leading
- 01 B1 Intermediate
adj.being the most important, successful, or famous in a particular group or field.
adj.occupying the first or most prominent position in a hierarchy, field, or competition.
Simple“She is a leading expert in the study of ancient languages.”
In context“The company maintained its position as the leading manufacturer of renewable energy components despite increased competition from overseas markets.”
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
adj.giving direction or showing the way to others.
adj.serving to guide, direct, or influence the path or behavior of others.
Simple“The teacher asked a leading question to help the student find the answer.”
In context“The judge cautioned the lawyer against asking leading questions that suggested the desired answer to the witness.”
- 03 B1 Intermediate
adj.being at the front of a group or moving ahead of others.
adj.positioned at the front or occurring in advance of others in a sequence.
Simple“The leading runner was far ahead of the rest of the group.”
In context“The leading car in the convoy had to slow down to allow the heavy trucks behind it to catch up on the steep hill.”
- 04 C1 Advanced
n.the amount of space between lines of printed text.
n.the vertical distance between the baselines of successive lines of type. Pronounced to rhyme with 'bedding'.
Simple“You should increase the leading to make the long paragraph easier to read.”
In context“The graphic designer adjusted the leading and kerning to ensure the movie poster was legible from a distance.”
UsageIn modern digital design, this is often referred to as line height.
Synonymsspacinginterlineation - 05 C1 Advanced
n.the act of being led or guided by someone or something.
n.the action or instance of providing guidance or leadership.
Simple“Under his leading, the small team managed to finish the project on time.”
In context“The community looked for spiritual leading during the crisis, hoping for a clear path forward.”
Synonyms
Usage leading cause · leading experts · leading role
From Middle English ledinge, ledynge, ledand, ledande, ledende, from Old English lǣdende, from Proto-West Germanic laidijandī, from Proto-Germanic laidijandz, present participle of Proto-Germanic *laidijaną (“to lead”), equivalent to lead + -ing. Compare West Frisian liedend, Dutch leidend, German leitend, Swedish ledande, Icelandic leiðandi.
From Middle English leding, ledyng, ledinge, ledunge, equivalent to lead + -ing. Cognate with Dutch leiding (“conduit, leading, guidance, leadership”), German Leitung (“line, conduit, cable”).
From Middle English leedynge, equivalent to lead (chemical element) + -ing; so named because in metal typesetting (letterpress and hot metal typesetting), pieces of lead (slugs, strips, blocks, etc) were often the mechanical means of producing the gap.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.