Bossy vs Leading - What's the difference?
bossy | leading |
Tending to give orders to others, especially when unwarranted; domineering.
(US, informal, dated) A cow or calf.
* about 1900 , O. Henry,
*
, title=(The Celebrity), chapter=2
, passage=I had occasion […] to make a somewhat long business trip to Chicago, and on my return […] I found Farrar awaiting me in the railway station. He smiled his wonted fraction by way of greeting, […], and finally leading me to his buggy, turned and drove out of town.}}
Providing guidance or direction.
Ranking first.
Occurring in advance; preceding.
An act by which one is led or guided
* {{quote-book, year=1792, author=William Carey, title=An Enquiry into the Obligations of Christians to Use Means for the, chapter=, edition=
, passage=It has been said that we ought not to force our way, but to wait for the openings, and leadings of Providence; but it might with equal propriety be answered in this case, neither ought we to neglect embracing those openings in providence which daily present themselves to us. }}
* {{quote-book, year=1855, author=Walt Whitman, title=Leaves of Grass, chapter=, edition=
, passage=
* {{quote-book, year=1904, author=Edward Dowden, title=Robert Browning, chapter=, edition=
, passage=In his poetic method each writer followed the leadings of his own genius, without reference to common rules and standards; the individualism of the Revolutionary epoch asserted itself to the full. }}
As adjectives the difference between bossy and leading
is that bossy is tending to give orders to others, especially when unwarranted; domineering or bossy can be ornamented with bosses; studded while leading is providing guidance or direction.As nouns the difference between bossy and leading
is that bossy is (us|informal|dated) a cow or calf while leading is an act by which one is led or guided or leading can be (typography) vertical space added between lines; line spacing.As a verb leading is
.bossy
English
Etymology 1
Adjective
(er)Synonyms
* dictatorial, authoritarian, commanding, tyrannical, demanding, inflexible * see alsoEtymology 2
Diminutive of dialectal English boss, as used in the term ).Noun
(bossies)- A week before, while riding the prairies, Raidler had come upon a sick and weakling calf deserted and bawling. Without dismounting he had reached and slung the distressed bossy across his saddle, and dropped it at the ranch for the boys to attend to.
Etymology 3
leading
English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) .Verb
(head)Adjective
(en adjective)- Avoiding leading questions if you really want the truth.
- He is a leading supplier of plumbing supplies in the county.
- The stock market can be a leading economic indicator.
Coordinate terms
* (occurring in advance) concurrent, laggingDerived terms
* leading indicatorNoun
(en noun)citation
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