Some 16th-century Italian clergymen tried to ban coffee because they believed it to be “satanic.” However, Pope Clement VII loved coffee so much that he lifted the ban and had coffee baptized in 1600.
LEANING
atilt, canted, leaning, tilted, tipped
(adjective) departing or being caused to depart from the true vertical or horizontal; “the leaning tower of Pisa”; “the headstones were tilted”
leaning
(noun) the act of deviating from a vertical position
tilt, list, inclination, lean, leaning
(noun) the property possessed by a line or surface that departs from the vertical; “the tower had a pronounced tilt”; “the ship developed a list to starboard”; “he walked with a heavy inclination to the right”
proclivity, propensity, leaning
(noun) a natural inclination; “he has a proclivity for exaggeration”
leaning, propensity, tendency
(noun) an inclination to do something; “he felt leanings toward frivolity”
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology 1
Noun
leaning (plural leanings)
A tendency or propensity.
Etymology 2
Verb
leaning
present participle of lean
Anagrams
• aneling, eanling, lignane, nealing
Source: Wiktionary
Lean"ing, n.
Definition: The act, or state, of inclining; inclination; tendency; as, a leaning towards Calvinism.
LEAN
Lean, v. t. Etym: [Icel. leyna; akin to G. läugnen to deny, AS. l, also E. lie to speak falsely.]
Definition: To conceal. [Obs.] Ray.
Lean, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Leaned, sometimes Leant (p. pr. & vb. n. Leaning.] Etym: [OE. lenen, AS. hlinian, hleonian, v. i.; akin to OS. hlinon, D. leunen, OHG. hlinen, linen, G. lehnen, L. inclinare, Gr. clivus hill, slope. sq. root40. Cf. Declivity, Climax, Incline, Ladder.]
1. To incline, deviate, or bend, from a vertical position; to be in a position thus inclining or deviating; as, she leaned out at the window; a leaning column. "He leant forward." Dickens.
2. To incline in opinion or desire; to conform in conduct; -- with to, toward, etc. They delight rather to lean to their old customs. Spenser.
3. To rest or rely, for support, comfort, and the like; -- with on, upon, or against. He leaned not on his fathers but himself. Tennyson.
Lean, v. t. Etym: [From Lean, v. i. ; AS. hl, v. t., fr. hleonian, hlinian, v. i.]
Definition: To cause to lean; to incline; to support or rest. Mrs. Browning. His fainting limbs against an oak he leant. Dryden.
Lean, a. [Compar. Leaner; superl. Leanest.] Etym: [OE. lene, AS. hl; prob. akin to E. lean to incline. See Lean, v. i. ]
1. Wanting flesh; destitute of or deficient in fat; not plump; meager; thin; lank; as, a lean body; a lean cattle.
2. Wanting fullness, richness, sufficiency, or productiveness; deficient in quality or contents; slender; scant; barren; bare; mean;
– used literally and figuratively; as, the lean harvest; a lean purse; a lean discourse; lean wages. "No lean wardrobe." Shak. Their lean and fiashy songs. Milton. What the land is, whether it be fat or lean. Num. xiii. 20. Out of my lean and low ability I'll lend you something. Shak.
3. (Typog.)
Definition: Of a character which prevents the compositor from earning the usual wages; -- opposed to fat; as lean copy, matter, or type.
Syn.
– slender; spare; thin; meager; lank; skinny; gaunt.
Lean, n.
1. That part of flesh which consist principally of muscle without the fat. The fat was so white and the lean was so ruddy. Goldsmith.
2. (Typog.)
Definition: Unremunerative copy or work.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
Recent Word Finds
Word of the Day
25 December 2024
UNAMBIGUOUS
(adjective) having or exhibiting a single clearly defined meaning; “As a horror, apartheid...is absolutely unambiguous”- Mario Vargas Llosa
Coffee Trivia
