Word: leave Part of Speech: verb Etymology: 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”), dialectal Dutch loven (“to have left over, save, keep”), 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. Pronunciation: /ˈliːv/, [ˈlɪi̯v] 1. To have a consequence or remnant. Labels: transitive Example: I left my car at home and took a bus to work. Example: The ants did not leave so much as a crumb of bread. 2. To have a consequence or remnant. Labels: copulative, intransitive, transitive Example: The lightning left her dazzled for several minutes. Example: Infantile paralysis left him lame for the rest of his life. 3. To have a consequence or remnant. Labels: transitive Example: Leave your hat in the hall. Example: We should leave the legal matters to lawyers. 4. To depart; to separate from. Labels: transitive Example: I left him to his reflections. Example: I leave my hearers to judge. 5. To depart; to separate from. Labels: transitive Example: His bow and arrow never leaves him. Example: I left the country and I left my wife. 6. To depart; to separate from. Labels: transitive Example: 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. Example: I left the band. 7. To depart; to separate from. Labels: euphemistic, transitive Example: 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. 8. To depart; to separate from. Labels: intransitive Example: I think you'd better leave. 9. To transfer something. Labels: transitive Example: When my father died, he left me the house. 10. To transfer something. Labels: transitive Example: I'll leave the car in the station so you can pick it up there. 11. To transfer something. Labels: transitive Example: Can't we just leave this to the experts? 12. To remain (behind); to stay. Labels: intransitive, obsolete Example: 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 Example: Carried somehow, somewhither, for some reason, on these surging floods, were these travelers,[…]. Even such a boat as the Mount Vernon offered a total deck space so cramped as to leave secrecy or privacy well out of the question, even had the motley and democratic assemblage of passengers been disposed to accord either. 13. To stop, desist from; to "leave off" (+ noun / gerund). Labels: archaic, transitive Example: When he had leeft speakynge, he sayde vnto Simon: Cary vs into the depe, and lett slippe thy nette to make a draught. Example: I will learn to leave these fruitless tears …