n. the playing of a card to start a trick in bridge; "the lead was in the dummy"

n. an advantage held by a competitor in a race; "he took the lead at the last turn"

n. the introductory section of a story; "it was an amusing lead-in to a very serious matter"

n. (baseball) the position taken by a base runner preparing to advance to the next base; "he took a long lead off first"

n. the act of photographing a scene or part of a scene without interruption

n. thin strip of metal used to separate lines of type in printing

n. mixture of graphite with clay in different degrees of hardness; the marking substance in a pencil

n. the timing of ignition relative to the position of the piston in an internal-combustion engine

n. a news story of major importance

n. a jumper that consists of a short piece of wire; "it was a tangle of jumper cables and clip leads"

n. restraint consisting of a rope (or light chain) used to restrain an animal

n. evidence pointing to a possible solution; "the police are following a promising lead"; "the trail led straight to the perpetrator"

n. an actor who plays a principal role

n. a soft heavy toxic malleable metallic element; bluish white when freshly cut but tarnishes readily to dull grey; "the children were playing with lead soldiers"

v. take somebody somewhere; "We lead him to our chief"; "can you take me to the main entrance?"; "He conducted us to the palace"

v. cause to undertake a certain action; "Her greed led her to forge the checks"

v. be ahead of others; be the first; "she topped her class every year"

v. to make the first play

v. ascertain or determine by measuring, computing or take a reading from a dial; "take a pulse"; "A reading was taken of the earth's tremors"

v. obtain by winning; "Winner takes all"; "He took first prize"

v. travel or go by means of a certain kind of transportation, or a certain route; "He takes the bus to work"; "She takes Route 1 to Newark"

v. experience or feel or submit to; "Take a test"; "Take the plunge"

v. take by force; "Hitler took the Baltic Republics"; "The army took the fort on the hill"

v. carry out; "take action"; "take steps"; "take vengeance"

v. move ahead (of others) in time or space

v. lead, extend, or afford access; "This door goes to the basement"; "The road runs South"

v. cause something to pass or lead somewhere; "Run the wire behind the cabinet"

v. interpret something in a certain way; convey a particular meaning or impression; "I read this address as a satire"; "How should I take this message?"; "You can't take credit for this!"

v. get into one's hands, take physically; "Take a cookie!"; "Can you take this bag, please"

v. take something or somebody with oneself somewhere; "Bring me the box from the other room"; "Take these letters to the boss"; "This brings me to the main point"

v. occupy or take on; "He assumes the lotus position"; "She took her seat on the stage"; "We took our seats in the orchestra"; "She took up her position behind the tree"; "strike a pose"

v. take into one's possession; "We are taking an orphan from Romania"; "I'll take three salmon steaks"

v. make use of or accept for some purpose; "take a risk"; "take an opportunity"

v. require (time or space); "It took three hours to get to work this morning"; "This event occupied a very short time"

v. assume, as of positions or roles; "She took the job as director of development"

v. have with oneself; have on one's person; "She always takes an umbrella"; "I always carry money"; "She packs a gun when she goes into the mountains"

v. be designed to hold or take; "This surface will not take the dye"

v. preside over; "John moderated the discussion"

v. lead musicians in the performance of; "Bernstein conducted Mahler like no other conductor"; "she cannot conduct modern pieces"

v. be conducive to; "The use of computers in the classroom lead to better writing"

v. be stricken by an illness, fall victim to an illness; "He got AIDS"; "She came down with pneumonia"; "She took a chill"

v. remove something concrete, as by lifting, pushing, or taking off, or remove something abstract; "remove a threat"; "remove a wrapper"; "Remove the dirty dishes from the table"; "take the gun from your pocket"; "This machine withdraws heat from the environment"

v. take on a certain form, attribute, or aspect; "His voice took on a sad tone"; "The story took a new turn"; "he adopted an air of superiority"; "She assumed strange manners"; "The gods assume human or animal form in these fables"

v. be a student of a certain subject; "She is reading for the bar exam"

v. accept or undergo, often unwillingly; "We took a pay cut"

v. take into consideration for exemplifying purposes; "Take the case of China"; "Consider the following case"

v. take as an undesirable consequence of some event or state of affairs; "the accident claimed three lives"; "The hard work took its toll on her"

v. make a film or photograph of something; "take a scene"; "shoot a movie"

n. an actor's portrayal of someone in a play; "she played the part of Desdemona"

n. the period of greatest prosperity or productivity

n. a light insulated conductor for household use

n. a strong line

n. a stimulus that provides information about what to do

n. actress who plays the leading female role

n. a distinguished female operatic singer; a female operatic star

n. a person who backs a politician or a team etc.; "all their supporters came out for the game"; "they are friends of the library"

v. be a guiding force, as with directions or advice; "The teacher steered the gifted students towards the more challenging courses"

v. act as the navigator in a car, plane, or vessel and plan, direct, plot the path and position of the conveyance; "Is anyone volunteering to navigate during the trip?"; "Who was navigating the ship during the accident?"

v. accompany as a chaperone

v. escort in transit; "the trucks convoyed the cars across the battle zone"; "the warships convoyed the merchant ships across the Pacific"

v. provoke someone to do something through (often false or exaggerated) promises or persuasion; "He lured me into temptation"

v. induce into action by using one's charm; "She charmed him into giving her all his money"

v. decide with authority; "The King decreed that all firstborn males should be killed"

v. be or do something to a greater degree; "her performance surpasses that of any other student I know"; "She outdoes all other athletes"; "This exceeds all my expectations"; "This car outperforms all others in its class"

v. make off with belongings of others

v. direct (oneself) somewhere; "Steer clear of him"

v. guide or pass over something; "He ran his eyes over her body"; "She ran her fingers along the carved figurine"; "He drew her hair through his fingers"

v. show (someone) to their seats, as in theaters or auditoriums; "The usher showed us to our seats"

v. furnish with a preface or introduction; "She always precedes her lectures with a joke"; "He prefaced his lecture with a critical remark about the institution"

v. act as president; "preside over companies and corporations"

v. be in charge of, act on, or dispose of; "I can deal with this crew of workers"; "This blender can't handle nuts"; "She managed her parents' affairs after they got too old"

v. watch and direct; "Who is overseeing this project?"

v. accompany or escort; "I'll walk you to your car"

v. accompany as a chaperone

v. accompany or escort; "I'll see you to the door"

v. work in an administrative capacity; supervise; "administer a program"

v. exercise authoritative control or power over; "control the budget"; "Command the military forces"

v. exercise authority over; as of nations; "Who is governing the country now?"

v. put or introduce into something; "insert a picture into the text"

v. act or preside as chair, as of an academic department in a university; "She chaired the department for many years"

v. look down on; "The villa dominates the town"

v. cut with a hacking tool

v. move while holding up or supporting; "Bear gifts"; "bear a heavy load"; "bear news"; "bearing orders"

v. bring forth, "The apple tree bore delicious apples this year"; "The unidentified plant bore gorgeous flowers"

v. remove something concrete, as by lifting, pushing, or taking off, or remove something abstract; "remove a threat"; "remove a wrapper"; "Remove the dirty dishes from the table"; "take the gun from your pocket"; "This machine withdraws heat from the environment"

v. cut away

v. move while supporting, either in a vehicle or in one's hands or on one's body; "You must carry your camping gear"; "carry the suitcases to the car"; "This train is carrying nuclear waste"; "These pipes carry waste water into the river"

v. have with oneself; have on one's person; "She always takes an umbrella"; "I always carry money"; "She packs a gun when she goes into the mountains"

v. transmit or serve as the medium for transmission; "Sound carries well over water"; "The airwaves carry the sound"; "Many metals conduct heat"

v. serve as a means for expressing something; "The painting of Mary carries motherly love"; "His voice carried a lot af anger"

v. move from one place to another; "transfer the data"; "transmit the news"; "transfer the patient to another hospital"

v. take something or somebody with oneself somewhere; "Bring me the box from the other room"; "Take these letters to the boss"; "This brings me to the main point"

v. be pregnant with; "She is bearing his child"; "The are expecting another child in January"; "I am carrying his child"

v. support or hold in a certain manner; "She holds her head high"; "He carried himself upright"

v. behave in a certain manner; "She carried herself well"; "he bore himself with dignity"; "They conducted themselves well during these difficult times"

v. contain or hold; have within; "The jar carries wine"; "The canteen holds fresh water"; "This can contains water"

v. bring to a destination, make a delivery; "our local super market delivers"

v. carry a burden, either real or metaphoric; "shoulder the burden"

v. move while holding up or supporting; "Bear gifts"; "bear a heavy load"; "bear news"; "bearing orders"

v. move while supporting, either in a vehicle or in one's hands or on one's body; "You must carry your camping gear"; "carry the suitcases to the car"; "This train is carrying nuclear waste"; "These pipes carry waste water into the river"

v. transmit or serve as the medium for transmission; "Sound carries well over water"; "The airwaves carry the sound"; "Many metals conduct heat"

v. serve as a means for expressing something; "The painting of Mary carries motherly love"; "His voice carried a lot af anger"

v. take something or somebody with oneself somewhere; "Bring me the box from the other room"; "Take these letters to the boss"; "This brings me to the main point"

v. move from one place to another; "transfer the data"; "transmit the news"; "transfer the patient to another hospital"

v. go or come after and bring or take back; "Get me those books over there, please"; "Could you bring the wine?"; "The dog fetched the hat"

v. take something or somebody with oneself somewhere; "Bring me the box from the other room"; "Take these letters to the boss"; "This brings me to the main point"

v. be pregnant with; "She is bearing his child"; "The are expecting another child in January"; "I am carrying his child"

v. support or hold in a certain manner; "She holds her head high"; "He carried himself upright"

v. behave in a certain manner; "She carried herself well"; "he bore himself with dignity"; "They conducted themselves well during these difficult times"

v. contain or hold; have within; "The jar carries wine"; "The canteen holds fresh water"; "This can contains water"

v. be compatible or in accordance with

v. act between parties with a view to reconciling differences; "He interceded in the family dispute"; "He mediated a settlement"

v. get involved, so as to alter or hinder an action, or through force or threat of force; "Why did the U.S. not intervene earlier in WW II?"

v. vary the pitch of one's speech

v. act as a master of ceremonies

v. assign under a mandate; of nations

v. fill or load to capacity; "charge the wagon with hay"

v. assign authority to

v. blame for, make a claim of wrongdoing or misbehavior against; "he charged thee director with indifference"

v. remove by erasing or crossing out or as if by drawing a line; "Please strike this remark from the record"; "scratch that remark"

v. mark for deletion, rub off, or erase; "kill these lines in the President's speech"

v. bring, take, or pull out of a container or from under a cover; "draw a weapon"; "pull out a gun"; "The mugger pulled a knife on his victim"

v. strip of feathers; "pull a chicken"; "pluck the capon"

v. remove by or as if by rubbing or erasing; "Please erase the formula on the blackboard--it is wrong!"

v. to bring out

v. become loose or looser or less tight; "The noose loosened"; "the rope relaxed"

v. take liquid out of a container or well; "She drew water from the barrel"

v. release from entanglement of difficulty; "I cannot extricate myself from this task"

v. free or remove obstruction from; "free a path across the cluttered floor"

v. undo the ties of; "They untied the prisoner"

v. rid of obstructions; "Clear your desk"

v. make void or empty of contents; "Empty the box"; "The alarm emptied the building"

v. take away possessions from someone; "The Nazis stripped the Jews of all their assets"

v. take temporary possession of as a security, by legal authority; "The FBI seized the drugs"; "The customs agents impounded the illegal shipment"; "The police confiscated the stolen artwork"

v. terminate or take out; "Let's eliminate the course on Akkadian hieroglyphics"

v. remove from a list; "Cross the name of the dead person off the list"

v. cause to become detached or separated; take off; "detach the skin from the chicken before you eat it"

v. set apart from others; "The dentist sequesters the tooth he is working on"

v. shift the position or location of, as for business, legal, educational, or military purposes; "He removed his children to the countryside"; "Remove the troops to the forest surrounding the city"; "remove a case to another court"

v. cause to leave; "The teacher took the children out of the classroom"

v. keep away from others; "He sequestered himself in his study to write a book"

v. separate by race or religion; practice a policy of racial segregation; "This neighborhood is segregated"; "We don't segregate in this county"

v. make unfit or unsuitable; "Your income disqualifies you"

v. remove clothes; "take off your shirt--it's very hot in here"

v. raise in rank or condition; "The new law lifted many people from poverty"

v. to incline or bend from a vertical position; "She leaned over the banister"

v. empty completely

v. leave unchanged or undisturbed or refrain from taking; "leave it as is"; "leave the young fawn alone"; "leave the flowers that you see in the park behind"

v. cut and assemble the components of; "edit film"; "cut recording tape"

v. cut with a hacking tool

v. move while holding up or supporting; "Bear gifts"; "bear a heavy load"; "bear news"; "bearing orders"

v. bring forth, "The apple tree bore delicious apples this year"; "The unidentified plant bore gorgeous flowers"

v. get into one's hands, take physically; "Take a cookie!"; "Can you take this bag, please"

v. cut away

v. move out of position; "dislocate joints"; "the artificial hip joint luxated and had to be put back surgically"

v. cut the surface of; wear away the surface of

v. make a grating or grinding sound by rubbing together; "grate one's teeth in anger"

v. break the skin (of a body part) by scraping; "She was grazed by the stray bullet"

v. scrape with a rasp

v. make small marks into the surface of; "score the clay before firing it"

v. reach a destination, either real or abstract; "We hit Detroit by noon"; "The water reached the doorstep"; "We barely made it to the finish line"; "I have to hit the MAC machine before the weekend starts"

v. prepare for crops; "Work the soil"; "cultivate the land"

v. carry a burden, either real or metaphoric; "shoulder the burden"

v. pay close attention to; give heed to; "Heed the advice of the old men"

v. put clothing on one's body; "What should I wear today?"; "He put on his best suit for the wedding"; "The princess donned a long blue dress"; "The queen assumed the stately robes"; "He got into his jeans"

v. take into consideration, have in view; "He entertained the notion of moving to South America"

v. think moodily or anxiously about something

v. reflect deeply on a subject; "I mulled over the events of the afternoon"; "philosophers have speculated on the question of God for thousands of years"; "The scientist must stop to observe and start to excogitate"

v. direct one's attention on something; "Please focus on your studies and not on your hobbies"

v. be confusing or perplexing to; cause to be unable to think clearly; "These questions confuse even the experts"; "This question completely threw me"; "This question befuddled even the teacher"

v. make a replica of; "copy that drawing"; "re-create a picture by Rembrandt"

v. reproduce someone's behavior or looks; "The mime imitated the passers-by"; "Children often copy their parents or older siblings"

v. have offspring or young; "The deer in our neighborhood reproduce madly"; "The Catholic Church tells people to procreate, no matter what their economic situation may be"

v. claim as due or just; "The bank demanded payment of the loan"

v. consider obligatory; request and expect; "We require our secretary to be on time"; "Aren't we asking too much of these children?"; "I expect my students to arrive in time for their lessons"

v. express the need or desire for; ask for; "She requested an extra bed in her room"; "She called for room service"

v. look on as or consider; "she looked on this affair as a joke"; "He thinks of himself as a brilliant musician"; "He is reputed to be intelligent"

v. keep in mind or convey as a conviction or view; "take for granted"; "view as important"; "hold these truths to be self-evident"; "I hold him personally responsible"

v. visit for entertainment; "take in the sights"

v. accept as a challenge; "I'll tackle this difficult task"

v. remove clothes; "take off your shirt--it's very hot in here"

v. take out or up with or as if with a scoop; "scoop the sugar out of the container"

v. take liquid out of a container or well; "She drew water from the barrel"

v. remove from a certain place, environment, or mental or emotional state; transport into a new location or state; "Their dreams carried the Romantics away into distant lands"; "The car carried us off to the meeting"; "I'll take you away on a holiday"; "I got carried away when I saw the dead man and I started to cry"

v. fold up; "take in the sails"

v. divide into pieces; "our department was dismembered when our funding dried up"; "The Empire was discerped after the war"

v. force, take, or pull apart; "He separated the fighting children"; "Moses parted the Red Sea"

v. remove (a commodity) from (a supply source); "She drew $2,000 from the account"; "The doctors drew medical supplies from the hospital's emergency bank"

v. visit for entertainment; "take in the sights"

v. make a subtraction

v. to travel behind, go after, come after; "The ducklings followed their mother around the pond"; "Please follow the guide through the museum"

v. follow in or as if in pursuit; "The police car pursued the suspected attacker"; "Her bad deed followed her and haunted her dreams all her life"

v. be obedient to

v. go or come after and bring or take back; "Get me those books over there, please"; "Could you bring the wine?"; "The dog fetched the hat"

v. transfer possession of something concrete or abstract to somebody; "I gave her my money"; "can you give me lessons?"; "She gave the children lots of love and tender loving care"

v. provide or furnish with; "We provided the room with an electrical heater"

v. provide what is desired or needed, especially support, food or sustenance; "The hostess provided lunch for all the guests"

v. make an addition (to); join or combine or unite with others; increase the quality, quantity, size or scope of; "We added two students to that dorm room"; "She added a personal note to her letter"; "Add insult to injury"; "Add some extra plates to the dinner table"

v. fix, force, or implant; "lodge a bullet in the table"

v. make an addition by combining numbers; "Add 27 and 49, please!"