lean
verb (used without object)
to incline or bend from a vertical position.
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lean
1 American
[leen]
/ lin /
verb (used without object)
-
leans,
present (3rd person singular)
-
leaned,
past participle, past
-
leant,
past participle, past (especially British)
-
leaning
present participle
-
to incline or bend from a vertical position.
She leaned out the window.
-
to incline, as in a particular direction; slant.
The post leans to the left.
The building leaned sharply before renovation.
-
to incline in feeling, opinion, action, etc..
to lean toward socialism.
-
to rest against or on something for support.
to lean against a wall.
-
to depend or rely (usually followed by on orupon ).
someone he could lean on in an emergency.
verb (used with object)
-
leans,
present (3rd person singular)
-
leaned,
past participle, past
-
leant,
past participle, past (especially British)
-
leaning
present participle
-
to incline or bend.
He leaned his head forward.
-
to cause to lean or rest; prop.
to lean a chair against the railing.
noun
verb phrase
-
lean on
-
to exert influence or pressure on in order to gain cooperation, maintain discipline, or the like.
The state is leaning on the company to clean up its industrial wastes.
-
to criticize, reprimand, or punish.
I would have enjoyed school more if the teachers hadn't leaned on me so much.
-
-
lean in
-
to shift one's body weight forward or toward someone or something.
Because Don was whispering, I had to lean in so I could hear him.
He stood near home plate and leaned in for the pitch.
-
to embrace risk, be assertive, etc., as to achieve the greatest level of success in the workplace.
She really knows how to lean in—she'll have a corner office before long.
-
idioms
lean
2
American
[leen]
/ lin /
adjective
-
leaner,
comparative
-
leanest
superlative
-
(of persons or animals) without much flesh or fat; not plump or fat; thin.
lean cattle.
- Antonyms:
- fat
-
(of edible meat) containing little or no fat.
- Antonyms:
- fat
-
lacking in richness, fullness, quantity, etc.; poor.
a lean diet; lean years.
- Synonyms:
- jejune, unfruitful, barren, sparse
- Antonyms:
- fruitful
-
spare; economical.
a lean prose style.
-
Automotive. (of a mixture in a fuel system) having a relatively low ratio of fuel to air (contrasted with rich).
-
(of paint) having more pigment than oil.
-
Nautical. (of a bow) having fine lines; sharp.
-
Metallurgy. (of ore) having a low mineral content; low-grade.
noun
-
the part of flesh that consists of muscle rather than fat.
-
the lean part of anything.
-
Typesetting. matter that is difficult to set because of complexity or intermixed fonts.
Lean
3
American
[leen]
/ lin /
noun
lean
1
British
/ liːn /
adjective
-
(esp of a person or an animal) having no surplus flesh or bulk; not fat or plump
-
not bulky or full
-
(of meat) having little or no fat
-
not rich, abundant, or satisfying
-
(of a mixture of fuel and air) containing insufficient fuel and too much air
a lean mixture
-
(of printer's type) having a thin appearance
-
(of a paint) containing relatively little oil
-
(of an ore) not having a high mineral content
-
(of concrete) made with a small amount of cement
noun
lean
2
British
/ liːn /
verb
-
to rest or cause to rest against a support
-
to incline or cause to incline from a vertical position
-
(intr; foll by to or towards) to have or express a tendency or leaning
-
informal to make a special effort, esp in order to please
noun
Lean
3
British
/ liːn /
noun
Usage
What else does lean mean? Content warning: this article contains references to drug abuse. In slang, lean is a term for prescription-strength cough syrup mixed with soft drinks and candy. It’s also known by such other names as purple drank or sizzurp.
Synonym Usage
See thin.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
leansimple
-
leanssimple
-
have leanedperfect
-
have leantperfect
-
has leanedperfect
-
has leantperfect
-
am leaningprogressive
-
are leaningprogressive
-
is leaningprogressive
-
have been leaningperfect progressive
-
has been leaningperfect progressive
Past
-
leanedsimple
-
leantsimple
-
had leanedperfect
-
had leantperfect
-
was leaningprogressive
-
were leaningprogressive
-
had been leaningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of lean1
First recorded before 900; Middle English lenen, Old English hleonian, hlinian; cognate with German lehnen; akin to Greek klī́nein, Latin -clīnāre “to incline ”
Origin of lean2
First recorded before 1000; Middle English lene, lein(e), Old English hlǣne
Explanation
If you lean on something, you incline your body against it, like the way you lean against a wall while waiting in line. If you lean on a person, you rely on her for moral support, like the way you lean on your best friend when you're feeling sad or worried. If you’re tired, lean back in your chair. If you’re broke, lean on your family for financial help. But something can lean all by itself, if it’s not standing straight. The famous Tower of Pisa leans at an angle of about 4 degrees. As an adjective, we use lean to describe something skimpy or lacking excess flesh. When you're experiencing financial difficulty, you could say you're going through lean (not prosperous) times.
Vocabulary lists containing lean
"Joyas Voladoras" by Brian Doyle
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Unit 2: Pivotal Words and Phrases
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Paltry Parlance: Synonyms for "Few"
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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.
See Examples For:
If you want actively managed exposure, you might lean toward funds that hold a relatively small number of stocks for concentrated exposure to names favored by fund managers.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026
“That has always made me want to lean into her performance, both on screen as a fellow actor and watching her from afar,” Waddingham says.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
Rovner: Soap operas were a natural place for people to lean in at first because they have natural cliffhangers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
“Article 215 gives him an opportunity to assert executive authority, deal directly with governors and mayors, bypass political gridlock and lean on Washington,” said Lansberg-Rodríguez.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
I lean against the storage shelves, which poke uncomfortably into my back.
From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy
Much of his scorn, for example, is directed at the millennial Lean In crowd that wanted women to be more like successful men—ambitious and loud.
From Slate ● Jun. 18, 2026
Or Sheryl Sandberg, whose Lean In Foundation now hawks AI to women; in March, Sandberg joined the board of directors of Nscale, a British data-center startup.
From Salon ● Jun. 10, 2026
Lean mass or muscle made up 14.6% of total weight loss in the apitegromab group, compared with 30.2% in the placebo group that received a dummy treatment alongside Mounjaro.
From BBC ● Jun. 8, 2026
Lean away from the generalist “all‐Chinese consumer” narrative—many firms still rely on young households who are delaying big purchases.
From Barron's ● Nov. 28, 2025
Lean back as much as this rigid chair will let me.
From "The Sea in Winter" by Christine Day
Northern sled dogs became compact and heavily coated for cold conditions, while hunting dogs near the equator tended to be leaner and better suited to heat.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 10, 2026
Boeing is getting leaner — and in the process, Archer Aviation’s stock is getting a big boost.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026
Rather than explain how a leaner fish or one packed in oil might change the cake, the recipe simply expands to encompass nearly anything.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
Unlike the Hollywood Bowl, which has fleets of shuttles ready to go, F&M Bank Amphitheater’s shuttle operation felt a bit leaner.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
The portions at breakfast keep getting smaller and smaller, and even dinner—the only normal-size meal we get—is getting leaner by the day.
From "Dread Nation" by Justina Ireland
The leanest sources of protein are pulses — aka beans and lentils — while nuts contain protein plus fiber and healthy fats.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 22, 2024
The CEO concentrated the business, exiting less productive properties and dumping an in-house service arm, and set out a mission to make Pioneer the leanest, profitable and most desirable catch among U.S. shale independents.
From Reuters ● Oct. 16, 2023
It's not a lie - I was never the leanest cricketer in the world, but I won games for franchises.
From BBC ● Jun. 5, 2023
With agroecology, on the other hand, income streams can be augmented by means of crops that mature in the leanest times.
From Scientific American ● Sep. 22, 2021
Study after study shows that the leanest curriculums are being offered in the highest-poverty areas, despite ample evidence that this is exactly the wrong thing to do.
From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove
Blanche leans on Williams’ concession that she cannot void the private contract.
From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026
Vimalakirti leans over the edge of his canopied bed with an impatient stare, as he argues that it is possible to enjoy earthly life while still abiding by Buddhist nonattachment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
Long-running pop-up event Fork N’ Film leans more dinner and movie, pairing dishes directly inspired by what is happening on screen.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
Bardella leans more to the economic liberalism of the traditional right – as shown by his recent contacts with top business executives.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
I’m passing menus around the table when Nate leans into my ear.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
Mangione leaned into the microphone before him and stated: "Guilty."
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026
At firms that leaned into AI, senior-level roles jumped 31%, while junior-level roles increased by 6%, Revelio Labs found.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026
He has leaned into a more conservative cultural message.
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
Instead, the show’s costume department leaned into a “late ’70s, transitional, mauve-y, gray-bluish” color palette, according to costume designer and co-executive producer Lou Eyrich, a longtime collaborator with Murphy.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
She leaned against her cane with one hand, but the other hand, stained with peat, was up against the cottage doorway, trembling the slightest bit.
From "Nory Ryan’s Song" by Patricia Reilly Giff
Throughout the campaign, she leant on the controversial legacy of her father, promising a military crackdown on organised crime, in particular extortion incidents that have soared in recent years.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
Researchers said the work also leant further credence to a theory about humpback whale patterns known as the "Southern Ocean Exchange".
From Barron's ● May 20, 2026
He sought out some professional help but leant largely on friends, family and his faith to change his mentality.
From BBC ● Jan. 31, 2026
The family also claims the new authorities have leant on the courts to find them guilty.
From Barron's ● Nov. 12, 2025
The huge women then leant down over the counter and said, “How de do?” in voices as large as themselves, and shook hands with Jane and Michael.
From "Mary Poppins" by P. L. Travers
I was leaning toward a Hyatt Place near Heathrow to earn points and loyalty perks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
It may be summertime, but Karol G is unapologetically leaning into her sadness.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026
Levy boarded and positioned himself directly in front of the woman, before leaning his elbow on her.
From BBC ● Aug. 7, 2026
The change "will allow me to focus on long-term strategy, and accelerating scientific breakthroughs, including leaning into my work at Isomorphic to help cure disease," Hassabis wrote in a social media post.
From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026
He was leaning forward so he could be a little closer if he needed to get ahold of me.
From "Ida B" by Katherine Hannigan
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.
