Noun

(en noun)

(rock climbing) A foothold small enough to support just the toe.

(by extension) Any small advantage which allows one to make significant progress.

*1990 , (Peter Hopkirk), The Great Game , Folio Society 2010, p. 151:

*:Were Herat to fall to the Persians, this would give the Russians a crucial and dangerous toe-hold in western Afghanistan.

*2009 , Alan Travis, The Guardian , 8 Dec 2009:

*:One in three "adult-kids" who have not left the parental nest say they are still living at home because they cannot afford to get a toehold on the property ladder by buying or renting.

Noun

(en-noun)

A force compounded by means of a lever rotating around a pivot; see torque.

A crowbar uses leverage to pry nails out of wood.

By extension, any influence which is compounded or used to gain an advantage.

Try using competitors’ prices for leverage in the negotiation.

(finance) The use of borrowed funds with a contractually determined return to increase the ability of a business to invest and earn an expected higher return, but usually at high risk.

Leverage is great until something goes wrong with your investments and you still have to pay your debts.

*

(business) The ability to earn very high returns when operating at high capacity utilization of a facility.

Their variable-cost-reducing investments have dramatically increased their leverage .

* {{quote-news

, year=2011 , date=April 15 , author=Saj Chowdhury , title=Norwich 2 - 1 Nott'm Forest , work=BBC Sport citation , page= , passage=The former Forest man, who passed a late fitness test, appeared to use Guy Moussi for leverage before nodding in David Fox's free-kick at the far post - his 22nd goal of the season.}}