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leaning

LEE-ning/ˈliːnɪŋ/

Noun pluralleanings

2 meanings of leaning

Practice

  1. 1
    verb
    Present participle and gerund of lean.

    The bell tower has been leaning slightly for centuries.

    Leaning into the sharp turn, the cyclist gained speed.

    Note

    One spelling, several jobs: after be it forms the progressive (the tower is leaning), and as a gerund it fills subject or object slots. It carries every sense of the verb, including tilting, relying, and favoring a view with toward or to. In engine talk it is transitive: leaning the mixture cuts fuel flow. The gerund keeps verb habits, taking objects and adverbs; the noun for a tendency takes adjectives and a plural.

  2. 2
    nouncountable
    A tendency or natural inclination toward a particular view, choice, or way of acting.

    Her political leaning has always been firmly toward reform.

    The committee showed a clear leaning in favor of the cheaper proposal.

    Similarinclination, tendency, bias, preference, bent

    Oppositeaversion, disinclination

    Note

    The word once had a quieter meaning. Old English hlinung covered leaning and resting, even a place of rest. Today the noun names an inclination of mind. It sits easily in the plural, with an adjective naming the view: a man of socialist leanings. It pairs naturally with the verb's sense of inclining in opinion, which usually takes toward or to.

leaning is a form of lean

lean, verb: To slope, tilt, or bend away from an upright position, or to stand or project at an angle. Full entry

Forms
leanleans he/she/itleaning -ing formleaned past tense, past participle
Spelling
lean → leaning: add -ing

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Origin

From Middle English lening, from Old English hlinung ("leaning; resting; place of rest"), equivalent to lean plus the suffix -ing.