| 释义 |
▪ I. leave, n.1|liːv|
Forms: 1 léaf, 2 lǽf, dat. léve, (3 luve), 3–6 leve, 4 lef, leef, lyve, Sc. leyf(e, leife, 4–5 lefe, leeve, Sc. leiff, 4–6 Sc. leif, 5 lewe, 6 leffe, Sc. leive, live, lyve, 6–7 lieve, 3, 6– leave.
[OE. léaf, str. fem. = OHG. *louba (MHG. loube, str. fem., early mod.G. laube):—OTeut. type *lauƀâ, whence *lauƀjan (see leve v.1 to permit).
The etymological sense is prob. ‘pleasure, approval’; the root is identical with that of love, lief, believe, etc. The mod. form represents not the OE. nom. (which would have given *leaf), but the dat. and accus. léafe, which was more frequent in use.]
1. a. Permission asked for or granted to do something: freq. in phr. to ask leave, beg leave, get leave, give leave, grant leave, have leave, obtain leave; † beside leave (obs.), by leave, with leave, without (the) leave (of).
by your leave: used as an apology for taking a liberty; often ironically used when some remark is made which will be unwelcome to the person addressed.
c900tr. Bæda's Hist. iv. v. (1890) 278 Buton þæs biscopes leafe. 11..O.E. Chron. an. 1048 (Laud MS.), [He] sæt on þam biscoprice þe se cyng him ær ᵹeunnan hæfde be his fulre leafe. a1131Ibid. an. 1128 (Laud MS.), Be þes kynges leue. c1200Trin. Coll. Hom. 167 Ure drihten..ȝaf leue þe deuel to binimende him his oref and his ahte. c1220Bestiary 226 Wat if he leue haue of ure heuen louerd for to deren us. a1300Shires & Hundreds Eng. in O.E. Misc. 145 Myd þes kinges leaue. a1300Fall & Passion 75 in E.E.P. (1862) 14 Þo pilat had igrant is luue glade y-noȝ ho was: he nem þat swet bodi adun an biriid hir in a fair plas. a1300Cursor M. 14744 Mi hus agh be..Hus o praier..And yee mak it, wit-vten leue, A to-draght o reuer and thefe. c1325Deo Gracias 33 in E.E.P. (1862) 125 Þen seide þe prest, sone bi þi leue I most seye forþ my seruise. c1374Chaucer Troylus iii. 622 But execut was al bisyde hir leue At the goddes wil. 1375Barbour Bruce xvii. 863 But leiff, he hame has tane his gat. c1380Wyclif Wks. (1880) 40 Here wyues han ȝouen here housbondis lyue [MS. W. leeve]. c1385Chaucer L.G.W. 2283 Philomene, At the laste leue hath she to go. c1400Mandeville (Roxb.) v. 17 To haue leue for to passe mare surely thurgh þe cuntreez. 1596Shakes. Merch. V. iv. i. 395, I pray you giue me leaue to goe from hence. 1599in Buttes' Dyets drie Dinner P vij b, Buttes (by thy leaue) Ile be a Guest of thine. 1608Topsell Serpents (1658) 816 But by their leaves these reasons are very weak. 1613Purchas Pilgrimage (1614) 293 They never goe abroad without leave, except to the Bath. 1653A. Wilson Jas. I, 112 Sir Walter Rawleigh..made Accesses to the King, whereby he got leave to visit the New World. 1705Hickeringill Priestcr. (1721) i. 41 If the French King invade without putting off his Hat, or saying, by your Leave. 1713Addison Guardian No. 140 ⁋2 By my correspondent's good leave, I can by no means consent. 1815W. H. Ireland Scribbleomania 253 Upon which subject I shall beg leave to dwell a little. 1838Dickens Nich. Nick. iii, I'll speak to you a moment, ma'am, with your leave. 1840― Barn. Rudge xvi, The solitary passenger was startled by the chairmen's cry of ‘By your leave there!’ as two came trotting past him. 1855Browning Fra Lippo 1, I am poor brother Lippo, by your leave! 1885Law Rep. 29 Chanc. Div. 268 Pursuant to this leave, the daughter..applied to add to the decree.
b. Proverbs.
1523Fitzherb. Husb. §143 Seldom doth the housbande thryve withoute the leve of his wyfe. 1546J. Heywood Prov. (1867) 20 Ye might haue knokt er ye came in, leaue is light. 1633B. Jonson Love's Welcome at Welbeck, Leave is ever faire, being ask'd; and granted is as light, according to our English Proverbe, Leave is light.
†c. to give leave (fig., of conditions or circumstances): to allow, permit. Obs.
1500–20Dunbar Poems xxix. 7 Quhen I wald blythlie ballattis breif, Langour thairto givis me no leif. 1576Fleming Panopl. Epist. 316 As the measure of my abilitie wil give me leave. 1617Moryson Itin. ii. 109 He would..keepe the field as neere Tyrone, as his meanes would give him leave. 1644Direct. Publ. Worship 39 So far as the time will giue leaue. 1797Encycl. Brit. IX. 14/1 One..of these..columns will become longer..and give the lighter fluid..leave to rise in its place.
†d. to give (a fish) leave: to give (him) play.
1653W. Lauson Comm. on Secr. Angling C 5 When you have hookt him, give him leave, keeping your Line straight.
e. In military, naval, and official use (also sometimes in schools and gen. in offices, etc.): (a) leave of absence, or simply leave, permission to be absent from a post of duty. (See also sick-leave.) on leave: absent from duty by permission. (b) Hence, the period of such absence.
1771Burke Let. 31 July, Corr. (1844) I. 255 He has got a leave of absence. 1802C. James Milit. Dict., Leave of absence, a permission which is granted to officers..and soldiers, to be absent from camp or quarters for any specific period. 1829Marryat F. Mildmay x, To-morrow my leave expires. 1831Lamb Ess. Elia Ser. ii. Newspapers 35 yrs. ago 342 On one fine summer holyday (a ‘whole day's leave’ we called it at Christ's Hospital). 1844Regul. & Ord. Army 86 Officers, going on Leave of Absence. 1860Reade Cloister & H. xxxviii, He was going on leave, after some years of service, to see his kindred at Remiremont. 1864Tennyson Sea Dreams 6 They..Came, with a month's leave given them, to the sea. 1878N. Amer. Rev. CXXVI. 93 Furloughed men returned..before their ‘leaves’ had terminated. 1963Times 28 Sept. 9/4 While not personally subscribing to the use of the term ‘on leave’ by office workers to describe their annual break(s), I can contribute reasons for their doing so. 1973Times 17 Apr. 12/8 She will be on a six month leave-of-absence from the [National Theatre] company. 1974P. De Vries Glory of Hummingbird xiv. 206 It'll only be a leave of absence... But..if there's a blowup, the firm will be able to say you were let go.
2. a. to take (one's) leave (const. of, † at, † to, † on): orig. † to obtain permission to depart (obs. rare); hence, to depart with some expression of farewell; to bid farewell. † Also rarely, to fang leave, get leave, have leave, latch leave. (See also French leave.) to take leave (const. inf.): used as a formula to draw attention, with a somewhat ponderous affectation of presumption, to a truth or state of affairs; cf. beg v. 3.
c1250Gen. & Ex. 2697 Mai he no leue at hire taken but-if he it mai mið crafte maken. a1300Cursor M. 4999 Þair leue þai laght [Trin. toke], and war ful blith. 1375Barbour Bruce v. 253 Thar-with-all he lowtit, and his leyf has tane. Ibid. xx. 109 Quhen on bath halfis levis wes tane. c1386Chaucer Frankl. T. 763 They take hir leue, and on hir wey they gon. a1400–50Alexander 899 Faire at philip þe fers þair leue þai fangen. c1430Syr Tryam. 52 He toke hys leve at the quene. c1435Torr. Portugal 946 Torrente..toke leve on kyng and knyght. 1447O. Bokenham Seyntys (Roxb.) 31 Aftyr leve takyn to shyp they went. c1460J. Russell Bk. Nurture 970 Of youre souerayne take no leue; but low to hym alowt. c1500Melusine lvii. 334 He toke leue to the Pope. 1523Ld. Berners Froiss. I. x. 9 This lady departed..and all her company, with syr John of Heynaulte, who with great peyne gatte leue of his brother. 1593Shakes. Rich. II, i. iii. 50 Let vs take a ceremonious leaue And louing farwell of our seuerall friends. 1596Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. x. 458 Jlk from vther takeng thair lyue departet. 1610B. Jonson Alch. v. iv, We will..take our leaues of this ore-weaning raskall. 1611[see take v. 21]. 1667Milton P.L. iii. 739 And Satan bowing low..Took leave. 1719De Foe Crusoe ii. xvi. (1840) 342 The young lord took his leave of us. 1814T. S. Raffles Substance of Minute on Java 100, I take leave to observe, that the state of landed tenure here is very different from what it is reported to be in other parts of Java. 1820[see take v. 21]. 1834M. Edgeworth Helen III. v. 93 We must take leave to pause one moment to remark..that the first little fib in which Lady Cecilia..indulged herself..occasioned her..a good deal of..trouble. 1864Mrs. Carlyle Lett. III. 236 When she took leave of me the night before starting. 1928Sat. Rev. 28 July 127/1 Stephen has many excellent qualities both of heart and head, though whether her sufferings would have cradled her into a first-rate novelist we take leave to doubt. 1938‘M. Innes’ Lament for Maker i. viii. 53 We may take leave to think the silly body stood there in the sleet and cursed the lure of the wanderer roundly.
b. transf. and fig.
1500–20Dunbar Poems xxii. 73 Twa curis or thre hes vpolandis Michell Thocht he fra nolt had new tane leif. 1508in Dunbar's Poems (1893) 321, I tak my leve at all vnstedfastnes. 1597Morley Introd. Mus. 115, I wil then take my leaue of you for this time, till my next leisure, at which time I meane to learne of you that part of musicke which resteth. 1655Fuller Ch. Hist. v. iv. §41. 225 We take our leaves of Tyndal. 1660Milton Free Commw. Wks. 1738 I. 587 They may permit us a little Shroving-time first, wherin to speak freely, and take our leaves of Liberty. 1703Maundrell Journ. Jerus. (1732) 108 We went to take our leaves of the holy Sepulcher. 1723Wodrow Corr. (1843) III. 33 There was never a schoolboy more desirous to have the play than I am to have leave of this world. 1771Franklin Autobiog. Wks. 1840 I. 65, I now took leave of printing, as I thought, for ever. 1916A. Bennett Lion's Share v. 40 ‘Mother!’ cried Audrey. ‘Have you taken leave of your senses?’ 1942‘M. Innes’ Daffodil Affair ii. iv. 58, I think you've taken leave of your senses. 1968L. Goodman Sun Signs (1970) 325 You'll think I've taken leave of my senses, if you've just met that particular Pluto person. 1972‘M. Innes’ Open House ii. xiii. 129 Nothing of the kind... You must have taken leave of your senses.
†3. Leave-taking; in phr. audience of leave: see audience 6. Obs.
c1400Destr. Troy v. 1823 Antenor vntomly turnet his way Withoutyn lowtyng or lefe. 1711[see audience 6]. 1724Lond. Gaz. No. 6321/1 Mr. Finch had his Audience of Leave of the King and Queen of Sweden. 1734tr. Rollin's Anc. Hist. (1827) VII. vii. xvii. 226 The king having like⁓wise tendered them very considerable presents at their audience of leave.
4. to give (a person) his leave: to give him his dismissal. to get one's leave: to get one's dismissal. Now only Sc. (Cf. F. congé.)
1508Dunbar Tua mariit wemen 67 We suld..gif all larbaris thair leveis, quhan thai lak curage. a1568Coverdale Bk. Death xxvi. (1579) 118 The sicke must geue all other worldely matters theyr leave. 1637Rutherford Lett. (1862) I. 272 He..wd. give an evil servant his leave at mid-term.
5. attrib. and Comb., as leave camp, leave centre, leave-giving, leave list, leave period, leave permit, leave rota, leave-way; leave-boat, a boat carrying troops on leave; leave-breaker, a sailor who breaks his leave of absence; so leave-breaking; leave-day (also leave-out day), at certain schools, a day on which boys are allowed to go beyond the precincts of the school; leave draft, a detachment of troops on leave; † leave-niming = leave-taking; leave-out, at certain schools, permission to go beyond the school precincts; cf. leave-day, leave-out day; leave party Mil., a group of servicemen on leave; leave-taker, one making his farewell; leave-train, a train carrying troops on leave.
1917‘Contact’ Airman's Outings v. 118 Passengers on a Channel *leave-boat are quieter than might be expected. 1922Blunden Bonadventure iii. 21 To the Plate and back again, in a cargo ship!.. The voyage, no doubt, would be more arduous than that in the leave-boat from Boulogne to Folkestone.
c1860H. Stuart Seaman's Catech. p. v, *Leave-breakers prevent the officers from giving the indulgence.
Ibid., *Leave-breaking is occasioned by the indulgence of..vices.
1945W. S. Churchill Victory (1946) 109 Eight new *leave camps are under construction.
1961Reader's Digest Feb. 24/1 Last March..the government was asked why African airmen in Her Majesty's service had been excluded from a Kenya *leave centre. 1966New Statesman 14 Oct. 537/3 The lavish structure of permanent installations, family homes, schools, leave centres and the like is enormously costly.
1817Coleridge Biog. Lit. I. 16 In my friendless wanderings on our *leave-days. [footnote] The Christ Hospital phrase, not for holidays altogether, but for those on which the boys are permitted to go beyond the precincts of the school.
1920Blackw. Mag. May 608/2 The sallow complexions..and leanness of a *leave draft from the Palestine front.
1450–1530Myrr. our Ladye 102 Wyttynge well that the blyssyng, or *leaue geuynge, longeth pryncypally to God.
1917‘Contact’ Airman's Outings v. 108 Only during the intervals of attack is the *leave-list unpigeonholed.
1340Ayenb. 112 Vor he hit ous let: at his *yleave-nymynge and at his laste bequide.
1854Keble in Life (1869) xvii. 394 When he comes here on *leave-out days.
1940M. Marples Public School Slang 164 I've got *leave-out. 1955Times 18 Aug. 10/6 When I was in College at Winchester, one of our favourite pastimes used to be hitch-hiking on leave-out days. These were free days during term when we could do as we liked.
1916W. Owen Let. 3 July (1967) 398, I had the *Leave Party to conduct to the Station the other day.
1954W. Faulkner Fable 128 During three of these two-week *leave-periods..the entire squad had vanished from France.., and reappeared one morning two weeks later.
1906Daily Chron. 14 May 5/2 The report..recommends..that traffic in *leave-permits be made illegal.
1940‘Gun Buster’ Return via Dunkirk i. x. 76 I've been looking at the *leave rota, and see you're down for January 10.
1891Kipling Light that Failed xv. 310 Bess found Dick his cabin in the wild turmoil of a ship full of *leavetakers and weeping relatives. 1922Joyce Ulysses 190 The quaker librarian came from the leavetakers.
1917‘Contact’ Airman's Outings v. 113 The train, true to the custom of *leave trains, was very late. 1918A. Bennett Pretty Lady xx. 132 Then I can't catch my train at Victoria..the leave-train. My leave is up to-night.
1913T. E. Lawrence Let. 29 Sept. (1938) 157 They half suggested a royalty of a pound a head a day, as *leave-way to dig.
▪ II. leave, n.2|liːv|
[f. leave v.1 3.]
In Billiards, etc., the position in which the balls are left for the next player or stroke.
1896W. Broadfoot et al. Billiards x. 319 Every leave was the result of accident rather than of design. 1903W. Mitchell Cue Tips 6 The most interesting and not the least useful way to practise billiards..is..to place the balls in certain favourable positions upon the table and attempt to make as large a break as possible from the ‘leave’. 1914Ld. Tollemache Croquet xiv. 74 A well thought-out and finished Leave is one of the hall-marks of a first-class player. 1929J. Davis Billiards Up-to-Date viii. 89 An exception..is seen when, at the commencement of a break, an opponent presents you with a leave which necessitates the use of side. 1936― Improve Your Snooker xii. 69, I cannot guarantee you will bring off this shot if you are presented with a similar leave. 1968Croquet July 2/2 It is when we consider how to make leaves against good shots that the fun really begins.
▪ III. leave, v.1|liːv|
Forms: 1 lǽfan, 2–3 læven, lefen, lefven, leven, 3 leafen, leave(n, 4–5 leef, leeve, -yn, leff(e, leif(e, lev, leyf(f, -fe, -ve, (lyve), 4–6 lef(e, leve(n, lewe, leif(f, 6 (leavy) Sc. laif, live, 7 leaf, leav, 8–9 Sc. (colloq.) lea', 5– leave. pa. tense 1 lǽfde, 2–3 læfde, l(e)afde, læv-, lefede, 3–5 leved(e, 4–5 lefid, -it, lef(f)yt, Sc. lewid, -it, -yt, 4–6 lafde, laf(f)t(e, lefte, (5 leeft, lefft, levit, leyfft), Sc. leifit, 6 leaft, 4– left. pa. pple. 1 lǽfed, 3 leaved, 4 le(v)ed, -id, -it, leift, leyved; also 4 leven, 5 leve, 4–5 laf(f)te, -yn, 4–6 lefte, Sc. lev-, lewyt, 6 leaft, 4– left. See also y-left.
[OE. lǽfan trans. and intr., corresp. to OFris. lêva to leave, OS. -lêƀian in farlêƀid pa. pple., left over), OHG., MHG. leiben, ON. leifa to leave, Goth. -laibjan (in bilaibjan to leave behind):—OTeut. *laiƀjan, f. *laiƀâ remainder, relic (see lave n.), whence also the intr. vbs. OS. lêƀôn, OHG. leibên to remain. The OTeut. *laiƀjan is the causative of *lîƀan str. vb., represented by the compounds OE. belífan (see belive v.), OFris. belîva, blîva, MDu. blîven (Du. blijven), OHG. belîban (MHG. belîben, blîben, mod.G. bleiben), to remain.
The root (OTeut. *lī̆ƀ-, *laiƀ -:—OAryan *lip-, *leip-, *loip-) has in Teut. only the sense ‘to remain, continue’ (so in life, live v.), which appears also in Gr. λῑπαρής persevering, importunate. This sense is usually regarded as a development from a primary sense ‘to adhere, be sticky’, exemplified in Lith. lìpti, OSl. lĭpěti to adhere, lěpiti to stick, Gr. λίπος grease, Skr. rip-, lip- to smear, adhere to.
The view of some scholars, that the Teut. words may belong to the Aryan root *leiq- to leave (whence Gr. λείπειν, L. linquěre), is plausible with regard to the sense, but the tendency of recent research is unfavourable to the admission of its formal possibility.]
I. To have a remainder; to cause or allow to remain.
1. a. trans. Of a deceased person: To have remaining after one (a widow, children, property, reputation, etc.).
c1000Ags. Gosp. Mark xii. 22 And ealle seofon hi hæfdon & sæd ne læfdon. 1382Wyclif Ruth i. 3 The housboond of Noemie, is deed, and she lafte with the sones. c1400Apol. Loll. 4 Better to die wiþ out barnes, þan to lef vnpitouse barnis aftir. 1604E. G[rimstone] D'Acosta's Hist. Indies vi. xii. 455 For the entertainment of the family he left. 1818Cruise Digest (ed. 2) VI. 512 In case he should..leave no lawful heir. 1838Thirlwall Greece V. 165 He left an infant son named Amyntas. 1881Gardiner & Mullinger Study Eng. Hist. i. vi. 103 The medieval saints..had left no successors. 1891Law Reports Weekly Notes 201/1 He intended that whatever property he left should be divided.
b. Of things or conditions: To have remaining as a trace or consequence after removal or cessation.
1756C. Lucas Ess. Waters III. 296 Most chalybeate waters leave no common vitriol upon evaporation. 1814Wordsw. Excursion vii. 27 It had left, Deposited upon the silent shore Of memory, images and precious thoughts. 1823F. Clissold Ascent Mt. Blanc 24 This area is so detached from the rock, as to leave a crevasse running along its base. 1885Sir J. Hannen in Law Reports 10 P.D. 87 A small blister, which subsided in a day or two leaving only a redness of the skin.
2. a. To transmit at one's death to heirs or successors. Hence, to direct that (something which one possesses) shall descend after one's death to a specified person, corporation, etc.; to bequeath or devise. Also in indirect passive.
Beowulf 1179 (Gr.) Þinum maᵹum læf folc ond rice. c1000Ags. Gosp. John xiv. 27 Ic læfe eow sibbe. a1300Cursor M. 24235 Sin i sal to mi fader fare, I sal þe leue a fere. 1484Caxton Fables of Alfonce iii, A good man labourer wente fro lyf to deth [and] lefte nothyng to his sone but only a hows. 1508Dunbar Poems vi. 36 Corpus meum ebriosum, I leif on to the toune of Air. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 27 Than we made our last wyll and testament, whan we lefte to the worlde our kynne and frendes. 1559W. Cuningham Cosmogr. Glasse 3 We should have left many more errours to our posteritie. 1580Sidney Ps. xvii. xi, They in riches floorish doe, And children have to leave it to. 1651Hobbes Leviath. ii. xxviii. 162 It was not given, but left to him, and to him onely. 1676Lady Chaworth in 12th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. v. 29 Poore cosin Brooks hath left me 10l. 1713Addison Guardian No. 97 ⁋1, I was left a thousand pounds by an uncle. 1732Berkeley Alciph. i. §1 A good collection, chiefly of old books, left him by a clergyman his uncle. 1844Dickens Mart. Chuz. xliv, If I knew how you meant to leave your money. 1849Macaulay Hist. Eng. vi. II. 127 The seventeenth century has, in that unhappy country, left to the nineteenth a fatal heritage of malignant passions. 1876Mozley Univ. Serm. iv. (1877) 87 Suppose him suddenly to be left an enormous fortune. 1895Bookman Oct. 23/1 The great engravers of the age of Louis have left us innumerable portraits.
absol.1837Syd. Smith Let. to Singleton Wks. 1859 II, Men of Lincoln have left to Lincoln Cathedral, and men of Hereford, to Hereford.
b. In passive: to be (well, etc.) left: to be (well, etc.) provided for by legacy or inheritance.
1606Dekker Sev. Sinnes v. (Arb.) 36 Richmens sonnes that were left well. 1875J. Grant One of the ‘600’ ii. 21 Cora shall be well and handsomely left.
3. a. To allow to remain in the same place or condition; to abstain from taking, consuming, removing, or dealing with in some particular manner. to be left: to remain.
c1000Ags. Gosp. Luke xix. 44 Hiᵹ ne læfað on þe stan ofer stane. c1205Lay. 994 Al heora god we sculen nimen, & lutel hem læuen. a1225Ancr. R. 70 Muche fol he were..ȝif he grunde þe greot & lefde þene hwete. a1300Cursor M. 4983 Þe yongeist..þai lefte at þeir fader in. Ibid. 5401 Es vs noght leued bot erth bar. 1340Hampole Pr. Consc. 100 Wharfor that man may be halden wode, That cheses the ille and leves the gude. 1375Barbour Bruce i. 247 Fre liking to leyve, or do That at hys hart hym drawis to. 1382Wyclif Num. ix. 12 Thei shulen not leeue of it eny thing vnto the morwe. a1548Hall Chron., Hen. VI, 129 It was not the poynt of a wiseman, to leave and let passe, the certain for the uncertain. 1576Fleming Panopl. Epist. 67 For, what place is left now for honestie? where lodgeth goodnes? 1693Evelyn De la Quint. Compl. Gard., Dict., To Head a Tree, is to cut off the Head or Top, leaving only the bare Stem without any Top Branches. 1697W. Dampier Voy. I. 315 The Trunk..they leave in the Sun 2 or 3 days. 1709Steele Tatler No. 139 ⁋1 Business and Ambition take up Men's Thoughts too much to leave Room for Philosophy. 1822Lamb Elia Ser. i. Distant Correspondents, If you do not make haste to return, there will be little left to greet you, of me, or mine. 1845Budd Dis. Liver 264 Persons who..have..very little liver left. 1898N. & Q. 15 Oct. 301/2 The six [criminals]..were however ‘left for death’ as the phrase then went.
†b. absol., esp. in the sense ‘not to consume the whole of one's portion of food, etc.’; also with over.
1603Knolles Hist. Turks 893 He..made himselfe able at his own choice and pleasure to leave or take. 1611Bible Ruth ii. 14 She did eate, and was sufficed, and left [1551 Coverdale, left over]. 1642Fuller Holy & Prof. State iv. xiv. 310 A worthy work (wherein the Reader may rather leave then lack).
c. To have as a remainder (in the operation of subtraction). Of a number or quantity: To yield (so much) as a remainder when deducted from some larger amount.
c1425Crafte of Nombrynge (E.E.T.S.) 18 Medie 8. þen þou schalt leue 4. 1709J. Ward Introd. Math. ii. ii. §2 (1734) 150, a - b Taken from a + b Leaves + 2b for the Remainder. 1896A. E. Housman Shropshire Lad ii, And take from seventy springs a score, It only leaves me fifty more.
d. With complementary n., adj., or phrase: To allow to remain in a specified condition; not to change from being so-and-so. Often with a negative ppl. a., to leave undone, leave unsaid etc. = to abstain from doing, saying, etc. Also, with mixture of sense 7 b: To put into, or allow to remain in, a certain condition on one's departure.
c1205Lay. 1508 Nulleð heo leaue [1275 lefuen] nenne of ous a-liue. a1300Cursor M. 11228 The sonne goth thorogh glas And levith yt hole as it was. 1375Barbour Bruce ix. 453 He levit nocht about that toune Tour standand, stane no wall. 1526Tindale Matt. xxiii. 23 For ye tythe mynt annys and commen and leave the waygthtyer mattres of the lawe ondone. 1552Bk. Com. Prayer, Gen. Conf., We haue left vndone those things which we oughte to haue done. 1576Fleming Panopl. Epist. 301 Then did you leave us sticking in the myre. 1591Spenser Muiopot. 155 Ne did he leave the mountaines bare unseene, Nor the ranke grassie fennes delights untride. 1613Purchas Pilgrimage (1614) 192 The Jewish..Wise-men, have left no part of life unprovided of their superstitious care. 1794Paley Evid. (1825) II. 101 To leave the argument without proofs, is to leave it without effect. 1803M. Charlton Wife & Mistress II. 62 Dolly had left the dressing-room door half open. 1809–10Coleridge Sailor's Fortune iii, Being now on that part of his life which I am obliged to leave almost a blank. 1849Macaulay Hist. Eng. iii. I. 297 An important military resource which must not be left unnoticed. 1888Law Times LXXXV. 132/2 If the timber adds beauty or shelter to the mansion-house, the tenant for life must leave it intact.
e. To allow, permit, let. colloq. (chiefly U.S.).
Cf. to leave..be s.v. sense 13.
1840Southern Lit. Messenger VI. 508/1 If you ha'nt a mind to go, you can leave it be, it's all one to me. 1863T. D. Price Diary 14 Apr. (MS.), I left him have colt. 1910J. Hart Vigilante Girl iv. 55 It's all right so long as you don't leave her get loose. 1916‘Boyd Cable’ Action Front 235 Prickles, me lad, it's deep enough we've dug to lave us get out to our German Gineral. 1935Z. N. Hurston Mules & Men (1970) i. vi. 127 Leave the weeds go. Somebody 'll come chop 'em some day. 1940J. O'Hara Pal Joey 103 But I said to him how can I pay you if you don't leave me wear it and I lose my job.
4.
†a. To neglect or omit to perform (some action, duty, etc.); = to leave undone (see 3 d); also with inf. to omit to do something. Obs.
a1300Cursor M. 3144 He left noght do his lauerd wil. c1380Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 348 Y leeve to speke of stelyng of wymmen. ― Wks. (1880) 328 Siþ þat crist myȝt not faile in ordynaunce to his chirche, & he left þis confessioun, it semeþ þat it is not nedeful. Ibid. 410 Þey leeuen þat crist biddiþ. c1489Caxton Blanchardyn xxiv. 81 He sholde not leue to bringe her his two doughters. 1502Ord. Crysten Men (W. de W. 1506) Prol. 6 Good werkes that a man leueth to do ayenst the mercy of god. 1538Starkey England i. i. 24 Yf wyse men..wold have bent themselfe to that purpose leuyng such fon respecte of tyme and place. 1557North Gueuara's Diall Pr. (1619) 69/2 They..living in flesh, did leave to use the workes..of the flesh. 1558–68Warde tr. Alexis' Secr. 24 b, Not leaving to dooe their businesse abrode notwithstanding. 1597A. M. tr. Guillemeau's Fr. Chirurg. 6/1 Yet must not we leave to effecte that which this arte requireth. 1624Quarles Sion's Elegies iii. 14 Thou leav'st what thy Creator did Will thee to doe.
absol.c1374Chaucer Troylus v. 1518 Weep if thou wolt, or leef. c1375Lay Folks Mass Bk. (MS. B.) 243 Offer or leeue, wheþer þe lyst. 1486Bk. St. Albans C v, That an hauke use hir craft all the seson to flye or lefe.
b. To allow to stand over, to postpone (an action, a subject of consideration).
1559W. Cuningham Cosmogr. Glasse 115, I will leave his composition untill I shewe you the making of it among other instrumentes. 1628Earle Microcosm., Young-man (Arb.) 51 Hee leaues repentance for gray hayres.
5. a. To abstain from appropriating, dealing with, or doing (something) so that another person or agent may be able to do so without interference; to suffer to be controlled, done, or decided by another instead of oneself; to commit, refer. Const. to or dat.; also with.
c1300Harrow. Hell 104 Heovene ant erthe tac to the—Soules in helle lef thou me. 1486Bk. St. Albans E iij b, All that bere skyne and talow and Rounge leue me. 1559W. Cuningham Cosmogr. Glasse 143, I..wil leave it to such as are Pilotes. 1561J. Daus tr. Bullinger on Apoc. (1573) 93 b, For despisyng of the simple truth, men be left vp to lying deceauers. 1590Spenser F.Q. i. vii. 9 This man forlorne And left to loss. 1638Sir T. Herbert Trav. 127, I..leave such theories to those that study Meteors. 1660F. Brooke tr. Le Blanc's Trav. 277 The flood retiring within its bounds, leaves their dwellings to their possession again. 1670A. Roberts Adventures T.S. 180 When we had our Dispatches, we left him to his own Fortune. 1726G. Roberts Four Years Voy. 302, I told him, I would leave all that to his management. 1771Junius Lett. liv. 283, I will leave him to his suspicions. 1796Burke Regic. Peace i. (C.P.S.) 73 Nothing in the Revolution..was left to accident. 1849Macaulay Hist. Eng. ii. I. 257 The rage of the hostile factions would have been sufficiently violent, if it had been left to itself. 1890Ld. Esher in Law Times Rep. LXIII. 692/1 This case ought not to have been left to the jury. 1897Allbutt's Syst. Med. III. 876 The prospect of success by operation is so slight that..it is better to leave the case to nature.
b. With obj. and inf.: To allow (a person or thing) to do something, to be done or dealt with, without interference.
1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 5 b, Leauynge them and suffrynge them to be without meate and drynke a certeyn season. 1662J. Davies tr. Olearius' Voy. Ambass. 107 The Great Duke never signs expeditions, but leaves that to be done by the Secretaries of State. 1665Hooke Microgr. 85 And what I have therein perform'd, I leave the Judicious Reader to determine. 1670A. Roberts Adventures T. S. 152 They always left them to enjoy their own without disturbing them. 1719Waterland Vind. Christ's Div. v. (1720) 81 In the Interim I may fairly leave you to consider it. 1818Cruise Digest (ed. 2) II. 233 To leave the title of the inheritance to go one way, and the trust of the term another way. 1818Cobbett Pol. Reg. XXXIII. 116 He left him to shift for himself. 1828Scott F.M. Perth xxxv, The Earl rode off..leaving Albany to tell his tale as he best could. 1881Gardiner & Mullinger Study Eng. Hist. i. ix. 165 The future was to be left to take care of itself. 1895Law Times Rep. LXXIII. 22/1 The court..left the parties to take their own course.
c. to leave (something, much, etc.) to be desired (to wish, etc.): to be (more or less) imperfect or unsatisfactory.
Common in journalistic use; suggested by the F. laisser à désirer, which is sometimes, though faultily, imitated in its ellipsis of the obj.
[1769F. Brooke Hist. Emily Montague IV. 189 Every anxiety is removed from my Emily's dear bosom: a father's sanction leaves her nothing to desire.] 1780F. Burney Diary & Lett. (1842) I. viii. 335 Etty plays as if inspired, and in taste, expression, delicacy and feeling, leaves nothing to wish. 1835Athenæum 16 May 371/1 Her style, too, leaves little to be desired. 1852Harper's Mag. Aug. 422/2 This edition leaves nothing to be desired by the most fastidious book-fancier. 1876F. Pollock Pollock-Holmes Lett. (1942) I. 6 Kent is a considerable advance, but leaves much to be desired. 1895F. Espinasse Life E. Renan x. 185 Dean Stanley's French accent left much to be desired, but his volubility was indisputable. 1939M. Allingham Mr. Campion & Others i. iii. 65 The staff still left much to be desired and the food..was certainly not cooked by a master. 1953G. Durrell Overloaded Ark ix. 166 Apart from his face, which left much to be desired, his feet were swollen to twice normal size with elephantiasis. 1967A. Bailey in L. Deighton London Dossier 52 The vegetables leave much to be desired, but the Stilton is worth having. 1974Times 22 Jan. 2 When the clubs first applied for licences it was decided not to oppose them. ‘Now that we know how they operate, we feel they leave a lot to be desired.’
6. To deposit or give in charge (some object) or station (persons) to remain after one's departure; to give (instructions, orders, information, e.g. one's name or address) for use during one's absence. Phrase, to leave a card on (a person).
c1350Will. Palerne 1858 His bag wiþ his bilfodur wiþ þe best he lafte. c1380Wyclif Serm. Sel. Wks. I. 17 Leeve þi offring at þe auter. a1548Hall Chron., Hen. VIII, 104 b, He left another nombre and left capitaines to overse them. 1655Stanley Hist. Philos. i. (1701) 30/1 He..left order with his friends that they should carry his bones to Salamis. 1704De Foe in 15th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. iv. 83 The letter has not reached your hands, though left with your porter last Friday night. c1709Prior Protogenes & Apelles 50 Will you please To leave your name? 1797A. M. Bennett Beggar Girl (1813) IV. 63 He wanted to leave his address, and she flounced away, and would not take it. 1813P. Hawker Diary (1893) I. 65, I left word that if I won the cheese I would give it to the old man again. 1860Tyndall Glac. i. xvi. 117 Until we reached the point where we had left our wine in the morning. 1861Dickens Gt. Expect. xxxvii, He left word that he would soon be home. 1883Ld. R. Gower My Remin. II. xxvi. 160 A contradictious old man..had been left in charge of a boat which he had moored to the pier.
absol.a1715Burnet Own Time (1724) I. 382 As she drew near a village she often ordered her coach to stay behind till she had walked about it, giving orders for the instruction of the children and leaving liberally for that end.
II. To depart from, quit, relinquish.
7. a. To go away from, quit (a place, person, or thing); to deviate from (a line of road, etc.).
a1225Ancr. R. 130 Treowe ancren beoð briddes bitocned: vor heo leaueð þe eorðe. a1300Cursor M. 17288 + 296 ‘Leues þis’, he saide, ‘& telles fast mi brether..þat [etc.]’. c1400Destr. Troy. 7549 Þen fled all in fere, & the fild leuit. Ibid. 9498 The Troiens lighten doun lyuely, lefton thair horses. a1400–50Alexander 330 With þat rysis vp þe renke & his rowme lefys. 1535Coverdale Prov. ii. 13 From soch as leaue the hye strete and walke in ye wayes of darcknesse. a1557Diurn. Occurr. (Bannatyne Club) 11 Quha causit the said erle leif the toun. 1584D. Powel Lloyd's Cambria 269 Rees leaft the castele with his wife and children. 1660F. Brooke tr. Le Blanc's Trav. 18 At two leagues from Outer we left the most part of our company. 1676Lady Chaworth in 12th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. v. 29 The Duke and his family left Whitehall for St. James's yesterday. 1724De Foe Mem. Cavalier (1840) 33, I left Italy in April. 1788Burns Wks. II. 200, I maun lea'e my bonnie Mary. 1795Gentl. Mag. 543/2 Whether the antient road to the passage over the Severn left the road to Chepstow at Crick or St. Pere. 1799Med. Jrnl. II. 139 A hoarseness came on the eleventh day, and did not leave him till the eighteenth. 1819Byron Juan i. clxiii, Pray, sir, leave the room. 1825J. Nicholson Operat. Mechanic 129 If a straight line be applied to the face of the bar from the whip to the end, the face of the bar should leave the straight line about the breadth of the bar. 1837Dickens Pickw. ii, I think we shall leave here the day after to-morrow. 1865Tylor Early Hist. Man. i. 7 They think that in sleep the soul sometimes remains in the body, and sometimes leaves it, and travels far away. 1884W. C. Smith Kildrostan 50, I thought you never left your books except To trim the boat, and set the lines. 1887M. Mackenzie Dis. Throat & Nose II. 174 He could feel it [the gas] leave the stomach. 1891E. Peacock N. Brendon I. 162 He left the table as he spoke.
absol. (colloq.)1791Bentham Let. 12 May, Wks. 1843 X. 254 So says Lord L., who himself leaves on the 1st. 1866Thirlwall Lett. II. 70, I do not leave for town until to⁓morrow. 1867R. S. Candlish in Jean L. Watson Life xiii. (1882) 144 We left about eleven, with two horses.
b. With complementary adj. or phrase, indicating the place or condition of the object quitted.
a1225Ancr. R. 162 He..wende one uppon hulles, us to uorbisne, þet we schullen..climben mid him on hulles: þet is, þenchen heie, & leauen lowe under us alle eorðliche þouhtes. a1300Cursor M. 5177 Ioseph hale and sond left wee. 1377Langl. P. Pl. B. ii. 67 Thus left me that lady Liggyng aslepe. a1548Hall Chron., Hen. VIII, 258 b, They..left the toune as they founde yt. 1559Scot in Strype Ann. Ref. I. App. x. 27 The inward [thinges] it dothe..so shake, that it leavithe them very..feble. 1699W. Dampier Voy. II. i. 165 And when the Tide goes out, it leaves the Oaz dry a quarter of a mile from the shore. a1708Beveridge Thes. Theol. (1710) I. 330 As death leaves you, judgment will find you. 1813Sketches Charac. (ed. 2) I. 170, I left her very well, a few hours ago. 1883R. W. Dixon Mano ii. iv. 78 Him there they overwhelmed, and left him dead.
c. To pass (an object) so, that it ‘bears’ so and so to one's course.
1662J. Davies tr. Olearius' Voy. Ambass. 264 As you come into the City, you leave on the right hand two very high..Mountains. 1719De Foe Crusoe i. iii. (1840) 47 We..steered.., leaving those isles on the east.
d. colloq. (orig. U.S.) to get (or be) left: to be left in the lurch.
1884E. W. Nye Baled Hay 56 That is where we get left. 1891New York Weekly Witness 11 Nov. 4/4 The man that does not sympathize with the Prohibition movement is afraid of being left. 1894G. Moore Esther Waters xii. 84 While our quarrel was going on Miss Peggy went after him, and that's how I got left. 1908Daily Chron. 16 Nov. 5/2 ‘Oh, never mind those,’ says the admiral; ‘what has the Navy got?’ ‘Got left, as usual,’ replies the lieutenant. 1928D. H. Lawrence Lady Chatterley vi. 73 It was no good being really good and getting left with it.
e. Cricket. Of the ball, to move away from (the batsman); used of a leg break delivery which turns away from the batsman.
1952A. Bedser Bowling ii. vii. 64 A type of leg-spin which, of course, makes the ball leave or go away from the batsman. 1956R. Alston Test Commentary iii. 19 Both batsmen seemed especially fallible to the ball that left them.
8. a. To go away from permanently; to remove from, cease to reside at (a place), to cease to belong to (a society, etc.); to forsake the company, quit the service of (a person).
a1225Ancr. R. 102 Nim þerto, & lef me hwon þe so is leouere. c1300Beket 884 Meni of Seint Thomas Men Levede him for eye. c1340Cursor M. 13033 (Trin.) Herodias..drad to leue heroudes kyng. 1362Langl. P. Pl. A. i. 101 Never leue hem for loue Ne for lacchyng of syluer. c1420Anturs of Arth. 176 (Thornton MS.) Thane wille thay leue the lyghtely þat nowe wil the lowte. 1535Coverdale Gen. ii. 24 For this cause shal a man leaue father and mother. 1651in Fuller's Abel Rediv., Gerardus (1867) II. 264 Leaving of the university, he travelled through most parts of France. 1700Congreve Way of World ii. i, 'Tis better to be left, than never to have been loved. 1720Ozell Vertot's Rom. Rep. I. v. 297 The Soldiers..thought they cou'd not leave their Ensigns..without offending the Gods. 1845Ld. Houghton in T. W. Reid Life (1891) I. viii. 358 My servant Frederick has just left me to set up for himself in a public-house.
absol.a1549Laneham's Let. (1871) Pref. 151 Thoch uthers luif, and leif, with all. 1882J. L. Watson Life R. S. Candlish vii. 87 When he left, it was with no prospect of temporal good things, but with a firm trust in God.
†b. To part with, lose (one's breath, life). Obs.
a1300Fragm. Pop. Sci. (Wright) 386 That other [soule deieth] whan he leveth his breth. c1400Destr. Troy 8049, I hade leuer my lyf leue in this place, Than [etc.]. c1450Lonelich Grail lvi. 14 Mordreins qwene there left hire lyf. 1570–6Lambarde Peramb. Kent (1826) 216 Sexburga left hir life at the doore of Mylton church. 1635E. Pagitt Christianogr. i. ii. (1636) 81 They had rather leave their lives, then their Religion.
9. To abandon, forsake (a habit, practice, etc.), to lay aside (a dress). Now rare or Obs., exc. in to leave off: see 14 c (a).
a1225Leg. Kath. 1340 We leaueð þi lahe and al þine bileaue. c1330R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 98 Mald þe gode quene gaf him in conseile, To..leue alle his tirpeile. c1380Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 350 He shulde be holde apostata þat lefte his abite for a day. c1380Sir Ferumb. 357 ‘Lef’, saide he, ‘þy grete foleye’. c1449Pecock Repr. i. xx. 123 But if thee wolen leue her vnwijs and proud folie. 1478Liber Niger in Pegge Cur. Misc. (1782) 78 Their Clothing is not according for the King's Knights, therefore it was left. 1484Caxton Fables of æsop i. v, For the loue of a vayn thynge men ought not to leue that whiche is certeyn. c1525Tale Basyn 218 in Hazl. E.P.P. III. 53 Then thai leuyd thair lewtnesse, and did no more soo. 1558Bp. Watson Sev. Sacram. xviii. 112 The confession of a faulte is a profession to leaue the same. 1577Harrison England ii. vi. (1877) i. 163 This fondnesse is not yet left with us. 1660F. Brooke tr. Le Blanc's Trav. 8 He was..resolved to leave Turkisme, and become a Christian again. 1697Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 647 Proteus, leave Thy fraudful Arts. 1740Johnson Lives, Barretier Wks. IV. 471 Eighteen months, during which he..neither neglected his studies nor left his gaiety. 1871R. Ellis tr. Catullus lxxvi. 13 What? it is hard long love so lightly to leave in a moment?
10. a. To cease, desist from, stop. With obj. a n. or gerund; also inf. with to. Now only arch.; = leave off (see 14 c (a).)
c1340Cursor M. 1131 (Trin.) His blood..leueþ not wreche to crye. c1350Will. Palerne 1806 Soburli seide meliors ‘sire leues youre wordes’. 1398Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xvii. xxxvi. (1495) 624 Whan the leuys of Carduus dryen the pryckes leuen to prycke and stynge. c1420Chron. Vilod. 4235 Herre song þey laftone & songon nomore. 1477Earl Rivers (Caxton) Dictes 67 Leuyng to do alle thing that may cause hattered. 1490Caxton Eneydos xxxii. 121 Now shalle I leue to speke of this mater. 1513Life Bridget in Myrr. our Ladye (1873) p. lix, But thou leue sayde he to speke of thys newe heresye..I [etc.]. a1533Ld. Berners Huon lxxxii. 254 Lady, I desyre you to leue your sorow. 1545R. Ascham Toxoph. (Arb.) 164 If a man woulde leaue to looke at his shafte..he may vse this waye. 1556Chron. Gr. Friars (Camden) 20 Thys yere the mayer lefte rydynge to Westmyster, and went be watter. 1576Gascoigne Steel Gl. (Arb.) 79 When Cutlers leaue to sel olde rustie blades. 16022nd Pt. Return fr. Parnass. iii. iv. 1401 Leaue trussing your pointes, and listen. 1603B. Jonson Jas. I's Entertainm. Coronation, Zeal when it rests, Leaues to be Zeal. a1626Bacon New Atl. (1900) 20 And specially, farre Voyages..were altogether left and omitted. 1686W. de Britaine Hum. Prud. ix. 42 Never purchase Friends by Gifts, for if you leave to give, they will leave to love. 1690Locke Toleration ii. Wks. 1727 II. 265 It was designed only to make them leave Swearing. 1722De Foe Col. Jack (1840) 243 The English left chasing us. 1762Goldsm. Cit. W. lxxx, Whenever one crime was judged penal by the state, he left committing it. 1821Clare Vill. Minstr. I. 156 The cat at her presence left watching the mouse. 1871R. Ellis tr. Catullus xxxvi. 5 If ever I..Ceased from enmity, left to launch iambics.
†b. intr. To cease, desist, stop. Obs.
a1300Cursor M. 6036 (Cott.) He praid, þe weder it lefte þan son. c1340Ibid. 4108 (Trin.) Til he hem fonde lafte he nouȝt. 1375Barbour Bruce vi. 157 Quha vist euir men sa fouly fall As vs, gif that we thusgat leif? c1400Destr. Troy 10084 Þan leuit the laike for late of þe night. 1483Caxton G. de la Tour B v b, He..bad her ones or twyes that she shold be stylle and leue. 1523Ld. Berners Froiss. I. cxcviii. 234 The companyons..hadde lerned so well to robbe and pyll the countrey..that they coude nat leaue. 1589Puttenham Eng. Poesie iii. xxii. (Arb.) 265 If he had left at the two first verses, it had bene inough. 1594Marlowe & Nashe Dido ii. i. C 2, I dye with melting ruth; æneas leaue. 1633Bp. Hall Hard Texts 298 It shall devoure both your tall cedars and your low shrubs; and shall not leave till the very bryars and thornes bee consumed.
†11.
a. trans. In the course of narration: To drop, cease speaking of. Obs.
c1330R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 235 We salle leue þat pas vnto we com ageyn. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 1 The seconde boke leueth y⊇ lyfe of y⊇ worlde and entreateth what is the iourney of religion. a1548Hall Chron., Hen. VI, 135 b, Now leavyng Scotland, let us returne to the busines of Fraunce. 1604E. G[rimstone] D'Acosta's Hist. Indies iii. xv. 169 But now that we have left the sea, let vs come to other kinde of waters that remaine to be spoken of.
b. intr. To cease, stop, break off in a narrative. Const. of. Obs.
c1330R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 60 Þis Mayster Wace þer leues he. c1350Will. Palerne 1836 Leef we now here. c1435Torr. Portugal 587 Leve we now of Torrent there. 1470–85Malory Arthur ix. i. heading, Here leue we of sire Lamorak and of sir Tristram. 1592Shakes. Ven. & Ad. 715 Where did I leaue? 1614Raleigh Hist. World ii. v. §7. 180 Let us return thither where we left.
† III. 12. intr. To remain; to remain behind, over; to continue or stay in one place. Obs.
c1000ælfric Hom. II. 40 Gif ðær hwæt læfde. c1230Hali Meid. 15 Hit ne wundeð þe nawt bute hit festni oþe & leaue se longe þat [etc.]. c1275Lay. 22305 And wose leafde his leome he solde leose. a1300Cursor M. 7269 He left at ham for eild. 1357Lay Folks Mass Bk. App. ii. 120 There levyth in the auter no materyal bred. 1375Barbour Bruce iii. 282 Hym thocht he had doyne rycht nocht Ay quhill to do hym levyt ocht. 1398Trevisa Barth. De P.R. ix. iv. (1495) 349 In that yere comyth vp a Lunacion a mone of thyrty dayes and thre dayes leuyth ouer. 1425Rolls of Parlt. IV. 276/1 All the said Merchandises..that leven unsold..shall be forfaited. c1425Craft of Nombrynge (E.E.T.S.) 9 Whan þou has þus ydo..sett þere þat leues of þe subtraccioun. c1450Holland Howlat 948 Thar levit allane The Howlat and I. 1460–70Bk. Quintessence 5 Þat þat leeueþ bihynde, putte it to þe fier. 1492Bury Wills (Camden) 74 The torchys that shall leve after my yere day. 1535Coverdale 2 Kings iv. 44 They ate, and there lefte ouer. a1541Wyatt Poet. Wks. (1861) 209 Who will'th him well for right therefore shall leve; Who banish him shall be rooted away.
IV. Phraseological combinations.
13. In various idiomatic phrases.
a. to leave{ddd}alone (earlier † to leave one): to abstain from interfering with; = ‘to let alone’ (see alone 4 and let v.1). In the same sense, to leave{ddd}be (colloq.) where leave has been substituted for let without modification of the form of the phrase. to leave (a person) cold: see cold a. 7 e; to leave it at that: to proceed no further with a matter; to refrain from pressing a point; to leave to (himself, etc.): to let (a person, etc.) alone or without help or interference from another or others; to leave (a person) to it: to leave (someone) alone, esp. to allow him to proceed with a task in hand.
b. to leave go (of), to leave hold (of), to leave loose (of) colloq.: to cease holding, to let go.
In to leave go, to leave loose, the vb. was orig. transitive, go being inf., and loose a complementary adj.; but the combinations being used absol. or with ellipsis of the obj. became virtually intransitive vbs., and were construed with of. (Cf. let go, under let v.1) The frequency in use of the three expressions leave go, leave hold, leave loose, varies in different parts of the country, but perhaps none of them can be regarded as merely dial.
The notion expressed in some Dicts. that leave in some of these phrases represents ME. leve (OE. léfan, lýfan), to permit, is quite erroneous.
c1400tr. Secreta Secret., Gov. Lordsh. (1898) 88 If þou leue þe water aloon, it shal make whit, and if þow ioynge to ffyre by þe gyft of god it shal wel fare. c1485in E.E. Misc. (Warton Club) 8 Thou woldus gladly with me fare, And leve one my talkynge. 1738[G. Smith] Curious Relat. II. 274 A few, who perhaps through Dread had left their Hold..were drowned. 1776in Essex Inst. Hist. Coll. (1907) XLIII. 118 Tis said we left go pieces of heavy cannon owing to the cowardice of a body of Connecticut troops. 1798F. Burney Diary (1891) IV. 82 ‘O, leave him alone!’ cried Mr. Pepys: ‘take care only of his health and strength’. 1825J. Neal Bro. Jonathan I. 37 Leave me be, squeaked Miss Edith, whose foot he had caught..under the table. 1833Chambers's Edin. Jrnl. II. 145/1 The individual who writes the present paper was once ‘so far left to himself’ as to spend several months amidst the heartless frivolities which characterise a winter of fashionable life in the Scottish..capitals. 1841Jrnl. R. Agric. Soc. II. i. 99 The operator then leaves hold of the spoke. 1851Helps Comp. Solit. vi. (1854) 99 People will not be supposed to be educated at the time of their nonage and then left sight of and hold of for evermore. 1868F. E. Paget Lucretia 205 Leave go of me..you young monkey. 1881Jefferies Wood Magic I. v. 133 The bridge is now dry, and therefore you can pass it easily if you do not leave-go of the hand-rail. 1885Manch. Exam. 5 June 5/1 We cannot but wish that Mr. Gladstone had left the matter alone. 1902Captain VII. 542/1 We'll leave it at that, then. 1910‘Saki’ Reginald in Russia 8 Left to themselves, Egbert and Lady Anne would unfailingly have called him Fluff. 1918C. Mackenzie Early Life Sylvia Scarlett ii. ii. 283 The petulant way in which she shook herself free from the embrace at last brought Sylvia up to the point of leaving Lily to herself. 1928Galsworthy Swan Song ii. ii. 114 He had looked at her, and left it at that. 1943J. B. Priestley Daylight on Saturday xvi 114 ‘You never told her what she ought to do..,’ said Freda to Jock. And then she left them to it. 1946E. O'Neill Iceman Cometh (1947) ii. 102 Leave Hugo be!.. He's earned his dream! 1948C. Day Lewis Otterbury Incident iv. 45 Ted and I left him to it. 1949V. Grove Language Bar viii. 114 If understanding and sense were not sought after, the ignorant would merely corrupt the ‘meaningless’ word, and leave it at that. 1958L. A. G. Strong Light above Lake xxi. 148 Toby..left him be for a while. 1966Oxf. Univ. Gaz. 23 Dec. 445/2 If the House is content to leave it at that for the present,..then I would ask if we might withdraw the resolution and leave it at that for today. 1967Singha & Massey Indian Dances i. 34 South India had been more or less left to itself. 1970D. Storey Contractor i. 40 I'll leave you to it before the rest of 'em arrive. 1971M. West Summer of Red Wolf 9 Leave me be for a moment, please. 1972R. Adams Watership Down xxxiii. 258 They'll know which way we've gone and they won't leave it at that. 1974W. T. Burley Death in Stanley St. vii. 127 Wycliffe stood up. ‘Good. I'll leave you to it.’
14. Combined with advs. (For unspecialized combs. see the various senses.)
a. leave behind. (Also, to leave behind one.) trans. † (a) To neglect, leave undone (obs.) (b) Not to take with one at one's departure, to go away without. (c) To have remaining after departure or removal, as a trace or consequence. (d) To outstrip.
a1300Cursor M. 26389 Þis ypocrites..þai leue þe grettest. plight be-hind. c1325Poem Times Edw. II, 80 in Pol. Songs (Camden) 327 He..leveth thare behind a theef and an hore. 1390Gower Conf. II. 263 Behind was no name laft. 1509Hawes Past. Pleas. xli. (Percy Soc.) 204 This worldly treasure I must leve behinde. 1660F. Brooke tr. Le Blanc's Trav. 9 Considering they might leave me behind, or sell me. 1670A. Roberts Adventures T. S. 159 The Guards that were at the Gate obliged us to leave our Sandals behind. 1697Dryden Virg. Georg. iii. 306 He..leaves the Scythian Arrow far behind. 1711Addison Spect. No. 50 ⁋2 A little Bundle of Papers..left behind by some mistake. 1746–7Hervey Medit. (1818) 217 The rapidity of an eagle, which leaves the stormy blast behind her. 1758Song, ‘The girl I left behind me’. 1849Macaulay Hist. Eng. iv. I. 496 He made such rapid progress in the doctrines of toleration that he left Milton and Locke behind. 1896A. E. Housman Shropshire Lad iii. 1 Leave your home behind, lad.
†b. leave down. trans. To discontinue, let drop. Obs.
1548Proclam. in Strype Eccl. Mem. II. App. O. 46 That no maner person..do omyt, leave down,..or innovate any order, rite, or ceremony commonly used..and not commaunded to be left down..in the reign of our late sovereign lord.
c. leave off. (a) trans. To cease from, discontinue (an action), abandon (a habit); with obj. a gerund or n., formerly also an inf. with to. Also, to cease to wear or use (something).
c1400Destr. Troy 3587 Lefe of þis langore. c1440York Myst. xxxii. 295 Leffe of þi talke. 1480Caxton Descr. Brit. 22 Afterward the romayns lefte of her regning in britayne. 1535Coverdale Luke v. 4 Whan he had left of talkinge he sayde [etc.]. 1563–83Foxe A. & M. I. 259 [Francis of Assisi] left of shoes, had but one coate, and that of a course clothe. 1581Mulcaster Positions v. (1887) 33 That the learning to write be not left of, vntil it be verie perfit. 1589Puttenham Eng. Poesie iii. xxiii. (Arb.) 279 Bid him leaue off such affected flattering termes. 1622Mabbe tr. Aleman's Guzman d'Alf. ii. 41 His crosse fortune, which did neuer leaue off to persecute him. 1687Miege Gt. Fr. Dict. ii. s.v., Leave off this wrangling, cessez de vous quereler. 1704Lond. Gaz. No. 4083/4 Tho. Brown..wears a Wig, but his Hair almost long enough to leave it off. 1737Whiston Josephus, Antiq. i. iii. §8 But I will leave off for the time to come to require such punishments. 1875Jowett Plato (ed. 2) III. 303 Those invalids who..will not leave off their habits of intemperance. 1885G. Allen Babylon viii, They left off work early. 1891Field 21 Nov. 774/3 We had reluctantly to leave off fishing.
† (b) In occasional uses, now obsolete: To give up (a possession, a business or employment); to forsake the society of (a person); to ‘give up’ (a patient) as incurable. Obs.
1534More Comf. agst. Trib. ii. Wks. 1200/2 If it so be, yt a man..perceiueth that in welth & authoritie he doth his own soule harme,..then wold I in any wise aduise him to leaue of that thing, be it spirituall benefice yt he haue,..or temporal rowm & authoritie. 1662R. Mathew Unl. Alch. xxxi. 27 Left off by a very honest and able Doctor. 1706Hearne Collect. 2 Jan. (O.H.S.) I. 154 To oblige him to leave off Pupils he made him his Curate. 1712Steele Spect. No. 264 ⁋2 He left off all his old Acquaintance to a Man. 1720De Foe Capt. Singleton xx. (1840) 341 He would send her sufficient to enable her to leave off her shop.
(c) absol. and intr. To cease doing something implied by the context; to make an end or interruption, to stop. Of a narrative: To end, terminate. Also Comm. of shares, etc.: To end (at a certain price) on the closing of the market.
1415Hoccleve To Sir J. Oldcastle 152 Your wit is al to feeble to despute..Stynte and leue of. c1475Rauf Coilȝear 174 Is nane so gude as leif of, and mak na mair stryfe. 1535Coverdale Ps. xxxvi[i]. 8 Leaue of from wrath, let go displeasure. 1563–83Foxe A. & M. 1615/1 Now death draweth nye, and I [Bradford] by your leaue must now leaue of, to prepare for him. 1611Bible Ecclus. xxxi. 17 Leaue off first for maners sake, and be not vnsatiable. 1700Dryden Pref. Fables Wks. (Globe) 499 He knows also when to leave off, a continence which is practised by few writers. 1711Addison Spect. No. 130 ⁋4 Here the printed story leaves off. 1816Crabb Synonymes (1829) 148/1 A break is made in a page of printing by leaving off in the middle of a line. 1875Jowett Plato (ed. 2) I. 206 Take up the enquiry where I left off. 1883Manch. Exam. 30 Nov. 4/1 South Austrian shares left off at last night's quotations. 1895Bookman Oct. 25/1 It is merely a first volume, and we leave off with an appetite.
d. leave out. To omit, not to insert or include.
a1470Gregory Chron. (Camd.) 203 They seyng and redynge hys papyr, commaundyd to leve owte and put a way many troughtys. c1484Caxton Proem to Chaucer's Cant. T., I erryd..in settyng in somme thynges that he neuer..made, and leuynge out many thynges that he made. 1545R. Ascham Toxoph. ii. (Arb.) 110 And these thynges althoughe they be trifles, yet..I woulde not leue them out. 1613Purchas Pilgrimage To Rdr. (1614) ⁋v, The most leave out their Authors, as if their owne assertion were sufficient authoritie. 1653Walton Angler ii. 46 A companion that feasts the company with wit and mirth, and leaves out the sin which is usually mixed with them. 1676Lister in Ray's Corr. (1848) 124, I shall only put you in mind that you leave not out the vinegar. 1735Ld. Tyrawly in Buccleuch MSS. (Hist. MSS. Comm.) I. 387 They could not with any decency do it for him and leave me out. 1766Goldsm. Vic. W. xi, He seldom leaves anything out, as he writes only for his own amusement. 1843H. Rogers Ess. (1860) III. 79 They can leave out, if they do not put in. 1887‘L. Carroll’ Game of Logic i. §i. 6 We agree to leave out the word ‘Cakes’ altogether.
e. leave over. trans. To allow to remain for future use; to let ‘stand over’ for subsequent consideration. Freq. in pa. pple. left over, remaining, not used up.
1887Times (weekly ed.) 14 Oct. 3/2 He thought the matter might be left over for the present. 1892‘Mark Twain’ Amer. Claimant xii. 107 Irish stew made of the potatoes and meat left over from a procession of previous meals. 1899G. B. Burgin Bread of Tears ii. i. 138 The undigested fragments which were left over after the making of the world. 1907Smart Set Mar. 72/1 You can go to the boss for your time—if there's anything left over from your breakage account. 1940J. O'Hara Pal Joey 114 Choice meats like steak & chops etc. that was left over from the nite before. 1955M. Patten Learning to Cook ii. 59 (heading) Foods that have been left over.
† f. leave up. To abandon, give up, resign. Obs.
1430–40Lydg. Bochas ix. xxxiv. (1554) 214 b, The second [sonne] left up his cleargie. 1523Ld. Berners Froiss. I. lv. 76 The kyng might be fayne..to leave up the siege at Tourney. Ibid. ccxv. 271 That was the cause that dyuers of them left vp their fortresses. 1530Compend. Treat. (Arb.) 178 He saide that he wold leaue vp the office of Chaunceler.
Add:[14.] [c.] leave off. (d) As imp. phr. (colloq.): stop it! leave me alone! Cf. lay v.1 54 h.
1915Conrad Victory ii. viii. 160 ‘What's she like? It's the girl you—’ ‘Leave off!’ muttered Schomberg, utterly pitiful behind his stiff military front. 1959A. Wesker Chicken Soup with Barley ii. i, in New Eng. Dramatists I. 206 Leave off! That's all he can say—leave off, leave me alone. 1974B. Bainbridge Bottle Factory Outing iv. 60 Leave off... I'm not an invalid. 1985J. Winterson Oranges are not only Fruit 73 ‘Leave off Bill,’ my auntie pushed him away.
(e) trans. To set (a person or thing) down (from a vehicle, etc.); to drop (someone) off (see *drop v. 28 f).
1957J. Kerouac On Road i. xiii. 98 They left me off a quarter-mile away and drove to the door. 1986R. Ford Sportswriter viii. 202 You can see the UPS truck on our street every day still, leaving off hammocks and smokers and God knows what all.
[d.] leave out. (b) In imp. phr. leave it out!: stop it! esp. stop talking nonsense! come off it! U.K. slang.
1969Daily Mirror 10 Oct. 18/3 Leave it out, I don't believe you, or pull the other leg. 1986P. Theroux O-Zone xxxiii. 393 No—leave it out! He had been wrong. 1990C. Brayfield Prince xx. 436 ‘It's like a nuclear disaster out there—no cars, no one on the streets...’ ‘Leave it out, Baz. You two have never been on time for a rehearsal yet.’
▸ leave-in adj. designating or relating to a hair-care product (esp. a conditioner) which does not need to be rinsed out after application.
1984Business Wire (Nexis) 20 Nov. Major introductions were the Kinetika Permanent Wave, Oliance Moisturizing Shampoo, Aact *Leave in Conditioner and two new products in the clinical response skin care line. 1988You/Verve (Toronto) Summer 10/4 You can condition your hair with a revolutionary condition leave-in treatment. 2002More! 3 Apr. 79/4 To keep your hair soft and smooth, spritz damp hair with a leave-in conditioner before styling.
▪ IV. leave, v.2|liːv|
[ME. lēvi, f. lēf leaf n.1, with regular change of f into v.]
intr. = leaf v. 1. Also to be leaved out (U.S.): to have the leaves expanded.
c1290S. Kenelm 168 in S. Eng. Leg. 350 Þis maister nam þe ȝeorde and sette hire on þe grounde And heo bi-gan to leui þare in well uyte stounde. 1450–80tr. Secreta Secret. 27 The humydite of the erthe..makith trees and herbes to leve and flowre. 1715Petiver in Phil. Trans. XXIX. 232 It leaves like our Corn Marygold. 1789J. May Jrnl. & Lett. (1873) 127 The apple-trees are now in blow; the oaks and chestnuts but just leaved out. 1864Webster, Leave, to send out leaves;—often with out. 1890Century Mag. July 448/1 The trees had not yet leaved enough to afford..any shade. 1895Pop. Sci. Monthly Mar. 578 The poplars were leaved out. 1895K. T. Hinkson Miracle Plays I. 20, I..watch my lilies bud and leave.
▪ V. † leave, v.3 Obs. rare.
[ad. F. lever: see levy.]
trans. To raise (an army).
1590Spenser F.Q. ii. x. 31 An army strong she leav'd, To war on those which him had of his realm bereav'd.
▪ VI. leave
obs. form of lave n., leaf, lief, live. |