I. leaf 1 S2 W2 /liːf/ BrE AmE noun ( plural leaves /liːvz/)
[ Language: Old English ]
1 . PLANT [countable] one of the flat green parts of a plant that are joined to its stem or branches:
a flowering bush with large shiny leaves
leaf of
Add a few leaves of fresh basil to the salad.
be in leaf/come into leaf (=have or start growing leaves, at a particular time of year)
The forest was just coming into leaf.
2 . take a leaf out of sb’s book to copy the way someone else behaves because you want to be like them or be as successful as they are:
They are committing $3m to research. We could take a leaf out of their book.
3 . turn over a new leaf to change the way you behave and become a better person:
I see fatherhood as a chance to turn over a new leaf.
4 . PAGE [countable] formal a page of a book:
He slipped the letter between the leaves of his notebook.
⇨ ↑ loose-leaf , ↑ overleaf
5 . PART OF TABLE [countable] a part of the top of a table that can be taken out to make the table smaller
⇨ shake like a leaf at ↑ shake 1 (2)
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ the leaves turn red/brown etc (=become red, brown etc)
The maple leaves had turned a fiery red.
▪ the leaves fall
All the leaves had fallen off the tree.
▪ a tree loses/sheds its leaves (=the leaves come off the tree)
Most trees shed their leaves in the autumn.
▪ sweep (up) the leaves (=tidy away fallen leaves using a brush)
Jack was sweeping leaves in the back garden.
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + leaf
▪ a green/brown/yellow etc leaf
the deep green leaves of the coconut trees
▪ a dead leaf
The ground beneath the tree was covered in dead leaves.
▪ fallen leaves (=that have fallen off the trees)
The children were jumping in piles of fallen leaves.
▪ autumn leaves ( also fall leaves American English ) (=leaves that have changed colour or fallen in autumn)
I love the colours of the autumn leaves.
▪ an oak/vine/spinach etc leaf (=a leaf from a specific plant or tree)
Vine leaves stuffed with rice is a typical Greek dish.
■ phrases
▪ be in leaf especially literary (=have leaves)
By this time, most of the trees were in leaf.
▪ come into leaf (=start having leaves)
The apple tree had finally come into leaf.
II. leaf 2 BrE AmE verb
leaf through something phrasal verb
to turn the pages of a book quickly, without reading it properly SYN skim through :
She picked up the magazine and leafed through it.