leader
Meanings
- Any person who leads or directs.
- One who goes first.
- One having authority to direct.
- One who leads a political party or group of elected party members; sometimes used in titles.
- A person or organization that leads in a certain field in terms of excellence, success, etc.
- A performer who leads a band, choir, or a section of an orchestra.
- The first violin in a symphony orchestra; the concertmaster.
- An animal that leads.
- The dominant animal in a pack of animals, such as wolves or lions.
- An animal placed in advance of others, especially on a team of horse, oxen, or dogs.
- Either of the two front horses of a team of four in front of a carriage.
- Someone or something that leads or conducts.
- A surname originating as an occupation for a person who led a horse and cart.
- A river in north Canterbury, New Zealand, which joins the (Canterbury) Waiau.
- A town in the Rural Municipality of Happyland No. 231, western Saskatchewan, Canada, originally named Prussia.
- A populated place in Adams County, Colorado, United States.
Pronunciation
Word forms
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-West Germanic *laidī Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Proto-Italic *-āsjos Latin -āriusnom. Latin -āriusbor. Proto-Germanic *-ārijaz Proto-West Germanic *-ārī Proto-West Germanic *laid ▲ Proto-West Germanic *-ārī Proto-West Germanic *laidijārī Old English lǣdere Middle English leder English leader Inherited from Middle English leder, from Old English lǣdere (“leader”), from Proto-West Germanic *laidijārī, from *laidī (“leading, leadership”) + *-ārī, or from *laid (“leading”) + *-ārī. By surface analysis, lead + -er. Cognate with Scots ledar, leidar (“leader”), West Frisian lieder (“leader”), Dutch leider (“leader”), German Leiter (“leader, conductor, manager”), Danish leder (“leader, manager”), Swedish ledare (“leader, conductor, director”), Icelandic leiðari (“leader, conductor”).