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left1 definition

left (left)

adjective

    1. designating or of that side of one's body which is toward the west when one faces north, the side of the less-used hand in most people
    2. designating or of the corresponding side of anything
    3. closer to the left side of a person directly before and facing the thing mentioned or understood the top left drawer of a desk
  2. of the side or bank of a river on the left of a person facing downstream
  3. of the political left; liberal or radical

Etymology: ME (Kentish) var. of lift < OE lyft, weak, akin to EFris luf, weak

noun

    1. all or part of the left side
    2. what is on the left side
    3. a direction or location on the left side: often with the
    4. a turn toward the left side
  2. ☆ Baseball left field
  3. Boxing
    1. the left hand
    2. a blow delivered with the left hand
  4. Politics a liberal or radical position, esp. one varying from moderate socialism to communism, or a party or group advocating this: often with the: from the position of the seats occupied in some European legislatures

adverb

on or toward the left hand or side
left Idioms

have two left feet

to be very clumsy
left2 definition

left (left)

transitive verb, intransitive verb

leave

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Alternate definitions:

idioms left idiom

left Synonyms

left

modif.

  1. Opposite to right

    leftward, left-hand, near, sinister, sinistral, sinistrous, larboard, port, portside, nigh side*.

    Antonyms right*, right-hand*, starboard. *

  2. Remaining

    staying, continuing, over; see extra, remaining 2.

  3. Radical

    left-wing, liberal, progressive; see liberal 2, radical 2, revolutionary 1.

  4. Departed

    gone out, taken a powder*, split*; see gone 1. See syn. study at liberal.


left

n.

left hand, left side, port, larboard, sinister, portside, verso.


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

left Usage Examples

Possessives

  • fake: For example, the SWP became the fattest of the fake ' lefts ' via decades of the most reactionary anti-Soviet opportunism.

Preposition: at

  • roundabout: On exiting the tunnel take the first left at the large roundabout then right at the next roundabout.

Adjective modifier

  • sharp: Go through the village bearing sharp left at junction.

Modifies a noun

  • side: Insert the needle into the left hand side of the graft from outside in, 5mm from the graft edge.

Noun used with modifier

  • turn: Take the 1st exit at the roundabout and then the immediate turn left which leads onto Oxford Street.

Preposition: of

  • midfield: From his position wide on the left of midfield, Stuart Elliott contributed 29 league and cup goals.
left usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

left quotes

Harold Macmillan held his party together by not allowing his left wing to see what his right wing was doing.

-Baroness

Say what you will,'tis better to be left than never to have been loved.

-Congreve,William

If there are indeed any iron laws of history, one of them is surely that in any major crisis of the capitalist system, a sector of the liberal middle class will shift to the left, and then shift smartly back again once the crisis has blown over.

-Eagleton,Terry

left quotes (more)

Webster's New World Dictionary of Quotations Copyright © 2005 by Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved. Published by Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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MLA Style

"left." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 5 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/left>

APA Style

left. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 5th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/left

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