt on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object),leaped or leapt [lept, leept], /lɛpt, lipt/, leap·ing.
  1. to spring through the air from one point or position to another; jump: to leap over a ditch.

  2. to move or act quickly or suddenly: to leap aside; She leaped at the opportunity.

  1. to pass, come, rise, etc., as if with a jump: to leap to a conclusion; an idea that immediately leaped to mind.

verb (used with object),leaped or leapt [lept, leept], /lɛpt, lipt/, leap·ing.
  1. to jump over: to leap a fence.

  2. to pass over as if by a jump.

  1. to cause to leap: to leap a horse.

noun
  1. a spring, jump, or bound; a light, springing movement.

  2. the distance covered in a leap; distance jumped.

  1. a place leaped or to be leaped over or from.

  2. a sudden or abrupt transition: a successful leap from piano class to concert hall.

  3. a sudden and decisive increase: a leap in the company's profits.

Idioms about leap

  1. by leaps and bounds, very rapidly: We are progressing by leaps and bounds.

  2. leap in the dark, an action of which the consequences are unknown: The experiment was a leap in the dark.

  1. leap of faith, an act or instance of accepting or trusting in something that cannot readily be seen or proved.

Origin of leap

1
First recorded before 900; Middle English lepen, Old English hlēapan “to leap, run”; cognate with German laufen, Old Norse hlaupa, Gothic hlaupan

synonym study For leap

1. See jump.

Other words for leap

Other words from leap

  • leaper, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use leap in a sentence

  • Most of the men leaped up, caught hold of spears or knives, and rushed out.

    The Giant of the North | R.M. Ballantyne
  • He leaped out to see what had happened, and, after a few perplexed and exhausting moments, remembered.

  • Thinking to escape and summon assistance from the cantonment, Douglas mounted the wall and leaped into the moat.

    The Red Year | Louis Tracy
  • Willoughby leaped from the walls, crossed the river, and met his death while striving to reach Meerut.

    The Red Year | Louis Tracy
  • Isabel lifted her head still higher, annoyed at the angry blood that leaped to her face.

    Ancestors | Gertrude Atherton

British Dictionary definitions for leap

leap

/ (liːp) /


verbleaps, leaping, leapt or leaped
  1. (intr) to jump suddenly from one place to another

  2. (intr often foll by at) to move or react quickly

  1. (tr) to jump over

  2. to come into prominence rapidly: the thought leapt into his mind

  3. (tr) to cause (an animal, esp a horse) to jump a barrier

noun
  1. the act of jumping

  2. a spot from which a leap was or may be made

  1. the distance of a leap

  2. an abrupt change or increase

  3. Also called (US and Canadian): skip music a relatively large melodic interval, esp in a solo part

  4. a leap in the dark an action performed without knowledge of the consequences

  5. by leaps and bounds with unexpectedly rapid progress

Origin of leap

1
Old English hlēapan; related to Gothic hlaupan, German laufen

Derived forms of leap

  • leaper, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with leap

leap

In addition to the idioms beginning with leap

  • leap in the dark
  • leap of faith

also see:

  • by leaps and bounds
  • look before you leap
  • quantum leap

Also see underjump.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.