English edit

Pronunciation edit

  • (UK, US) IPA(key): /liːv/
  • (file)
  • (file)
  • Rhymes: -iːv

Verb edit

leave (third-person singular simple present leaves, present participle leaving, simple past and past participle left)

  1. (heading, transitive) To have a consequence or remnant.
    1. To cause or allow (something) to remain as available; to refrain from taking (something) away; to stop short of consuming or otherwise depleting (something) entirely.
      I left my car at home and took a bus to work.  The ants did not leave so much as a crumb of bread.There's not much food left. We'd better go to the shops.
    2. To cause, to result in.
      The lightning left her dazzled for several minutes.  Infantile paralysis left him lame for the rest of his life.
    3. (transitive) To put; to place; to deposit; to deliver, with a sense of withdrawing oneself.
      Leave your hat in the hall.  We should leave the legal matters to lawyers.I left my sewing and went to the window to watch the falling snow.
      • Bible, Matthew v. 24
        Leave there thy gift before the altar and go thy way.
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        The foot / That leaves the print of blood where'er it walks.
  2. (heading) To depart; to separate from.
    1. To let be or do without interference.
      I left him to his reflections.  I leave my hearers to judge.
    2. (transitive) To depart from; to end one's connection or affiliation with.
      I left the country and I left my wife.
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    3. (transitive) To end one's membership in (a group); to terminate one's affiliation with (an organization); to stop participating in (a project).
      • 23 june 2018, The Independent, Brexit: Theresa May 'not bluffing' in threat to leave EU without a deal, Tory minister Liam Fox says
        If we were to leave, the economic impact on a number of European countries would be severe.
      I left the band.
    4. (intransitive) To depart; to go away from a certain place or state.
      I think you'd better leave.
  3. (heading) To transfer something.
    1. (transitive) To transfer possession of after death.
      When my father died, he left me the house.
    2. (transitive) To give (something) to someone; to deliver (something) to a repository; to deposit.
      I'll leave the car in the station so you can pick it up there.
    3. (transitive) To transfer responsibility or attention of (something) (to someone); to stop being concerned with.
      Can't we just leave this to the experts?
  4. (intransitive, obsolete) To remain (behind); to stay.
    • 1485, Sir Thomas Malory, “xj”, in Le Morte Darthur, book XVIII:
      :
      And whanne sire launcelot sawe them fare soo / he gat a spere in his hand / and there encountred with hym al attones syr bors sir Ector and sire Lyonel / and alle they thre smote hym atte ones with their speres / [] / and by mysfortune sir bors smote syre launcelot thurgh the shelde in to the syde / and the spere brake / and the hede lefte stylle in his syde
    • 1910, Emerson Hough, chapter II, in The Purchase Price: Or The Cause of Compromise, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
      Carried somehow, somewhither, for some reason, on these surging floods, were these travelers, []. Even such a boat as the Mount Vernon offered a total deck space so cramped as to leave secrecy or privacy well out of the question, even had the motley and democratic assemblage of passengers been disposed to accord either.
  5. (transitive, archaic) To stop, desist from; to "leave off" (+ noun / gerund).
    • 1526, William Tyndale, trans. Bible, Luke V:
      When he had leeft speakynge, he sayde vnto Simon: Cary vs into the depe, and lett slippe thy nette to make a draught.
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      Now leave complaining and begin your tea.

Etymology edit

From Middle English leven, from Old English lǣfan (to leave), from Proto-Germanic *laibijaną (to let stay, leave), causative of Proto-Germanic *lībaną (to stay, remain), from Proto-Indo-European *leyp- (to stick, fat). Cognate with Old Frisian lēva (to leave), Old Saxon lēvian, Old High German leiban (to leave), Old Norse leifa (leave over) (whence Icelandic leifa (to leave food uneaten)), lifna (to be left) (whence Danish levne). More at lave, belive.

Synonyms edit

Derived terms edit

Terms derived from leave (verb)

Translations edit

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Noun edit

leave (plural leaves)

  1. (cricket) The action of the batsman not attempting to play at the ball.
  2. (billiards) The arrangement of balls in play that remains after a shot is made (which determines whether the next shooter — who may be either the same player, or an opponent — has good options, or only poor ones).
    • 1890 February 27, "Slosson's Close Shave", in The New York Times:
      Having counted 38 points he tried a beautiful massé out of the corner, hit the first ball just a trifle too hard and kissed his own ball off just when victory seemed to be his. The leave was unfortunate for Ives. Slosson played brilliantly and ran the game out, a close winner, with 22 points.

Etymology edit

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun edit

leave (uncountable)

  1. Permission to be absent; time away from one's work.
    I've been given three weeks' leave by my boss.
  2. (dated or law) Permission.
    Might I beg leave to accompany you?
    The applicant now seeks leave to appeal and, if leave be granted, to appeal against these sentences.
  3. (dated) Farewell, departure.
    I took my leave of the gentleman without a backward glance.

Etymology edit

From Middle English leve, from Old English lēaf (permission, privilege), from Proto-Germanic *laubō, *laubą (permission, privilege, favour, worth), from Proto-Indo-European *lewbʰ- (to love, hold dear). Cognate with obsolete German Laube (permission), Swedish lov (permission), Icelandic leyfi (permission). Related to Dutch verlof, German Erlaubnis. See also love.

Derived terms edit

Translations edit

Verb edit

leave (third-person singular simple present leaves, present participle leaving, simple past and past participle leaved)

  1. (transitive) To give leave to; allow; permit; let; grant.

Etymology edit

From Middle English leven, from Old English līefan (to allow, grant, concede; believe, trust, confide in), from Proto-Germanic *laubijaną (to allow, praise), from Proto-Indo-European *lewbʰ- (to love, hold dear). Cognate with German lauben (to allow, believe), Icelandic leyfa (to allow).

Verb edit

leave (third-person singular simple present leaves, present participle leaving, simple past and past participle left)

  1. (intransitive, rare) To produce leaves or foliage.[1]
    • 1868, Edward Fitzgerald, The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám, 2nd edition:
      Each Morn a thousand Roses brings, you say:
      Yes, but where leaves the Rose of Yesterday?

Etymology edit

From Middle English leven, from lef (leaf). More at leaf.

Synonyms edit

Verb edit

leave (third-person singular simple present leaves, present participle leaving, simple past and past participle leaved)

  1. (obsolete) To raise; to levy.
    • Spenser
      An army strong she leaved.

Etymology edit

See levy.

This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term. So what is the actual etymology?

References edit

  1. ^ Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed.

Anagrams edit