leap - What does it mean?
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Definition of 'leap'English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) lepen, from (etyl) ‘to stumble’).
Verb
To jump.
* anonymous, Merlin
- It is grete nede a man to go bak to recouer the better his leep
* 1600 , anonymous, The wisdome of Doctor Dodypoll , act 4
- I, I defie thee: wert not thou next him when he leapt into the Riuer?
* 1783 , , from the “Illiad” in Lectures on Rhetoric and Belles Lettres , lecture 4, page 65
- Th’ infernal monarch rear’d his horrid head, Leapt from his throne, lest Neptune’s arm should lay His dark dominions open to the day.
* 1999 , Ai, Vice: New & Selected Poems , page 78
- It is better to leap into the void.
To pass over by a leap or jump.
- to leap a wall or a ditch
To copulate with (a female beast); to cover.
To cause to leap.
- to leap a horse across a ditch
Usage notes
The choice between leapt and leaped is mostly a matter of regional differences: leapt is preferred in British English and leaped in American English. According to research by John Algeo (British or American English? , Cambridge, 2006), leapt is used 80% of the time in UK and 32% in the US.
Synonyms
* (jump from one location to another) bound, hop, jump, spring
* (jump upwards) bound, hop, jump, spring
Noun
( en-noun)
The act of leaping or jumping.
* L'Estrange
- Wickedness comes on by degrees, and sudden leaps from one extreme to another are unnatural.
* H. Sweet
- Changes of tone may proceed either by leaps or glides.
The distance traversed by a leap or jump.
(figuratively) A significant move forward.
* 1969 July 20, , as he became the first man to step on the moon
- That's one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind.
(mining) A fault.
Copulation with, or coverture of, a female beast.
(music) A passing from one note to another by an interval, especially by a long one, or by one including several other intermediate intervals.
(obsolete) A basket.
- (Wyclif)
A weel or wicker trap for fish.
( Webster 1913)
Derived terms
( top2)
* by leaps and bounds
* leap day
* leapfrog
* leaping lizards
* leap of faith
( mid2)
* leaps and bounds
* leap second
* leap year
* look before you leap
* quantum leap
( bottom)
Etymology 2
From (etyl) leep, from (etyl) .
Alternative forms
* leep
Noun
( en-noun)
basket
a trap or snare for fish
half a bushel
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