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Lee, Peggy
regiment while the colonel's on leave. 2 [U] fml permission: It was done without leave from me/without my leave, I can assure you. 1 [+to-v] Who gave you leave to do that? 3 take leave (of) to say goodbye (to); go away (from): (fig.) She must have taken leave of her senses (=gone mad) to do such a stupid thing. → see also FRENCH LEAVE, SICK LEAVE
Leave it to 'Beaver a US television programme that was popular in the late 1950s and early 1960s, about a boy called Beaver Cleaver and his family, who lived in a typical SUBURBAN area
CULTURAL NOTE The Cleaver family is thought of as an example of the perfect 1950s US family, in which the children are generally good, the mother stays at home to take care of her family, and they always manage to solve their problems together.
leav-en¹ /'levən/ n 1 [U] a substance, especially YEAST, that is added to a flour-and-water mixture to make it swell so that it can be baked into bread 2 [C;U] fml rare an influence that causes a gradual change in character
leaven² v [T] 1 to add leaven to (a cooking mixture, especially flour and water) → see also UNLEAVENED 2 fml rare to influence; change
leav-en-ing /'levənɪŋ/ n 1 [U] LEAVEN 2 [S(of)] a small part which makes something different, especially more cheerful: a leavening of humour in an otherwise serious book
Leav-en-worth /'levənwɜ:θl-wɜ:rθ/ a town in the American state of Kansas, known for its prison: He's serving time at Leavenworth.
leave of 'absence n [U] LEAVE
leaves /li:vz/ pl. of LEAF
Leaves of 'Grass (1855) a collection of poems by Walt WHITMAN, written in FREE VERSE (=poetry without regular patterns), which strongly express his love of nature and his respect for freedom. These poems are considered important because they made free verse more acceptable and greatly influenced later US writers.
'leave taking n fml the act of saying goodbye and going away: tearful leave takings
leav-ings /'li:vɪŋz/ n [(the)P] BrE things that are left or unwanted, especially food after a meal → compare LEFTOVERS
Leb-a-non /'lebənən, -nɒnl-nən, -nɔ:n/ the Lebanon a country in the Middle East on the Mediterranean Sea, between Israel and Syria. It was once a rich country that was popular with tourists, and was an important business and financial centre. But a long CIVIL WAR in the 1970s and 1980s did a lot of damage to the country, as opposing political and religious groups, supported by Israel, Syria, and the PLO, fought against each other. The economic and political situation improved during the 1990s. Population: 3,727,703 (2003). Capital: Beirut. —Lebanese /lebə'ni:z/ n, adj
Leb-ed, Al-ek-san-dr /'lebed, ˌælg'zɔ:ndər ǁ-'zæn-/ (1951-2002) a Russian army officer and politician who was in the news in the mid-1990s for his success in establishing peace between Russia and Chechnya, and for his disagreements with Boris YELTSIN about the way Russia should be governed
Le-Blanc, Matt /lə'blɒŋk||-'blɑ:ŋk/ (1967-) a US actor known especially for appearing as the character Joey Tribbiani in the television programme Friends
Le-Bron, James /lə'brɒn||-'brɑ:n/ (1984-) a US BASKETBALL player who was one of the best HIGH SCHOOL players in the sport's history. He began playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003.
Le Car-ré, John /lə 'kæreɪ/ (1931-) a British writer whose most famous NOVELS include The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1963) and Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (1974). He invented the character of the spy, George Smiley, who appears in some of his books. Many of his stories have been made into films for television and the cinema.
lech-er /'letʃər/ n derog a man who continually looks for sexual pleasure: a disgusting old lecher
lech-er-ous /'letʃərəs/ adj derog (especially of a man) having or showing a desire for continual sexual pleasure: a lecherous old man | a lecherous look —ly adv —ness n [U]
lech-er-y /'letʃəri/ n [U] derog continual searching for sexual pleasure, especially when expressed in an unpleasant way. Lechery is one of the SEVEN DEADLY SINS according to the Bible.
Le Cor-bu-sier /lə kɔ:'bju:zier, -'bʊr-||ˌkɔ:rbu:'jeɪ/ (1887-1965) a French ARCHITECT (=someone who designs buildings) who was born in Switzerland. He believed that buildings should look modern, be made of modern materials such as CONCRETE and glass, and that they should be FUNCTIONAL (=simple and practical, without unnecessary decoration). He built many important buildings, and planned the city of Chandigarh in India.
lec-tern /'lektərn-ərn/ n a sloping table for holding a book, especially the Bible in a church
lec-ture¹ /'lektʃər/ n [(on, about)] 1 a long talk given to a group of people on a particular subject, especially as a method of teaching at universities: He gave a series of lectures on medieval art. | Students have to attend ten lectures a week. | a French lecture (=about French language, literature etc) 2 a long solemn talk expressing disapproval or warning: He gave/(old-fash) read the child a lecture on the importance of punctuality.
lecture² v [(on, about)] 1 [I] to give a LECTURE 2 [T] to give a LECTURE to: I wish you'd stop lecturing me.
lec-tur-er /'lektʃərər/ n 1 a person who gives lectures, especially at a university or college 2 [(in)] a person who holds the lowest teaching rank at a British or American university or college
lec-ture-ship /'lektʃəʃɪp||-ər-/ n [(in)] the position of a LECTURER: a lectureship in mathematics
-led → see WORD FORMATION TABLE
led /led/ past tense & participle of LEAD
LED /el i: 'di:/ n tech abbrev. for light emitting diode; a small piece of equipment on a watch, computer screen etc that produces light when electricity passes through it
Le-da /'li:də/ in Greek MYTHOLOGY, the wife of the king of SPARTA, who had a sexual relationship with the god ZEUS, when he changed himself into a SWAN (=a large white bird) to visit her secretly
ledge /ledʒ/ n 1 a narrow flat shelf or surface, especially one on the edge of an upright object: a window ledge (=below a window) 2 a flat surface of rock, especially one that stretches a long way below the sea
led-ger /'ledʒər/ n 1 an account book recording the money taken in and given out by a business, bank etc 2 also ledger line /'·· ·/, leger, leger line — a short line added above or below a STAVE on which music is written, for notes that are too high or too low to be recorded on the stave → see also ST LEGER
Led 'Zeppelin a British group of the late 1960s and 1970s, who are generally regarded as the inventors of the heavy metal style of music. Their most famous song is Stairway to Heaven.
lee /li:/ n [the] fml 1 [(of)] shelter, especially from rough weather or wind: We took refuge in the lee of the wall. 2 the side of especially a ship that is away from the wind → see also LEE SHORE
Lee, Bruce (1941-73) a Chinese actor, born in the US, who was famous for his skill at KUNG FU (=an ancient Chinese style of fighting), and who appeared in films such as Enter the Dragon (1973)
Lee, Christopher (1922-) a British film actor, known for acting in HORROR FILMS (=films that are intended to make you feel frightened) and especially for appearing as the character Dracula
Lee, General Rob-ert E. /'rɒbət i:'li:'rɑ:bərt-/ (1807-70) a US soldier who was the commander of the CONFEDERATE army during the American Civil War, and is generally regarded as the best military leader in that war
Lee, Har-per /'hɑ:pər ǁ'hɑ:r-/ (1926-) an American writer who wrote only one NOVEL, To Kill a Mockingbird. She won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1961.
Lee, Laur-ie /'lɒri||'lɔ:-/ (1914-97) a British writer and poet, known especially for his book CIDER WITH ROSIE, which describes English country life when he was a child
Lee, Peg-gy /'pegɪ/ (1920-2002) a US singer and actress who