Leap vs Lean - What's the difference?
leap | lean |
To jump.
* anonymous, Merlin
* 1600 , anonymous, The wisdome of Doctor Dodypoll , act 4
* 1783 , , from the “Illiad” in Lectures on Rhetoric and Belles Lettres , lecture 4, page 65
* 1999 , Ai, Vice: New & Selected Poems , page 78
To pass over by a leap or jump.
To copulate with (a female beast); to cover.
To cause to leap.
The act of leaping or jumping.
* L'Estrange
* H. Sweet
The distance traversed by a leap or jump.
(figuratively) A significant move forward.
* 1969 July 20, , as he became the first man to step on the moon
(mining) A fault.
Copulation with, or coverture of, a female beast.
(music) A passing from one note to another by an interval, especially by a long one, or by one including several other intermediate intervals.
(obsolete) A basket.
A weel or wicker trap for fish.
(Webster 1913)
To incline, deviate, or bend, from a vertical position; to be in a position thus inclining or deviating.
To incline in opinion or desire; to conform in conduct; with to'', ''toward , etc.
* (Edmund Spenser) (c.1552–1599)
To rest or rely, for support, comfort, etc.; with on'', ''upon'', or ''against .
* (1809-1892)
* , chapter=23
, title= To hang outwards.
To press against.
* (John Dryden) (1631-1700)
(of a person or animal) slim; not fleshy.
(of meat) having little fat.
Having little extra or little to spare; scanty; meagre.
Of a fuel-air mixture, having more air than is necessary to burn all of the fuel; more air- or oxygen- rich than necessary for a stoichiometric reaction.
(printing, archaic) Of a character which prevents the compositor from earning the usual wages; opposed to fat.
To thin out (a fuel-air mixture): to reduce the fuel flow into the mixture so that there is more air or oxygen.
* {{quote-magazine
, year=1938
, month=July
, author=Blaine and Dupont Miller
, title=Weather Hop
, page=25
, magazine=Boy's Life
, publisher=Boy Scouts of America
, issn=0006-8608
* {{quote-magazine
, year=2002
, month=July
, author=Tom Benenson
, title=Can Your Engine Run Too Lean?
, volume=129
, issue=7
, page=73
, magazine=Flying
, issn=0015-4806
As verbs the difference between leap and lean
is that leap is to jump while lean is to incline, deviate, or bend, from a vertical position; to be in a position thus inclining or deviating.As a noun leap
is the act of leaping or jumping.As an adjective lean is
slim; not fleshy.leap
English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) lepen, from (etyl) ‘to stumble’).Verb
- It is grete nede a man to go bak to recouer the better his leep
- I, I defie thee: wert not thou next him when he leapt into the Riuer?
- Th’ infernal monarch rear’d his horrid head, Leapt from his throne, lest Neptune’s arm should lay His dark dominions open to the day.
- It is better to leap into the void.
- to leap a wall or a ditch
- to leap a horse across a ditch
Usage notes
The choice between leapt and leaped is mostly a matter of regional differences: leapt is preferred in British English and leaped in American English. According to research by John Algeo (British or American English? , Cambridge, 2006), leapt is used 80% of the time in UK and 32% in the US.Synonyms
* (jump from one location to another) bound, hop, jump, spring * (jump upwards) bound, hop, jump, springNoun
(en noun)- Wickedness comes on by degrees, and sudden leaps from one extreme to another are unnatural.
- Changes of tone may proceed either by leaps or glides.
- That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.
- (Wyclif)
Derived terms
* by leaps and bounds * leap day * leapfrog * leaping lizards * leap of faith * leaps and bounds * leap second * leap year * look before you leap * quantum leapEtymology 2
From (etyl) leep, from (etyl) .Alternative forms
* leepAnagrams
* English irregular verbslean
English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) ; via Proto-Indo-European with climate, cline.Verb
- They delight rather to lean to their old customs.
- He leaned not on his fathers but himself.
The Mirror and the Lamp, passage=The slightest effort made the patient cough. He would stand leaning on a stick and holding a hand to his side, and when the paroxysm had passed it left him shaking.}}
- His fainting limbs against an oak he leant .
Derived terms
* lean back * leaning * lean on * lean-toEtymology 2
From (etyl) .Adjective
(er)- a lean''' budget; a '''lean harvest
- lean copy, matter, or type
Synonyms
* See alsoVerb
(en verb)citation, passage=He leaned the mixture in an effort to cause a backfire through the carburetor, the generally accepted method of breaking the ice loose. }}
citation, passage=Even the Pilot's Operating Handbooks (POH) for our training airplanes add to our paranoia with their insistence that we not lean the mixture until we're above 5000 feet density altitude. }}