Sponge vs Leech - What's the difference?
sponge | leech |
(countable) Any of various marine invertebrates, mostly of the phylum Porifera , that have a porous skeleton often of silica.
(countable) A piece of porous material used for washing (originally made from the invertebrates, now often made of plastic).
* {{quote-book, year=1913, author=
, title=Lord Stranleigh Abroad
, chapter=5 (uncountable) A porous material such as sponges consist of.
(informal) A heavy drinker.
(countable, uncountable) A type of light cake; sponge cake.
(countable, uncountable, British) A type of steamed pudding.
(slang) A person who takes advantage of the generosity of others (abstractly imagined to absorb or soak up the money or efforts of others like a sponge).
(countable) A form of contraception that is inserted vaginally; a .
Any spongelike substance.
# Dough before it is kneaded and formed into loaves, and after it is converted into a light, spongy mass by the agency of the yeast or leaven.
# Iron from the puddling furnace, in a pasty condition.
# Iron ore, in masses, reduced but not melted or worked.
A mop for cleaning the bore of a cannon after a discharge. It consists of a cylinder of wood, covered with sheepskin with the wool on, or cloth with a heavy looped nap, and having a handle, or staff.
The extremity, or point, of a horseshoe, answering to the heel.
(slang) To take advantage of the kindness of others.
* L'Estrange
To get by imposition; to scrounge.
* , chapter=13
, title= To deprive (somebody) of something by imposition.
* South
To clean, soak up, or dab with a sponge.
To suck in, or imbibe, like a sponge.
To wipe out with a sponge, as letters or writing; to efface; to destroy all trace of.
To be converted, as dough, into a light, spongy mass by the agency of yeast or leaven.
An aquatic blood-sucking annelid of class Hirudinea, especially .
* 2003 , William W. Johnstone, The Last Of The Dog Team , page 195
A person who derives profit from others, in a parasitic fashion.
* 2000 , Ray Garmon, The Man Who Just Didn't Care , page 20
* 2006 , D. L. Harman, A State of Nine One One , page 106
(medicine, dated) A glass tube designed for drawing blood from a scarified part by means of a vacuum.
To apply a leech medicinally, so that it sucks blood from the patient.
* 2003 , George R.R. Martin, A Storm of Swords
To drain (resources) without giving back.
* 1992', ''AfricAsia'' ' 2 (1): 12
(archaic) A physician.
* 1663 , (Hudibras) , by Samuel Butler, part 1,
* 1992 , Hilary Mantel, A Place of Greater Safety , Harper Perennial 2007, p. 11:
(paganism, Heathenry) A healer.
* 1900 , Augustus Henry Keane, Man, Past and Present , The University Press (Cambridge)
* 1996', Swain Wodening, “Scandinavian Craft Lesson 6: Runic Divination”, ''Theod Magazine'' ' 3 (4)
* 2003 , Brian Froud and Ari Berk, The Runes of Elfland , Pavillion Books, ISBN 1 86205 647 1, page 22
* 2004 , Runic John, The Book of Seithr , Capall Bann Publishing, ISBN 186163 299 0, page 282
(medicine) A glass tube adapted for drawing blood from a scarified part by means of a vacuum.
(nautical) The vertical edge of a square sail.
* 1984 , Sven Donaldson, A Sailor's Guide to Sails , page 130
(nautical) The aft edge of a triangular sail.
* 2004 , Gary Jobson, Gary Jobson's Championship Sailing , page 176
In lang=en terms the difference between sponge and leech
is that sponge is to be converted, as dough, into a light, spongy mass by the agency of yeast or leaven while leech is to drain (resources) without giving back.As nouns the difference between sponge and leech
is that sponge is (countable) any of various marine invertebrates, mostly of the phylum porifera , that have a porous skeleton often of silica while leech is an aquatic blood-sucking annelid of class hirudinea, especially or leech can be (archaic) a physician or leech can be (nautical) the vertical edge of a square sail.As verbs the difference between sponge and leech
is that sponge is (slang) to take advantage of the kindness of others while leech is to apply a leech medicinally, so that it sucks blood from the patient.sponge
English
("sponge" on Wikipedia)Noun
citation, passage=She removed Stranleigh’s coat with a dexterity that aroused his imagination. The elder woman returned with dressings and a sponge , which she placed on a chair.}}
Synonyms
* (marine invertebrate) sea sponge, bath sponge, poriferan, porifer * (piece of porous material used for washing) bath sponge * (light cake) sponge cake * (type of steamed pudding) sponge pudding * (person) freeloader, spongerDerived terms
* breadcrumb sponge * demosponge * sea sponge * spongey * sponge bath * sponge cakeSee also
* foamVerb
(spong)- The fly is an intruder, and a common smell-feast, that sponges upon other people's trenchers.
The Mirror and the Lamp, passage=“[…] They talk of you as if you were Croesus—and I expect the beggars sponge on you unconscionably.” And Vickers launched forth into a tirade very different from his platform utterances. He spoke with extreme contempt of the dense stupidity exhibited on all occasions by the working classes.}}
- (Jonathan Swift)
- How came such multitudes of our nation to be sponged of their plate and their money?
- (Hooker)
Synonyms
* blagleech
English
(wikipedia leech)Etymology 1
From (etyl) (Dutch laak).Noun
(es)- The leech on his leg had swelled to more than five inches long, puffed and swollen on his blood.
- 'Wrecked his body and his mind, no use to hisself or his family or nobody, just a leech on society'.
- At this point, I felt this man was a leech . I suspected that he had spent a lifetime living off the good will of women that he met.
Synonyms
* (person who lives as a parasite) parasite, sponger, bloodsucker, vampireDerived terms
* leechlikeVerb
(es)- The poppy made him sleep and while he slept they leeched him to drain off the bad blood.
- Bert leeched hundreds of files from the BBS, but never uploaded anything in return.
- Guinea is also blocking Strasser's efforts to stop illegal fishing in Sierra Leone's territorial waters and the smuggling of gold and diamonds, which leech hundreds of millions of dollars from the country's economy.
Usage notes
Do not confuse this verb with the verb leach.Synonyms
* (to drain resources) drainDerived terms
* leecherEtymology 2
From (etyl) .Noun
(es)- Thus virtuous Orsin was endued / With learning, conduct, fortitude / Incomparable; and as the prince / Of poets, Homer, sung long since, / A skilful leech is better far, / Than half a hundred men of war [...]
- He coughed sputum stained with blood, and a scraping, crackling noise came from his chest, quite audible to anyone in the room. ‘Lungs possibly not too good,’ the leech said.
- Their functions are threefold, those of the medicine-man (the leech , or healer by supernatural means); of the soothsayer (the prophet through communion with the invisible world); and of the priest, especially in his capacity as exorcist
- In ancient times runesters were a specialized class separate from that of the witch or ordinary spell caster (much as the other specialists such as the leech or healer and the seithkona were different from a witch), and even today many believe it takes years of training to become adept at using the runes in spell work.
- "Leech? " "Not another doctor".
- There are many kinds of "Leech " or "healer" as there are healing techniques, some are more powerful than others and some are very specific to certain illnesses and complaints; some use potions and unguents, others crystals and stones, others galdr and some work their healing from within the hidden realms themselves.
Synonyms
* (physician) barber, doctor, physician * (healer in Heathenry) healerDerived terms
* leechcraftEtymology 3
(etyl) lek, leche, lyche, from (etyl) ).Noun
(es)- To help combat these problems, almost all sailmakers trim the leeches' of their headsails to a hollow or concave profile and enclose a LEECHLINE within the ' leech tabling.
- Trim the leech of the jib parallel to the main by watching the slot between the mainsail and the jib.