leave
1 Americanverb (used with object)
-
to go out of or away from, as a place.
to leave the house.
- Synonyms:
- relinquish, desert, forsake, abandon
- Antonyms:
- join
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to depart from permanently; quit.
to leave a job.
- Synonyms:
- relinquish, desert, forsake, abandon
- Antonyms:
- join
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to let remain or have remaining behind after going, disappearing, ceasing, etc..
I left my wallet home.
The wound left a scar.
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to allow to remain in the same place, condition, etc..
Is there any coffee left?
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to let stay or be as specified.
to leave a door unlocked.
-
to let (a person or animal) remain in a position to do something without interference.
We left him to his work.
-
to let (a thing) remain for action or decision.
We left the details to the lawyer.
-
to give in charge; deposit; entrust.
Leave the package with the receptionist.
I left my name and phone number.
-
to stop; cease; give up.
He left music to study law.
-
to disregard; neglect.
We will leave this for the moment and concentrate on the major problem.
-
to give for use after one's death or departure.
to leave all one's money to charity.
-
to have remaining after death.
He leaves a wife and three children.
-
to have as a remainder after subtraction.
2 from 4 leaves 2.
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Nonstandard. let.
verb (used without object)
verb phrase
idioms
-
leave well enough alone. alone.
-
leave alone,
-
Also let alone to refrain from annoying or interfering with.
Those kids wouldn't leave the dog alone, and he eventually turned on them.
She finally shouted, “Leave me alone!” at the man who had been following her for several blocks.
-
to allow or cause (someone) to be left on their own: They left me all alone, and I couldn’t figure out how to get back home.
Leave him alone—he wants to rest.
They left me all alone, and I couldn’t figure out how to get back home.
-
noun
-
permission to do something.
to beg leave to go elsewhere.
- Synonyms:
- liberty
-
permission to be absent, as from work or military duty.
The firm offers a maternity leave as part of its benefit program.
-
the time this permission lasts.
30 days' leave.
-
a parting; departure; farewell.
He took his leave before the formal ceremonies began.
We took leave of them after dinner.
-
Metallurgy. draft.
-
Bowling. the pin or pins in upright position after the bowl of the first ball.
verb (used without object)
verb
-
(also intr) to go or depart (from a person or place)
-
to cause to remain behind, often by mistake, in a place
he often leaves his keys in his coat
-
to cause to be or remain in a specified state
paying the bill left him penniless
-
to renounce or abandon
to leave a political movement
-
to refrain from consuming or doing something
the things we have left undone
-
to result in; cause
childhood problems often leave emotional scars
-
to allow to be or remain subject to another person or thing
leave the past to look after itself
-
to entrust or commit
leave the shopping to her
-
to submit in place of one's personal appearance
will you leave your name and address?
-
to pass in a specified direction
flying out of the country, we left the cliffs on our left
-
to be survived by (members of one's family)
he leaves a wife and two children
-
to bequeath or devise
he left his investments to his children
-
(tr) to have as a remainder
37 – 14 leaves 23
-
not_standard to permit; let
-
informal to leave undisturbed
-
not_standard to stop holding
-
informal to take a matter no further
-
to be very unsatisfactory
-
-
Also: let alone. See let 1
-
to permit to stay or be alone
-
-
not to control or direct someone
noun
-
permission to do something
he was granted leave to speak
-
with your permission
-
permission to be absent, as from a place of work or duty
leave of absence
-
the duration of such absence
ten days' leave
-
a farewell or departure (esp in the phrase take ( one's ) leave )
-
officially excused from work or duty
-
to say farewell (to)
-
to go mad or become irrational
verb
Usage
Leave is interchangeable with let when followed by alone with the sense “to refrain from annoying or interfering with”: Leave (or Let ) her alone and she will solve the problem easily. When he was left (or let ) alone without interruptions, the boy quickly assembled the apparatus. The use of leave alone for let alone in the sense “not to mention” is nonstandard: There wasn't any standing room, let (not leave ) alone a seat, so I missed the performance. Other substitutions of leave for let are generally regarded as nonstandard: Let (not Leave ) us sit down and talk this over. Let (not Leave ) her do it her own way. The police wouldn't let (not leave ) us cross the barriers. See also let 1.
Other Word Forms
- leaver noun
Etymology
Origin of leave1
First recorded before 900; Middle English leven “to stop, cease, discontinue; abandon; allow; depart, leave,” Old English lǣfan “to leave; remain; have or be left remaining”; cognate with Old High German leiban (compare German bleiben “to remain”), Old Norse leifa “to leave, leave behind, leave (food) as a leftover, bequeath, abandon,” Gothic bilaibjan “to leave, leave behind, forsake”; lave 2
Origin of leave2
First recorded before 900; Middle English leve, leave, leife “permission, permission to go, farewell,” Old English lēaf “permission, license”; akin to believe, furlough, lief
Origin of leave3
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English leven, lefie, derivative of lef “leaf”; leaf
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.
I have read many stories of financial advisers stealing their clients’ money and leaving them with nothing.
From MarketWatch
She married at 18 years old, leaving her bourgeois family home in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, where she attended a private Catholic school.
Residents were also told to remove vehicles and leave their homes if possible.
From Barron's
“I have a client couple who used up the exemption and wanted to leave shares for two daughters,” he says.
From Barron's
Tariffs added further pressure, leaving companies to choose between raising prices and testing consumer patience or absorbing margin hits.
From Barron's
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.
