I. verb
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
lean back in your chair
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He leant back in his chair and took out his pipe.
lean (= with little fat )
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Try to eat more lean meat, fish and chicken.
leaned forward
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He leaned forward , his elbows resting on the table.
slim/lean/meagre pickings
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Companies are put off investing in poor areas because of the meagre pickings to be had.
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ ADVERB
back
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Holmes is alone, leaning back in his chair, reading a manuscript piled on his desk.
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And he leans back against his chair and waits.
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If you find that your landings are rather flat, lean back more as you come down.
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I lean back into my own corner of the porch swing and hold on to myself.
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Beneath a canvas awning strung between two trees, several guys leaning back on their elbows were passing a small jug.
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He was leaning back in his chair smoking a long, fat cigarette in a stubby black holder.
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B closes her eyes and leans back .
backwards
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Then she leant backwards so that her back was arched across my chest.
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In figure A the pelvis is pushed forward so that the man is leaning backwards .
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Are you leaning backwards or forwards?
closer
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At half-past five he leant closer to the window and strained to see into the flat opposite.
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Smooth her hair? Lean closer ?
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Rodomonte leant closer and dropped the rock in shock.
down
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He finished, oblivious to the bustle of the street, before leaning down and taking the child's tiny hand.
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Bill might lean down and poke the crumbling framework.
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He was leaning down , his spear arm back, the gleaming bronze blade wavering as it came towards her.
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Nicholas leant down and ruffled his cold hair.
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He leant down , put his arms on her shoulders and lifted her up.
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She leans down to me real close and I can smell it - the gin.
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The man leant down so that his face was close to the window.
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As Peter leant down to pick up the knife the door swung closed and Jack kicked it again.
forward
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A shiver passed through his whole body and then he leant forward and wept, head between his knees.
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I tensed on the controls, involuntarily leaning forward , ready to take off.
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Then, leaning forward , she picked an olive out of the glass dish in front of them and held it between thumb and forefinger.
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I gave her the same little squeeze, easing my foot across the toe of her right shoe and leaning forward slightly.
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She was still sitting down, leaning forward in her chair, burning at him with her round eyes.
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Dexter leant forward across the table to hear better what was about to be said.
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Strapped in, Leese released the inertial reel lock so that he could lean forward to do the cockpit check.
forwards
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Not leaning forwards as you rise. 4.
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Stretch arms up high, then slowly lean forwards as far as you can without straining.
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Remember not to lean forwards as you do the exercise.
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Do not lean forwards as you block since this will bring your chin close to the opponent's other fist.
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I'd imagined her leaning forwards and smiling, but not looking like this, somehow.
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Her way of leaning forwards , eyes sparkling, fingers almost touching the priest's black sleeve, made Thérèse squirm.
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You then sweep hard into the pad and try to spin your partner without leaning forwards or over-committing yourself.
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Slowly lean forwards as far as possible without straining.
heavily
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He seemed to fall asleep, leaning heavily on to Cameron.
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In movies like this, there is a great temptation to lean heavily on the melodrama.
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Fran leant heavily on the rail, feeling cold tentacles of shock closing around her heart.
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The economy of the Soviet Union leans heavily toward a centrally planned economy.
on
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Alan Strachan is a rock to lean on .
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Both are marginally functional, and desperate for some one to lean on .
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Find a stick or something I can lean on .
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Right in itself has no author-ity; it leans on might as the creeper on the tree.
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Religion is something solid for people to lean on .
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Credit position coach Larry Kirksey for developing a young group of wide receivers without Rice to lean on .
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There was nothing like a horse for leaning on , complaining to, arguing with.
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Tactful, encouraging, a tower of strength to lean on .
over
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Elinor leaning over the crazy gate and Otley with his field glasses.
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Some one vomited lazily in a wastebasket, leaning over with his hands on his knees.
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Some one was standing on the parapet, leaning over and looking down.
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He had to lean over to hear me.
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She leant over to him as he fastened it around her throat.
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It seemed like Penny was talking to Mike a lot, whispering to him, leaning over .
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That silhouette leaning over the railing of the darkened veranda just beyond her window was definitely his.
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Pamela leans over and kisses him.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
bend/lean over backwards (to do sth)
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Outside the trees are bending over backwards to please the wind: the shining sword grass flattens on its belly.
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Stuart was leaning over backwards to see Oliver's point of view.
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The authors, however, bend over backwards to avoid consideration of that particular class scenario.
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The Gallery is also bending over backwards to boost attendance, and in doing so is rather alarmingly bowing to populist pressures.
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They also needed to stop rationalizing the problem to themselves and bending over backwards to be fair.
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You should bend over backwards to avoid bitter personal rows and the holding of grudges.
sit/lie/lean back
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Craig sighed and leaned back in his chair.
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But no one can sit back in investment clubs and just listen.
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He must generate all his own internal discipline against the possible inclination to lie back and enjoy his good fortune.
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He sat back on his heels, sorrowfully examining the ruined glove.
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He walked without hesitation to the very front row, sat down and lay back , gazing up at the screen.
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She heard him returning just as she sat back to admire her handiwork.
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Then she lay back on her pillow and they looked at each other as if it was for the first time.
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We started to sit back because we were up on the No. 1 team in the nation.
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Whatever some think, we don't sit back .
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
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All of the trees were leaning in the wind.
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I leaned back on the pillows and closed my eyes.
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It's sometimes considered bad manners to lean your elbows on the table when you're eating.
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Joe leaned on the gate and watched as they drove away.
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Joe was leaning against the school wall, smoking a cigarette.
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She leaned on the railings and looked out at the sea.
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She leaned the ladder against the house and climbed up to the window.
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Soldiers leaned their M-16 rifles up against their tables as they ate.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
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And she leans so far forward to his match that even clear across the room I could see down her blouse.
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David was driving and Shaun was leaning over.
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First the old man dead on the beach, leaning against the railing.
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He leant forward on the table, emphasising the points with a thin finger.
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He opened the gate, walked up the drive, and stopped, staring at the bicycle leaning against the wall.
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He was leaning down, his spear arm back, the gleaming bronze blade wavering as it came towards her.
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I leant across to her and asked whether I should pay the Rao directly and if so how much.
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Petey, leaning against a post, looked pissed off.
II. adjective
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ NOUN
face
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There was an unhealthy flush across his lean face and a wild look in his eyes.
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The older woman had a lean face , a long neck, and an aquiline nose.
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The placard was swaying in the air, his lean face was twisted in excitement.
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The lean face had grown gaunt, the cheeks hollowed, the scar about his mouth carved more deeply into his skin.
meat
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He prescribed a diet, which included these tiny gourmet tins of prime lean meat in savoury jelly.
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Perhaps it should be noted that many persons will think that three ounces of cooked lean meat make a stingy portion.
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Eat lean meat and try fish, chicken or rabbit instead of red meat.
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She uses a thick, crunchy cornmeal coating to protect the lean meat .
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Main courses might include fish, poultry, lean meat and vegetarian dishes, but you should avoid sauces.
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Stillman was a strict carnivore, allowing his patients to eat only lean meat , poultry, eggs, and low-fat cheeses.
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Quality refers to the characteristics associated with tenderness, juiciness, and flavor of lean meat .
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The average, or standardized, serving is three ounces of cooked lean meat .
spell
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The end of a lean spell for Wilkinson has put Boro back on course for the all-important second spot.
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That meant Christmas profits, which usually see the railway through the lean spell to April, were not available.
times
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Yet whether lean times or creative instinct drive customers to second-hand shops, they remain a valuable option.
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Too often in lean times the poorest are asked to make the largest sacrifices.
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These are lean times for the poor small farmers who work marginal lands in the coastal districts.
years
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The gamble seemed worthwhile as the lean years were few.
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She was, after all the lean years , fairly bursting with plans.
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Nothing came along immediately and ahead were a couple of lean years .
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Although two lean years by his standard followed, Davis, 34, still reached two world semi-finals.
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There the religious instruction started by his father, who for all the lean years had been his schoolteacher, continued.
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The Richmond Meet is clearly thriving - but how did it manage to survive the lean years ?
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Those were lean years , without money for trips to the cinema.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
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a lean and athletic man
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a lean year for business
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At seventy-two my grandfather was lean and strong and I expected him to live forever.
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He's a very handsome man: tall, lean and tanned with thick blond hair.
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She had a runner's lean physique and an overall healthy glow.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
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A company with severe cash flow problems may have no choice but to run a lean inventory operation.
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For what seemed an age, she studied his features, strong lean features which she had come to know so well.
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He was tragic looking, lean .
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In this age of lean corporations, more workers are expected to work overtime.
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It is lean production at its meanest.
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Operating efficiency ratios show that Technosystems runs a lean operation, with all ratios above the industry averages.