leak

leak
[[t]li͟ːk[/t]]
♦♦♦
leaks, leaking, leaked
1) V-ERG If a container leaks, there is a hole or crack in it which lets a substance such as liquid or gas escape. You can also say that a substance such as liquid or gas leaks from a container.

The roof leaked...

[V prep/adv] The gas had apparently leaked from a cylinder...

[V prep/adv] The pool's fiberglass sides had cracked and the water had leaked out...

[V n into n] A large diesel tank mysteriously leaked its contents into the river. [Also V n]

N-COUNT
Leak is also a noun.

It's thought a gas leak may have caused the blast.

2) N-COUNT: oft N in n A leak is a crack, hole, or other gap that a substance such as a liquid or gas can pass through.

...a leak in the radiator...

In May engineers found a leak in a hydrogen fuel line.

3) V-ERG If a secret document or piece of information leaks or is leaked, someone lets the public know about it.

[V n to n] Last year, a civil servant was imprisoned for leaking a document to the press...

[V n] He revealed who leaked a confidential police report...

We don't know how the transcript leaked.

[V-ed] ...a leaked report.

N-COUNT
Leak is also a noun.

More serious leaks, possibly involving national security, are likely to be investigated by the police.

PHR-V-ERG
Leak out means the same as leak.

V P More details are now beginning to leak out... V P to n He said it would leak out to the newspapers and cause a scandal.


English dictionary. 2008.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат
Synonyms:
(letting a liquid in or out), , , , , , , / , , , (water or other liquid), ,


Look at other dictionaries:

  • Leak — (l[=e]k), n. [Akin to D. lek leaky, a leak, G. leck, Icel. lekr leaky, Dan. l[ae]k leaky, a leak, Sw. l[ a]ck; cf. AS. hlec full of cracks or leaky. Cf. {Leak}, v.] 1. A crack, crevice, fissure, or hole which admits water or other fluid, or lets… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • LEAK — is the brand name for high fidelity audio equipment made by H. J. Leak Co. Ltd, of London, England. The company was founded in 1934 by Harold Joseph Leak and was sold to the Rank Organisation in January 1969. During the 1950s and 60s, the company …   Wikipedia

  • leak — leak·age; leak·er; leak·i·ness; leak·less; leak·man; leak; …   English syllables

  • leak|y — «LEE kee», adjective, leak|i|er, leak|i|est. having a leak or leaks; full of leaks; leaking: »The ship was leaky and very much disabled (Daniel Defoe). – …   Useful english dictionary

  • Leak — Leak, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Leaked} (l[=e]kt); p. pr. & vb. n. {Leaking}.] [Akin to D. lekken, G. lecken, lechen, Icel. leka, Dan. l[ae]kke, Sw. l[ a]cka, AS. leccan to wet, moisten. See {Leak}, n.] 1. To let water or other fluid in or out through …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • leak — Ⅰ. leak UK US /liːk/ verb ► [I or T] if a liquid or gas leaks, or is allowed to leak, from a pipe or container, it escapes through an opening: »Textile chemicals leaking from a container started a fire in a cargo compartment. »The ship leaked an… …   Financial and business terms

  • leak — ► VERB 1) accidentally allow contents to escape or enter through a hole or crack. 2) (of liquid, gas, etc.) escape or enter accidentally through a hole or crack. 3) intentionally disclose (secret information). 4) (of secret information) become… …   English terms dictionary

  • leak — [lēk] vi. [ME leken < ON leka, to drip < IE base * leg , to drip, trickle, LACK, OIr legaim, (I) dissolve, Welsh llaith, damp] 1. to let a fluid substance out or in accidentally [the boats leaks] 2. to enter, or escape accidentally from, an …   English World dictionary

  • Leak — Leak, a. Leaky. [Obs.] Spenser. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • leak — verb. The transitive meaning ‘to disclose (secret information) intentionally’ is, apart from an isolated example of 1859, a 20c use, although the practice is doubtless a lot older. It is related to, if not a development of, the phrasal verb to… …   Modern English usage

  • leak — [n] opening; seepage through opening aperture, chink, crack, crevice, decrease, destruction, detriment, drip, drop, escape, expenditure, exposure, fissure, flow, hole, leakage, leaking, loss, outgoing, percolation, pit, puncture, short circuit,… …   New thesaurus

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