leading

1 of 2

adjective

lead·​ing ˈlē-diŋ 

1

: coming or ranking first : foremost

2

: exercising leadership

3

: providing direction or guidance

a leading question

4

: given most prominent display

the leading story

leading

2 of 2

noun

lead·​ing ˈle-diŋ 

plural leadings

1

: a covering or framework of lead

repaired the leading in the church's stained glass windows

2

typography : the distance between a pair of adjacent lines in composed text

increased the leading after the header

a leading of 6 points

Synonyms

Adjective

• arch
• big
• capital
• cardinal
• central
• chief
• dominant
• first
• foremost
• grand
• great
• greatest
• highest
• key
• main
• master
• number one
• No. 1
• numero uno
• overbearing
• overmastering
• overriding
• paramount
• predominant
• preeminent
• premier
• primal
• primary
• principal
• prior
• sovereign
• sovran
• supreme

Examples of leading in a Sentence

Adjective

a leading topic of conversation

Their family played a leading part in the settlement of the town.

the leading role in a major Hollywood movie

a leading citizen of the town

She's one of the leading authorities on the stock market.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The actress, who scored her first leading role as Zenon, has starred in the long-running soap opera since 2005. —Angel Saunders, People.com, 2 Nov. 2024

Among the leading virtual influencers, Lil Miquela -a digital avatar with over 3 million Instagram followers- has collaborated with brands like Prada and Calvin Klein. —Esade Business & Law School, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024

Noun

Any update that had Trump leading inspired vigorous boos. —Curtis Bunn, NBC News, 6 Nov. 2024

Riley Greene concluded his pole-to-pole leading of the team’s offense with a .838 OPS in the last 30 games. —Tyler Small, Forbes, 30 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1597, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing leading

• leading article
• leading brand
• leading edge
• leading lady
• leading light
• leading man
• leading question
• leading tone
• the blind leading the blind

Kids Definition

leading

adjective

lead·​ing ˈlēd-iŋ 

1

: coming or ranking first or among the first : foremost

2

: exercising leadership

3

: providing direction or guidance

a leading question