What does "leave" mean?
The action of the batsman not attempting to play at the ball.
Leave
/liːv/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The action of the batsman not attempting to play at the ball.
- Grammar: leave is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: depart, exit, get out, go away.
- Useful contrasts: abiding, alien land, dry land being.
- Usage evidence: Tell them to call me before they leave.
How to use "leave"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "leave" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "leave" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "leave" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "leave" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "leave" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "depart" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
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Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "leave", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The action of the batsman not attempting to play at the ball.
"He made 45 leaves in his innings of 64."
- 2 Permission to be absent; time away from one's work. countable, uncountable
"I've just been given three weeks' leave by my boss — I don't think I still have some leave owing to me."
- 3 the act of departing politely wordnet
- 4 The arrangement of balls in play that remains after a shot is made (which determines whether the next shooter — who may be either the same player, or an opponent — has good options, or only poor ones).
"Having counted 38 points he tried a beautiful massé out of the corner, hit the first ball just a trifle too hard and kissed his own ball off just when victory seemed to be his. The leave was unfortunate for Ives. Slosson played brilliantly and ran the game out, a close winner, with 22 points."
- 5 Permission. countable, dated, uncountable
"Might I beg leave to accompany you?"
Show 4 more definitions
- 6 permission to do something wordnet
- 7 The tiles remaining on a player's rack after his or her turn.
"I didn't score much, but LING was a good leave."
- 8 Farewell, departure. countable, dated, uncountable
"I took my leave of the gentleman without a backward glance."
- 9 the period of time during which you are absent from work or duty wordnet
Verb
- 1 To have a consequence or remnant.; To cause or allow (something) to remain as available; to refrain from taking (something) away; to stop short of consuming or otherwise depleting (something) entirely. transitive
"I left my car at home and took a bus to work."
- 2 To give leave to; allow; permit; let; grant. transitive
- 3 To produce leaves or foliage. intransitive, rare
"Each Morn a thousand Roses brings, you say: Yes, but where leaves the Rose of Yesterday?"
- 4 To raise; to levy. obsolete
"[…]au^([sic – meaning an]) army ſtrong ſhe leau'd,[…]"
- 5 leave unchanged or undisturbed or refrain from taking wordnet
Show 25 more definitions
- 6 To have a consequence or remnant.; To cause, to result in. copulative, intransitive, transitive
"The lightning left her dazzled for several minutes."
- 7 be survived by after one's death wordnet
- 8 To have a consequence or remnant.; To put; to place; to deposit; to deliver, with a sense of withdrawing oneself. transitive
"Leave your hat in the hall."
- 9 leave behind unintentionally wordnet
- 10 To depart; to separate from.; To let be or do without interference. transitive
"I left him to his reflections."
- 11 go and leave behind, either intentionally or by neglect or forgetfulness wordnet
- 12 To depart; to separate from.; To depart from; to end one's connection or affiliation with. transitive
"I left the country and I left my wife."
- 13 go away from a place wordnet
- 14 To depart; to separate from.; To end one's membership in (a group); to terminate one's affiliation with (an organization); to stop participating in (a project). transitive
"2018, The Independent, "Brexit: Theresa May 'not bluffing' in threat to leave EU without a deal, Tory minister Liam Fox says" If we were to leave, the economic impact on a number of European countries would be severe."
- 15 move out of or depart from wordnet
- 16 To depart; to separate from.; To die (the object denotes those affected by the death). euphemistic, transitive
"The other evening Sheri called to tell me that Connie had left us, and that I will never again be able to hold my pot luck supper plate on my knee and listen to Connie's wonderful talk or see her slow, almost impish smile."
- 17 leave or give by will after one's death wordnet
- 18 To depart; to separate from.; To depart; to go away from a certain place or state. intransitive
"I think you'd better leave."
- 19 transmit (knowledge or skills) wordnet
- 20 To transfer something.; To transfer possession of after death. transitive
"When my father died, he left me the house."
- 21 put into the care or protection of someone wordnet
- 22 To transfer something.; To give (something) to someone; to deliver (something) to a repository; to deposit. transitive
"I'll leave the car in the station so you can pick it up there."
- 23 remove oneself from an association with or participation in wordnet
- 24 To transfer something.; To transfer responsibility or attention of (something) (to someone); to stop being concerned with. transitive
"Can't we just leave this to the experts?"
- 25 produce as a result or residue wordnet
- 26 To remain (behind); to stay. intransitive, obsolete
"And whanne sire launcelot sawe them fare soo / he gat a spere in his hand / and there encountred with hym al attones syr bors sir Ector and sire Lyonel / and alle they thre smote hym atte ones with their speres /[…]/ and by mysfortune sir bors smote syre launcelot thurgh the shelde in to the syde / and the spere brake / and the hede lefte stylle in his syde"
- 27 make a possibility or provide opportunity for; permit to be attainable or cause to remain wordnet
- 28 To stop, desist from; to "leave off" (+ noun / gerund). archaic, transitive
"When he had leeft speakynge, he sayde vnto Simon: Cary vs into the depe, and lett slippe thy nette to make a draught."
- 29 act or be so as to become in a specified state wordnet
- 30 have left or have as a remainder wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
Example
"Tell them to call me before they leave."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "leave"?
Common synonyms include: depart, exit, get out, go away, go out, leave of absence.
How do you use "leave" in a sentence?
Tell them to call me before they leave.
How do you pronounce "leave"?
Pronounced /liːv/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English leven, from Old English lǣfan (“to leave”), from Proto-West Germanic *laibijan, from Proto-Germanic *laibijaną (“to let stay, leave”), causative of *lībaną (“to stay, remain”), from Proto-Indo-European *leyp- (“to stick; fat”). Cognate with Old Frisian lēva (“to leave”), Old Saxon lēvian, Old High German leiban (“to leave”), Old Norse leifa (“to leave over”) (whence Icelandic leifa (“to leave food uneaten”), Swedish leva (“to leave”)), lifna (“to be left”) (whence Danish levne). More at lave, belive. The noun is attested since the 19th century, with earliest references to billiards.
Etymology 2
From Middle English leve, from Old English lēaf (“permission, privilege”), from Proto-Germanic *laubō, *laubą (“permission, privilege, favour, worth”), from Proto-Indo-European *lewbʰ- (“to love, hold dear”). Cognate with obsolete German Laube (“permission”), Swedish lov (“permission”), Icelandic leyfi (“permission”). Related to Dutch verlof, German Urlaub, Erlaubnis, Verlaub. See also love.
Etymology 3
From Middle English leven, from Old English līefan (“to allow, grant, concede; believe, trust, confide in”), from Proto-West Germanic *laubijan, from Proto-Germanic *laubijaną (“to allow, praise”), from Proto-Indo-European *lewbʰ- (“to love, hold dear”). Cognate with German erlauben (“to allow”), German glauben (“to believe”), Icelandic leyfa (“to allow”).
Etymology 4
From Middle English leven, from lef (“leaf”). More at leaf.
Etymology 5
From French lever. Compare levy. Compare also Middle English leve, a variant of levy that may have been monosyllabic.