The Gutenberg Webster's Unabridged Dictionary
Chapter 889
Lean , v. t. [From Lean , v. i. ; AS. hl<?/nan , v. t. , fr. hleonian , hlinian , v. i. ] To cause to lean; to incline; to support or rest.
Mrs. Browning.
His fainting limbs against an oak he leant . Dryden.
Lean <Xpage=838>
Lean (?) , a. [ Compar. Leaner (?) ; superl. Leanest .] [OE. lene , AS. hl<?/ne ; prob. akin to E. lean to incline. See Lean , v. i. ] 1. Wanting flesh; destitute of or deficient in fat; not plump; meager; thin; lank; as, a lean body; a lean cattle.
2. Wanting fullness, richness, sufficiency, or productiveness; deficient in quality or contents; slender; scant; barren; bare; mean; -- used literally and figuratively; as, the lean harvest; a lean purse; a lean discourse; lean wages. "No lean wardrobe."
Shak.
Their lean and fiashy songs. Milton.
What the land is, whether it be fat or lean . Num. xiii. 20.
Out of my lean and low ability I'll lend you something. Shak.
3. (Typog.) Of a character which prevents the compositor from earning the usual wages; -- opposed to fat ; as lean copy, matter, or type.
Syn. -- slender; spare; thin; meager; lank; skinny; gaunt.
Lean <Xpage=838>
Lean (?) , n. 1. That part of flesh which consist principally of muscle without the fat.
The fat was so white and the lean was so ruddy. Goldsmith.
2. (Typog.) Unremunerative copy or work.
Lean-faced <Xpage=838>
Lean"-faced` (?) , a. 1. Having a thin face.
2. (Typog.) slender or narrow; -- said of type the letters of which have thin lines, or are unusually narrow in proportion to their height.
W. Savage.
Leaning <Xpage=838>
Lean"ing , n. The act, or state, of inclining; inclination; tendency; as, a leaning towards Calvinism .
Leanly <Xpage=838>
Lean"ly , adv. Meagerly; without fat or plumpness.
Leanness <Xpage=838>
Lean"ness , n. [AS. hl&aemac;nnes .] The condition or quality of being lean.
Lean-to <Xpage=838>
Lean"-to` (?) , a. (Arch.) Having only one slope or pitch; -- said of a roof. -- n. A shed or slight building placed against the wall of a larger structure and having a single-pitched roof; -- called also penthouse , and to-fall . <-- a crude, usually temporary shelter comprising a lean-to roof braced against any convenient support, as a wall, a tree or a pole. The roof may extend all the way to the ground. -->
The outer circuit was covered as a lean-to , all round this inner apartment. De Foe.
Lean-witted <Xpage=838>
Lean"-wit`ted (?) , a. Having but little sense or shrewdness.
Leany <Xpage=838>
Lean"y (?) , a. Lean. [Obs.]
Spenser.
Leap <Xpage=838>
Leap (?) , n. [AS. le\'a0p .] 1. A basket. [Obs.]
Wyclif.
2. A weel or wicker trap for fish. [Prov. Eng.]
Leap <Xpage=838>
Leap (?) , v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Leaped (?) , rarely Leapt ; p. pr. & vb. n. Leaping .] [OE. lepen , leapen , AS. hle\'a0pan to leap, jump, run; akin to OS. \'behl<?/pan , OFries. hlapa , D. loopen , G. laufen , OHG. louffan , hlauffan , Icel. hlaupa , Sw. l\'94pa , Dan. l\'94be , Goth. ushlaupan . Cf. Elope , Lope , Lapwing , Loaf to loiter.] 1. To spring clear of the ground, with the feet; to jump; to vault; as, a man leaps over a fence, or leaps upon a horse .
Bacon.
Leap in with me into this angry flood. Shak.
2. To spring or move suddenly, as by a jump or by jumps; to bound; to move swiftly. Also Fig.
My heart leaps up when I behold A rainbow in the sky. Wordsworth.
Leap <Xpage=838>
Leap , v. t. 1. To pass over by a leap or jump; as, to leap a wall, or a ditch .
2. To copulate with (a female beast); to cover.
3. To cause to leap; as, to leap a horse across a ditch .
Leap <Xpage=838>
Leap , n. 1. The act of leaping, or the space passed by leaping; a jump; a spring; a bound.
Wickedness comes on by degrees, . . . and sudden leaps from one extreme to another are unnatural. L'Estrange.
Changes of tone may proceed either by leaps or glides. H. Sweet.
2. Copulation with, or coverture of, a female beast.
3. (Mining) A fault.
4. (Mus.) A passing from one note to another by an interval, especially by a long one, or by one including several other and intermediate intervals.
Leaper <Xpage=838>
Leap"er (?) , n. [AS. hle\'a0pere .] One who, or that which, leaps.
Leaper <Xpage=838>
Leap"er , n. [See 1st Leap .] A kind of hooked instrument for untwisting old cordage.
Leapfrog <Xpage=838>
Leap"frog` (?) , n. A play among boys, in which one stoops down and another leaps over him by placing his hands on the shoulders of the former.
Leapful <Xpage=838>
Leap"ful (?) , n. [See 1st Leap .] A basketful. [Obs.]
Leaping <Xpage=838>
Leap"ing , a. & n. from Leap , to jump.
Leaping house , a brothel. [Obs.] Shak . -- Leaping pole , a pole used in some games of leaping. -- Leaping spider (Zo\'94l.) , a jumping spider; one of the Saltigrad\'91.
Leapingly <Xpage=838>
Leap"ing*ly , adv. By leaps.
Leap year <Xpage=838>
Leap" year` (?) . Bissextile; a year containing 366 days; every fourth year which leaps over a day more than a common year, giving to February twenty-nine days. See Bissextile .
&hand; Every year whose number is divisible by four without a remainder is a leap year, excepting the full centuries, which, to be leap years, must be divisible by 400 without a remainder. If not so divisible they are common years. 1900, therefore, is not a leap year.
Lear <Xpage=838>
Lear (?) , v. t. To learn. See Lere , to learn. [Obs.]
Lear <Xpage=838>
Lear , n. Lore; lesson. [Obs.]
Spenser.
Lear <Xpage=838>
Lear , a. See Leer , a. [Prov. Eng.]
Halliwell.
Lear <Xpage=838>
Lear , n. An annealing oven. See Leer , n.
Learn <Xpage=838>
Learn (?) , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Learned (?) , or Learnt (<?/); p. pr. & vb. n. Learning .] [OE. lernen , leornen , AS. leornian ; akin to OS. lin\'d3n , for lirn\'d3n , OHG. lirn\'c7n , lern\'c7n , G. lernen , fr. the root of AS. l<?/ran to teach, OS. l\'c7rian , OHG. l\'c7ran , G. lehren , Goth. laisjan , also Goth lais I know, leis acquainted (in comp.); all prob. from a root meaning, to go, go over, and hence, to learn; cf. AS. leoran to go . Cf. Last a mold of the foot, lore .] 1. To gain knowledge or information of; to ascertain by inquiry, study, or investigation; to receive instruction concerning; to fix in the mind; to acquire understanding of, or skill; as, to learn the way; to learn a lesson; to learn dancing; to learn to skate; to learn the violin; to learn the truth about something. " Learn to do well."
Is. i. 17.
Now learn a parable of the fig tree. Matt. xxiv. 32.
2. To communicate knowledge to; to teach. [Obs.]
Hast thou not learned me how To make perfumes ? Shak.
&hand; Learn formerly had also the sense of teach , in accordance with the analogy of the French and other languages, and hence we find it with this sense in Shakespeare, Spenser, and other old writers. This usage has now passed away. To learn is to receive instruction, and to teach is to give instruction. He who is taught learns, not he who teaches .
Learn <Xpage=838>
Learn , v. i. To acquire knowledge or skill; to make progress in acquiring knowledge or skill; to receive information or instruction; as, this child learns quickly .
Take my yoke upon you and learn of me. Matt. xi. 29.
To learn by heart . See By heart , under Heart . -- To learn by rote , to memorize by repetition without exercise of the understanding.
<page="839"> Page 839
Learnable <Xpage=839>
Learn"a*ble (?) , a. Such as can be learned.
Learned <Xpage=839>
Learn"ed (?) , a. Of or pertaining to learning; possessing, or characterized by, learning, esp. scholastic learning; erudite; well-informed; as, a learned scholar, writer, or lawyer; a learned book; a learned theory.
The learned lover lost no time. Spenser.
Men of much reading are greatly learned , but may be little knowing. Locke.
Words of learned length and thundering sound. Goldsmith.
The learned , learned men; men of erudition; scholars.
-- Learn"ed*ly , adv. Learn"ed*ness , n.
Every coxcomb swears as learnedly as they. Swift.
Learner <Xpage=839>
Learn"er (?) , n. One who learns; a scholar.
Learning <Xpage=839>
Learn"ing , n. [AS. leornung .] 1. The acquisition of knowledge or skill; as, the learning of languages; the learning of telegraphy.
2. The knowledge or skill received by instruction or study; acquired knowledge or ideas in any branch of science or literature; erudition; literature; science; as, he is a man of great learning .
Book learning . See under Book .
Syn. -- Literature; erudition; lore; scholarship; science; letters. See Literature .
Leasable <Xpage=839>
Leas"a*ble (?) , a. [From 2d Lease .] Such as can be leased.
Lease <Xpage=839>
Lease (?) , v. i. [AS. lesan to gather; akin to D. lezen to gather, read, G. lesen , Goth. lisan to gather; cf. Lith lesti to peck.] To gather what harvesters have left behind; to glean. [Obs.]
Dryden.
Lease <Xpage=839>
Lease (?) , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Leased (?) ; p. pr. & vb. n. Leasing .] [F. laisser , OF. laissier , lessier , to leave, transmit, L. laxare to loose, slacken, from laxus loose, wide. See Lax , and cf. Lesser .] 1. To grant to another by lease the possession of, as of lands, tenements, and hereditaments; to let; to demise; as, a landowner leases a farm to a tenant ; -- sometimes with out .
There were some [houses] that were leased out for three lives. Addison.
2. To hold under a lease; to take lease of; as, a tenant leases his land from the owner .
Lease <Xpage=839>
Lease (?) , n. [Cf. OF. lais . See Lease , v. t. ] 1. A demise or letting of lands, tenements, or hereditaments to another for life, for a term of years, or at will, or for any less interest than that which the lessor has in the property, usually for a specified rent or compensation.
2. The contract for such letting .
3. Any tenure by grant or permission; the time for which such a tenure holds good; allotted time.
Our high-placed Macbeth Shall live the lease of nature. Shak.
Lease and release a mode of conveyance of freehold estates, formerly common in England and in New York. its place is now supplied by a simple deed of grant.
Burrill. Warren's Blackstone.
Leasehold <Xpage=839>
Lease"hold` (?) , a. Held by lease.
Leasehold <Xpage=839>
Lease"hold` , n. A tenure by lease; specifically, land held as personalty under a lease for years.
Leaseholder <Xpage=839>
Lease"hold`er (?) , n. A tenant under a lease. -- Lease"hold`ing , a. & n.
Leaser <Xpage=839>
Leas"er (?) , n. [From 1st Lease .] One who leases or gleans. [Obs.]
Swift.
Leaser <Xpage=839>
Leas"er , n. A liar. [Obs.] See Leasing .
Leash <Xpage=839>
Leash (?) , n. [OE. lese , lees , leece , OF. lesse , F. laisse , LL. laxa , fr. L. laxus loose. See Lax .] 1. A thong of leather, or a long cord, by which a falconer holds his hawk, or a courser his dog.
Even like a fawning greyhound in the leash . Shak.
2. (Sporting) A brace and a half; a tierce; three; three creatures of any kind, especially greyhounds, foxes, bucks, and hares; hence, the number three in general.
[I] kept my chamber a leash of days. B. Jonson.
Then were I wealthier than a leash of kings. Tennyson.
3. (Weaving) A string with a loop at the end for lifting warp threads, in a loom.
Leash <Xpage=839>
Leash , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Leashed (?) ; p. pr. & vb. n. Leashing .] To tie together, or hold, with a leash.
Leasing <Xpage=839>
Leas"ing (?) , n. [AS. le\'a0sung , fr. le\'a0s loose, false, deceitful. See -less , Loose , a. ] The act of lying; falsehood; a lie or lies. [Archaic]
Spenser.
Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing . Ps. v. 6.
Blessed be the lips that such a leasing told. Fairfax.
Leasing making (Scots Law) , the uttering of lies or libels upon the personal character of the sovereign, his court, or his family.
Bp. Burnet.
Leasow <Xpage=839>
Lea"sow (?) , n. [AS. lesu , l\'91su .] A pasture. [Obs.]
Least <Xpage=839>
Least (?) , a. [OE. last , lest , AS. l<?/sast , l<?/sest , superl. of l<?/ssa less. See Less , a. ] [Used as the superlative of little .] Smallest, either in size or degree; shortest; lowest; most unimportant; as, the least insect; the least mercy; the least space.
&hand; Least is often used with the , as if a noun.
I am the least of the apostles. 1 Cor. xv. 9.
At least , ∨ At the least , at the least estimate, consideration, chance, etc.; hence, at any rate; at all events; even. See However .
He who tempts, though in vain, at least asperses The tempted with dishonor. Milton.
Upon the mast they saw a young man, at least if he were a man, who sat as on horseback. Sir P. Sidney.
-- In least , ∨ In the least , in the least degree, manner, etc. "He that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much." Luke xvi. 10 . -- Least squares (Math.) , a method of deducing from a number of carefully made yet slightly discordant observations of a phenomenon the most probable values of the unknown quantities. It takes as its fundamental principle that the most probable values are those which make the sum of the squares of the residual errors of the observation a minimum.
Least <Xpage=839>
Least , adv. In the smallest or lowest degree; in a degree below all others; as, to reward those who least deserve it .
Least <Xpage=839>
Least , conj. See Lest , conj. [Obs.]
Spenser.
Leastways, Leastwise <Xpage=839>
Least"ways` (?) , Least"wise` (?) , adv. At least; at all events. [Colloq.]
At leastways , ∨ At leastwise , at least. [Obs.]
Fuller.
Leasy <Xpage=839>
Lea"sy (?) , a. [AS. le\'a0s void, loose, false. Cf. Leasing .] Flimsy; vague; deceptive. [Obs.]
Ascham.
Leat <Xpage=839>
Leat (?) , n. [Cf. Lead to conduct.] An artificial water trench, esp. one to or from a mill.
C. Kingsley.
Leather <Xpage=839>
Leath"er (?) , n. [OE. lether , AS. le<?/er ; akin to D. leder , le\'88r , G. leder , OHG. ledar , Icel. le<?/r , Sw. l\'84der , Dan. l\'91der .] 1. The skin of an animal, or some part of such skin, tanned, tawed, or otherwise dressed for use; also, dressed hides, collectively.
2. The skin. [Ironical or Sportive]
&hand; Leather is much used adjectively in the sense of made of , relating to , or like , leather .
Leather board , an imitation of sole leather, made of leather scraps, rags, paper, etc. -- Leather carp (Zo\'94l.) , a variety of carp in which the scales are all, or nearly all, absent. See Illust . under Carp . -- Leather jacket . (Zo\'94l.) (a) A California carangoid fish ( Oligoplites saurus ). (b) A trigger fish ( Balistes Carolinensis ). -- Leather flower (Bot.) , a climbing plant ( Clematis Viorna ) of the Middle and Southern States having thick, leathery sepals of a purplish color. -- Leather leaf (Bot.) , a low shrub ( Cassandra calyculata ), growing in Northern swamps, and having evergreen, coriaceous, scurfy leaves. -- Leather plant (Bot.) , one or more New Zealand plants of the composite genus Celmisia , which have white or buff tomentose leaves. -- Leather turtle . (Zo\'94l.) See Leatherback . -- Vegetable leather . (a) An imitation of leather made of cotton waste . (b) Linen cloth coated with India rubber.
Ure.
Leather <Xpage=839>
Leath"er , v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Leathered (?) ; p. pr. & vb. n. Leathering .] To beat, as with a thong of leather. [Obs. or Colloq.]
G. Eliot.
Leatherback <Xpage=839>
Leath"er*back` (?) , n. (Zo\'94l.) A large sea turtle ( Sphargis coriacea ), having no bony shell on its back. It is common in the warm and temperate parts of the Atlantic, and sometimes weighs over a thousand pounds; -- called also leather turtle , leathery turtle , leather-backed tortoise , etc.
Leatheret, Leatherette <Xpage=839>
Leath"er*et (?) , Leath`er*ette" (?) , n. [ Leather + et , F. -ette .] An imitation of leather, made of paper and cloth.
Leatherhead <Xpage=839>
Leath"er*head` (?) , n. (Zo\'94l.) The friar bird.
Leathern <Xpage=839>
Leath"ern (?) , a. Made of leather; consisting of. leather; as, a leathern purse . "A leathern girdle about his loins."
Matt. iii. 4.
Leatherneck <Xpage=839>