Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Language: Old English
Origin: lædan

lead

1 verb
     
Related topics: Cards
lead1 S1 W1 past tense and past participle led
1

take somebody somewhere

[intransitive and transitive] to take someone somewhere by going in front of them while they follow, or by pulling them gently
lead somebody to/into etc something
A nurse took her arm and led her to a chair.
The horses were led to safety.
lead somebody away/down etc
She was led away from the courtroom in tears.
The manager led the way through the office.
 ➔ see usage note direct2
2

go in front

[intransitive and transitive] to go in front of a line of people or vehicles:
A firetruck was leading the parade.
3

be in charge

[intransitive and transitive] to be in charge of an organization, country, or team, or a group of people who are trying to do something:
He has led the party for over twenty years.
Some people say she is too old to lead the country (=be in charge of its government).
Beckham led his team to victory.
lead an investigation/inquiry/campaign
The investigation will be led by Inspector Scarfe.
They are leading a campaign to warn teenagers about the dangers of drug abuse.
lead a revolt/rebellion/coup etc
The rebellion was led by the King's brother.
lead an attack/assault
Nelson preferred to lead the attack himself from the front.
a man who was born to lead
a communist-led strike
4

cause something to happen

[intransitive and transitive] to cause something to happen or cause someone to do something
lead to
the events that led to the start of the First World War
A degree in English could lead to a career in journalism.
lead somebody into something
Her trusting nature often led her into trouble.
lead somebody to do something
What led him to kill his wife?
lead to somebody doing something
His actions could lead to him losing his job.
5

cause somebody to believe something

[transitive] to make someone believe something, especially something that is not true
lead somebody to believe/expect/understand something
He had led everyone to believe that his family was very wealthy.
The hotel was terrible, and not at all what we had been led to expect.
Our research led us to the conclusion that the present system is unfair.
6

influence

[transitive] to influence someone to make them do something that is wrong
lead somebody into something
His brother led him into a life of crime.
He's not a bad boy. He's just easily led (=it is easy for other people to persuade him to do things that he should not do).
7

be more successful

[transitive] to be more successful than other people, companies, or countries in a particular activity
lead the world/market/pack/field
US companies lead the world in biotechnology.
lead the way (=be the first to do something, and show other people how to do it)
The Swedes have led the way in data protection.
➔ leading1 (1)
8

be winning

[intransitive and transitive] to be winning a game, competition etc [≠ lose]:
At half-time, Brazil led 1-0.
With 15 laps to go, Schumacher led the race.
The polls showed Clinton leading Bush 55 percent to 34 percent.
lead by ten points/two goals etc
Agassi was leading by two sets.
9

path/door etc

[intransitive,transitive always + adverb/preposition] used to say where a path, wire etc goes or what place is on the other side of a door
lead to/towards
The path led down to a small lake.
lead from/out of
the major artery leading from the heart
lead into
the door leading into the hallway
lead somebody to/into something
The riverside path leads visitors to a small chapel.
10

life

[transitive] if you lead a particular kind of life, that is what your life is like
lead a normal/quiet/busy etc life
If the operation succeeds, Carly will be able to lead a normal life.
He has led a charmed life (=been very fortunate).
lead the life of a ...
She now leads the life of a recluse.
lead a double life (=deceive people by keeping different parts of your life separate and not letting anyone know the whole truth)
Joe had been leading a double life, seeing an ex-model while his wife believed he was on business.
They lead a nomadic existence.
11

discussion etc

[transitive always + adverb/preposition] to control the way a discussion, conversation etc develops:
I tried to lead the conversation back to the subject of money.
12

lead somebody up the garden path

informal to deliberately deceive someone
13

lead somebody astray

a) to encourage someone to do bad or immoral things, which they would not normally do
b) to make someone believe something that is not true
14

lead nowhere/not lead anywhere

to not produce any useful result:
So far police investigations seem to have led nowhere.
15

lead by example

to show the people you are in charge of what you want them to do by doing it yourself:
The best managers lead by example.
16

lead somebody by the nose

to influence someone so much that you can completely control everything that they do:
Politicians think they can easily lead people by the nose.
17

this/that leads (me) to something

used to introduce a new subject that is connected to the previous one:
That leads me to my final point. Where are we going to get the money?
18

somebody has their own life to lead

used to say that someone wants to be able to live their life independently, without having to do things that other people want them to do
19

lead somebody a merry old dance/a right old dance

British English to cause a lot of problems or worries for someone
20

market-led/export-led etc

most influenced by the market, by exports etc:
an export-led economic recovery
21

lead the eye

if a picture, view etc leads the eye in a particular direction, it makes you look in that direction:
marble columns that lead the eye upward
22

card game

[intransitive and transitive]DGC to play a particular card as your first card in one part of a card game

lead off

phrasal verb
1 to start a meeting, discussion, performance etc by saying or doing something:
I'd like to lead off by thanking Rick for coming.
lead off with
The French team led off with two quick goals in the first five minutes.
lead something ↔ off
Hal led the evening off with some folk songs.
2

lead off (something)

if a road, room etc leads off a place, you can go directly from that place along that road, into that room etc
lead off from something
He pointed down a street leading off from the square.
a large room, with doors leading off it in all directions
3 to be the first player to try to hit the ball in an inning (=period of play) in a game of baseball

lead somebody on

phrasal verb
to deceive someone, especially to make them think you love them:
He thought she loved him, but in fact she was just leading him on.

lead on to something

phrasal verb
to cause something to develop or become possible at a later time:
Alan Turing's work led onto the development of modern computers.

lead with something

phrasal verb
1 if a newspaper or television programme leads with a particular story, that story is the main one:
The Washington Post leads with the latest news from Israel.
2 to use a particular hand to begin an attack in boxing, or a particular foot to begin a dance:
Adam led with his left and punched his opponent on the jaw.

lead up to something

phrasal verb
1 if a series of events or a period of time leads up to an event, it comes before it or causes it:
the weeks that led up to her death
the events leading up to his dismissal
2 to gradually introduce an embarrassing, upsetting, or surprising subject into a conversation:
She had already guessed what he was leading up to.
WORD CHOICE: WORD CHOICE:

direct, take, guide, leadIf you direct someone somewhere, you tell them which way to go to get there, but you do not go with them • He directed me to a hotel near the airport (NOT He guided me to a hotel near the airport).!! Do not say that you direct something in a particular direction. Say that you point something in a particular direction • He pointed the gun at the policeman (NOT He directed the gun at the policeman).If you take, guide, or lead someone somewhere, you go with them there • I'll take you to the airport. Use guide especially to talk about helping someone along a difficult route • They guided me through a maze of one-way streets. Use lead to talk about going in front of someone who is following you • The waiter led us to a table. ➔ See also direct
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.
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