lean definition | Dictionary.com

lean

1 [leen]

verb, leaned or (especially British

) leant; lean⋅ing; noun

–verb (used without object)

1.	to incline or bend from a vertical position: She leaned out the window.

2.	to incline, as in a particular direction; slant: The post leans to the left. The building leaned sharply before renovation.

3.	to incline in feeling, opinion, action, etc.: to lean toward socialism.

4.	to rest against or on something for support: to lean against a wall.

5.	to depend or rely (usually fol. by on or upon): someone he could lean on in an emergency.

–verb (used with object)

6.	to incline or bend: He leaned his head forward.

7.	to cause to lean or rest; prop: to lean a chair against the railing.

–noun

8.	the act or state of leaning; inclination: The tower has a pronounced lean.

—Verb phrase

lean on, Informal.

a.	to exert influence or pressure on in order to gain cooperation, maintain discipline, or the like: The state is leaning on the company to clean up its industrial wastes.

b.	to criticize, reprimand, or punish: I would have enjoyed school more if the teachers hadn't leaned on me so much.

—Idiom

10.	lean over backward(s). bend ¹ (def. 20).

Origin:
bef. 900; ME lenen, OE hleonian, hlinian; c. G. lehnen; akin to L clīnāre to incline, Gk kl

nein

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lean

2 [leen]

adjective, -er, -est, noun

–adjective

1.	(of persons or animals) without much flesh or fat; not plump or fat; thin: lean cattle.

2.	(of edible meat) containing little or no fat.

3.	lacking in richness, fullness, quantity, etc.; poor: a lean diet; lean years.

4.	spare; economical: a lean prose style.

5.	Automotive. (of a mixture in a fuel system) having a relatively low ratio of fuel to air (contrasted with rich ).

6.	(of paint) having more pigment than oil. Compare fat (def. 12).

7.	Nautical. (of a bow) having fine lines; sharp.

8.	Metallurgy. (of ore) having a low mineral content; low-grade.

–noun

9.	the part of flesh that consists of muscle rather than fat.

10.	the lean part of anything.

11.	Typesetting. matter that is difficult to set because of complexity or intermixed fonts. Compare fat (def. 23).

Origin:
bef. 1000; ME lene, OE hlǣne

Related forms:

leanly, adverb

leanness, noun

Synonyms:
1. skinny, lank, lanky. See thin. 3. sparse, barren, unfruitful, jejune.

Antonyms:
1, 2. fat. 3. fruitful.

Lean

[leen]

–noun

David, 1908–91, British film director.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source

Link To lean

lean¹ (lēn)

v. leaned, lean·ing, leans

v. intr.

To bend or slant away from the vertical.
To incline the weight of the body so as to be supported: leaning against the railing. See Synonyms at slant.
To rely for assistance or support: Lean on me for help.
To have a tendency or preference: a government that leans toward fascism.
Informal To exert pressure: The boss is leaning on us to meet the deadline.

v. tr.

To set or place so as to be resting or supported.
To cause to incline.

n. A tilt or an inclination away from the vertical.

[Middle English lenen, from Old English hleonian; see klei- in Indo-European roots.]

lean² (lēn)

adj. lean·er, lean·est

Not fleshy or fat; thin.
Containing little or no fat.
1. Not productive or prosperous; meager: lean years.
2. Containing little excess or waste; spare: a lean budget.
3. Thrifty in management; economical: "Company leaders know their industries must be lean to survive" (Christian Science Monitor).
Metallurgy Low in mineral contents: lean ore.
Chemistry Lacking in combustible material: lean fuel.

n. Meat with little or no fat.

[Middle English lene, from Old English hlǣne.]
lean'ly adv., lean'ness n.

Synonyms: These adjectives mean lacking excess flesh. Lean emphasizes absence of fat: fattened the lean cattle for market.
Spare sometimes suggests trimness and good muscle tone: "an old man, very tall and spare, with an ascetic aspect" (William H. Mallock).
Skinny and scrawny imply unattractive thinness, as with undernourishment: The child has skinny legs with prominent knees. "He [had] a long, scrawny neck that rose out of a very low collar" (Winston Churchill).
Lank describes one who is thin and tall, and lanky one who is thin, tall, and ungraceful: "He was . . . exceedingly lank, with narrow shoulders" (Washington Irving). The boy had developed into a lanky adolescent.
Rawboned suggests a thin, bony, gangling build: a rawboned cowhand.
Gaunt implies boniness and a haggard appearance; it may suggest illness or hardship: a white-haired pioneer, her face gaunt from overwork.

Lean (lēn)

British filmmaker. His works include The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) and Lawrence of Arabia (1962), both of which won Academy Awards.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source

Lean

Lean\ (l[=e]n), v. t. [Icel. leyna; akin to G. l["a]ugnen to deny, AS. l[=y]gnian, also E. lie to speak falsely.] To conceal. [Obs.] --Ray.

Lean

Lean\ (l[=e]n), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Leaned (l[=e]nd), sometimes Leant (l[e^]nt); p. pr. & vb. n. Leaning.] [OE. lenen, AS. hlinian, hleonian, v. i.; akin to OS. hlin[=o]n, D. leunen, OHG. hlin[=e]n, lin[=e]n, G. lehnen, L. inclinare, Gr. kli`nein, L. clivus hill, slope. [root]40. Cf. Declivity, Climax, Incline, Ladder.]

1. To incline, deviate, or bend, from a vertical position; to be in a position thus inclining or deviating; as, she leaned out at the window; a leaning column. "He leant forward." --Dickens.

2. To incline in opinion or desire; to conform in conduct; -- with to, toward, etc.

They delight rather to lean to their old customs. --Spenser.

3. To rest or rely, for support, comfort, and the like; -- with on, upon, or against.

He leaned not on his fathers but himself. --Tennyson.

Lean

Lean\, v. t. [From Lean, v. i.; AS. hl[=ae]nan, v. t., fr. hleonian, hlinian, v. i.] To cause to lean; to incline; to support or rest. --Mrs. Browning.

His fainting limbs against an oak he leant. --Dryden.

Lean

Lean\ (l[=e]n), a. [Compar. Leaner (l[=e]n"[~e]r); superl. Leanest.] [OE. lene, AS. hl[=ae]ne; prob. akin to E. lean to incline. See Lean, v. i. ]

1. Wanting flesh; destitute of or deficient in fat; not plump; meager; thin; lank; as, a lean body; a lean cattle.

2. Wanting fullness, richness, sufficiency, or productiveness; deficient in quality or contents; slender; scant; barren; bare; mean; -- used literally and figuratively; as, the lean harvest; a lean purse; a lean discourse; lean wages. "No lean wardrobe." --Shak.

Their lean and fiashy songs. --Milton.

What the land is, whether it be fat or lean. --Num. xiii. 20.

Out of my lean and low ability I'll lend you something. --Shak.

3. (Typog.) Of a character which prevents the compositor from earning the usual wages; -- opposed to fat; as, lean copy, matter, or type.

Syn: slender; spare; thin; meager; lank; skinny; gaunt.

Lean

Lean\, n. 1. That part of flesh which consist principally of muscle without the fat.

The fat was so white and the lean was so ruddy. --Goldsmith.

2. (Typog.) Unremunerative copy or work.

Language Translation for : lean

Spanish: inclinarse,

German: sich neigen,

Japanese: 傾く

More Translations »

lean (v.)

O.E. hleonian "to bend, recline, lie down, rest," from P.Gmc. *khlinen (cf. O.S. hlinon, O.Fris. lena, M.Du. lenen, Ger. lehnen "to lean"), from PIE base *kli- "to lean, to incline" (cf. Skt. cri- "to lean;" O.Pers. cay "to lean;" L. clivus "declivity," inclinare "cause to bend," declinare "bend down, turn aside;" Gk. klinein "to cause to slope, slant, incline"). Meaning "to incline the body against something for support" is c.1250. Fig. sense of "to trust for support" is from 1225. Sense of "to lean toward mentally, to favor" is from 1398. Colloquial to lean on "put pressure on" (someone) is first recorded 1960. Lean-to "a building whose rafters pitch against another building or wall" is from 1461.

lean (adj.)

"thin, spare, with little flesh or fat," O.E. hlæne, possibly from hlænan "cause to lean or bend," from P.Gmc. *khlainijan, which would make it related to O.E. hleonian (see lean (v.)). But perhaps rather from a PIE *qloinio- (cf. Lith. klynas "scrap, fragment," Lettish kleins "feeble").

Lean
An experimental language from the University of Nijmegen and University of East Anglia, based on graph rewriting and useful as an intermediate language. Lean is descended from Dactl0.
Clean is a subset of Lean.
["Towards an Intermediate Language Based on Graph Rewriting", H.P. Barendregt et al in PARLE: Parallel Architectures and Languages Europe, G. Goos ed, LNCS 259, Springer 1987, pp.159-175].
(1995-01-25)

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