leave

[ leev ]

See synonyms for: leave leaves leaving left on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object),left, leav·ing.

to go out of or away from, as a place: to leave the house.
to depart from permanently; quit: to leave a job.

to let remain or have remaining behind after going, disappearing, ceasing, etc.: I left my wallet home. The wound left a scar.
to allow to remain in the same place, condition, etc.: Is there any coffee left?
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.
Nonstandard. let¹ (defs. 1, 2, 6).

verb (used without object),left, leav·ing.

to go away, depart, or set out: We leave for Europe tomorrow.

Verb Phrases

leave off,
- to desist from; cease; stop; abandon.
- to stop using or wearing: It had stopped raining, so we left off our coats.
- to omit: to leave a name off a list.
leave out, to omit; exclude: She left out an important detail in her account.

Idioms about leave

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: Leave him alone—he wants to rest.They left me all alone, and I couldn’t figure out how to get back home.
leave well enough alone. alone (def. 8).

Origin of leave

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”; see also lave²

usage note For leave

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 let¹.

Other words for leave

1, 2	abandon, forsake, desert; relinquish
9	forbear, renounce
10	ignore, forget
11	bequeath, will; devise, transmit

See synonyms for leave on Thesaurus.com

Opposites for leave

1, 2

join

See antonyms for leave on Thesaurus.com

Other words from leave

leav·er, noun

Words Nearby leave

Other definitions for leave (2 of 3)

leave²

[ leev ]

noun

permission to do something: to beg leave to go elsewhere.
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 (def. 23).
Bowling. the pin or pins in upright position after the bowl of the first ball.

Origin of leave

First recorded before 900; Middle English leve, leave, leife “permission, permission to go, farewell,” Old English lēaf “permission, license”; akin to believe, furlough, lief

Other words for leave

1-3	liberty
2, 3	vacation, furlough

See synonyms for leave on Thesaurus.com

Other definitions for leave (3 of 3)

leave³

[ leev ]

verb (used without object),leaved, leav·ing.

to put forth leaves; leaf.

Origin of leave

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English leven, lefie, derivative of lef “leaf”; see leaf

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use leave in a sentence

The team then leaves on a West Coast trip with four games in six days.
Bradley Beal will miss Friday’s game against the Knicks for rest | Ava Wallace | February 11, 2021 | Washington Post
To serve, divide among bowls and top with plenty of basil leaves.
TikTok’s viral baked feta pasta is worth the hype | Aaron Hutcherson | February 11, 2021 | Washington Post
If that didn’t convince Garnett’s peers, they all understood what might be ahead — for them and for professional basketball — after they left that hotel room.
An NBA experiment lets draft prospects skip college, stay home and get paid to play | Michael Lee | February 11, 2021 | Washington Post
The senior was poised to reestablish himself after a foot injury left him in a boot and forced him to miss six games last season.
For this college football team, covid means the season starts in February — with Senior Day | Glynn A. Hill | February 11, 2021 | Washington Post
Democratic leaders of the committee recently introduced a bill to substitute paid leave for unpaid leave under the Family and Medical leave Act for federal employees needing time off for personal or family medical reasons.
Federal workers could get more paid leave if covid-19 prevents them from working | Eric Yoder | February 10, 2021 | Washington Post

“We all shook hands and my client told me to leave,” he said.
France Kills Charlie Hebdo Murderers | Nico Hines | January 9, 2015 | THE DAILY BEAST
Some seventy-plus countries currently offer some paternity leave or parental leave days reserved for the father.
How Good Dads Can Change the World | Gary Barker, PhD, Michael Kaufman | January 6, 2015 | THE DAILY BEAST
But outside of a few European countries and Quebec, this leave is usually two weeks or less and usually unpaid.
How Good Dads Can Change the World | Gary Barker, PhD, Michael Kaufman | January 6, 2015 | THE DAILY BEAST
Certainly paid paternity leave is part of it (and in the U.S., we need paid maternity and paternity leave).
How Good Dads Can Change the World | Gary Barker, PhD, Michael Kaufman | January 6, 2015 | THE DAILY BEAST
And then when businesses leave the state, they want to know why.
Christie Blames Parents for Bad Economy | Monica Potts | January 3, 2015 | THE DAILY BEAST
They are very urgent questions; our sons and daughters will have to begin to deal with them from the moment they leave college.
The Salvaging Of Civilisation | H. G. (Herbert George) Wells
As Perker said this, he looked towards the door, with an evident desire to render the leave-taking as brief as possible.
The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, v. 2(of 2) | Charles Dickens
Now for the tempering of the Gudgeons, I leave it to the judgment of the Workman; but a word or two of the polishing of it.
Tintinnalogia, or, the Art of Ringing | Richard Duckworth and Fabian Stedman
We can do as we like with Hindu and Mussalman so long as we leave their respective religions untouched.
The Red Year | Louis Tracy
“You must leave this house this moment,” she cried, with a stamp, with gleaming eyes and very pale.
Checkmate | Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

British Dictionary definitions for leave (1 of 3)

leave¹

/ (liːv) /

verbleaves, leaving or left (mainly tr)

(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
leave be informal to leave undisturbed
leave go or leave hold of not standard to stop holding
leave it at that informal to take a matter no further
leave much to be desired to be very unsatisfactory
leave someone alone
- Also: let alone See let 1 (def. 7)
- to permit to stay or be alone
leave someone to himself not to control or direct someone

Origin of leave

Old English lǣfan; related to belīfan to be left as a remainder

See also leave behind, leave off, leave out

Derived forms of leave

leaver, noun

British Dictionary definitions for leave (2 of 3)

leave²

/ (liːv) /

noun

permission to do something: he was granted leave to speak
by your leave or with your leave 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)
on leave officially excused from work or duty
take leave to say farewell (to)
take leave of one's senses to go mad or become irrational

Origin of leave

Old English lēaf; related to alӯfan to permit, Middle High German loube permission

British Dictionary definitions for leave (3 of 3)

leave³

/ (liːv) /

verbleaves, leaving or leaved

(intr) to produce or grow leaves

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 leave

leave

In addition to the idioms beginning with leave

leave a bad taste in one's mouth
leave alone
leave a lot to be desired
leave flat
leave hanging
leave holding the bag
leave in the lurch
leave no stone unturned
leave off
leave one cold
leave open
leave out
leave out in the cold
leave out of account
leave someone alone
leave someone in peace
leave someone in the lurch
leave someone to his or her resources
leave the door open
leave to someone's own devices
leave to someone's tender mercies
leave well enough alone
leave without a leg to stand on
leave word

also see:

absent without leave
(leave) high and dry
(leave) out in the cold
take it or leave it
take leave of
take one's leave

Also see underlet.

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