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lead

lead

453 4.8
Information that can help find something or create an opportunity
  • noun
  • /liːd/
: pista
  • The detective received a promising lead that could help solve the case.
  • pursue leads
  • provide a lead
  • leads from interviews

If you can't get leads, I don't care what you sell.

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Examples

  • If I want better leads, higher quality leads, more leads, right?

  • Surveys could be used to follow up on leads emerging from interviews.

    Academic text (1994)
  • So give us give us your best lead follow up war story.

  • I will follow more real estate leads and grow my business.

  • Hey, we got a lead on that missing vehicle.

  • - We got one good lead on our ad.

  • I am very happy chasing cold leads on our missing persons case.

  • My sales guys are inundated with new leads and good leads.

  • My job is to develop the leads, and that's my work.

  • Presumably the police were investigating every lead, but goodness knows where they would even start.

    Fiction book (1995)

Synonyms

clue
vslead
985 1.0

A piece of information that helps you solve a problem or mystery

also covers information that creates opportunities, not only solving evidence
hint
vslead
276 1.5

A small indirect suggestion that helps you understand something

refers to clearer, more useful information or opportunities not mere subtlety
tip
vslead
248 3.8

A piece of information about a possible opportunity

also applies to investigative facts that help find things out, not only opportunities
track
vslead
176 5.0

A piece of evidence that helps solve a crime or problem

is broader, applying to opportunities and journalistic contexts as well
steer
vslead
1 7.5

A short helpful piece of advice about what to do

focuses more on factual hints or opportunities rather than advice

Idioms

45 3.5

Holding the first position in a game or race

4 7.7

Make someone do what you want without them noticing

3 8.4

To delay saying the most important part of a story so readers miss it

to eat lead
  • Offensive
2 9.9

To be shot at with bullets

You can reach the same result in many different ways

1 3.0

Ahead of other people in a race or competition

To marry someone in a formal wedding ceremony

Act in a way that makes you open to attack or criticism

In a first position that gives an advantage in a competition

Compounds

lead story
  • Literature
32 3.0

The most important news story in a newspaper, on TV, or online

lead-in
  • Literature
14 4.9

A short introduction before the main part of a talk or story

lead poisoning
  • Specialized
11 3.9

A condition that happens when too much lead gets into the body and makes you sick

lead time
  • Specialized
9 4.5

The time between starting and finishing a process often used in business

1 3.5

Does not contain the metal lead

1 1.3

A pencil that uses graphite for writing or drawing

lead-acid battery
  • Specialized
1 3.9

A rechargeable device with lead plates and weak sulphuric acid used in cars and for backup power

lead glass
  • Specialized
1 6.3

Glass made with small amounts of the metal lead that is very clear and sparkly

lead sheet
  • Specialized
1 6.0

A piece of music that shows the tune, words, and chords

1 2.4

A thin dark core inside a pencil that makes marks on paper

white lead
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A poisonous white pigment made from a heavy metal and used in older paints

red lead
  • Specialized
1 9.1

A bright red powder used to make paint and to protect metal from rust

black lead
  • Archaic
1 8.6

A soft black material in pencil cores that is also used as a nuclear reactor moderator called graphite

1 5.5

A dull grey-blue color like old metal

lead bank
  • Jargon
1 6.9

A bank that coordinates a group of other banks to give a loan together

lead sandwich
  • Informal
1 8.4

A very heavy, very filling sandwich people joke about to mean a hard situation

tetraethyl lead
  • Archaic
1 9.4

A clear oily poison once added to petrol or gasoline to stop engine knocking

hard lead
  • Specialized
1 8.1

Heavy metal that people make harder by adding antimony or other metals for industrial use

lead ore
  • Specialized
1 6.3

A rock that contains a heavy grey metal people take out to use

lead chromate
  • Specialized
1 9.3

A bright yellow poisonous chemical used to make paint

lead line
  • Archaic
1 8.1

A rope with a heavy lead weight that sailors lower to measure water depth from a boat

lead arsenate
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A poisonous white chemical once used to kill insects on crops

lead carbonate
  • Archaic
1 8.9

A white poisonous powder that contains lead and was used to make paint

lead-in
  • Specialized
1 7.0

A wire that connects an antenna to a TV or radio

pig lead
  • Specialized
1 9.3

Blocks of lead made for storage or moving

1 8.1

A short wire with metal clips at both ends used to make temporary electric connections

lead acetate
  • Specialized
1 8.4

A poisonous white chemical used to dye cloth and make coatings for metal and wood

lead colic
  • Archaic
1 9.9

Severe belly pain and constipation caused by long term lead poisoning

1 4.7

Short wire with clips at each end that makes a temporary electrical connection between two points

sugar of lead
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A poisonous white chemical used long ago to dye fabrics and make glazes

sounding lead
  • Archaic
1 9.3

A heavy metal weight tied to a rope used to measure how deep water is

antimonial lead
  • Specialized
8.1

A metal made from lead and a little of another metal used to make parts stronger and resist corrosion

9.9

A shrub that grows on sandy river banks and is thought to show nearby lead

A rechargeable battery with lead plates and acid used in cars and backup power

A person who starts and encourages dancing at parties

lead tetraethyl
  • Archaic
9.9

A clear oily poisonous liquid once added to gasoline to reduce engine knocking

7.9

A low bushy tropical tree with feathery leaves and long pods used for animal food and to help the soil

green lead ore
  • Specialized
9.9

A green rock that contains lead and gives small amounts of lead when processed

red-lead putty
  • Archaic
9.3

A thick paste used to seal metal pipe joints

white lead ore
  • Specialized
9.9

A mineral that contains lead and is used to make white paint

How Helpful

breakthrough
233 3.9
lead
453 4.8
clue
985 1.0
hint
276 1.5

Surface Forms

lead singular
leads plural

Etymology

Lead A helpful way to remember this lead is to think of the verb lead 'to guide' — a news or police 'lead' is a piece of information that guides you toward the answer.