Therefore shall a man leave his father and his
mother, and shall cleave unto his wife. --Gen. ii.
24.
2. To let remain unremoved or undone; to let stay or
continue, in distinction from what is removed or changed.
If grape gatherers come to thee, would they not
leave some gleaning grapes ? --Jer. xlix.
9.
These ought ye to have done, and not to leave the
other undone. --Matt. xxiii.
23.
Besides it leaveth a suspicion, as if more might be
said than is expressed. --Bacon.
3. To cease from; to desist from; to abstain from.
Now leave complaining and begin your tea. --Pope.
4. To desert; to abandon; to forsake; hence, to give up; to
relinquish.
Lo, we have left all, and have followed thee. --Mark
x. 28.
The heresies that men do leave. --Shak.
5. To let be or do without interference; as, I left him to
his reflections; I leave my hearers to judge.
I will leave you now to your gossiplike humor.
--Shak.
6. To put; to place; to deposit; to deliver; to commit; to
submit -- with a sense of withdrawing one's self from; as,
leave your hat in the hall; we left our cards; to leave
the matter to arbitrators.
Leave there thy gift before the altar and go thy
way. --Matt. v. 24.
The foot That leaves the print of blood where'er it
walks. --Shak.
7. To have remaining at death; hence, to bequeath; as, he
left a large estate; he left a good name; he left a legacy
to his niece.
{To leave alone}.
(a) To leave in solitude.
(b) To desist or refrain from having to do with; as, to
leave dangerous chemicals alone.
{To leave off}.
(a) To desist from; to forbear; to stop; as, to leave off
work at six o'clock.
(b) To cease wearing or using; to omit to put in the usual
position; as, to leave off a garment; to leave off the
tablecloth.
(c) To forsake; as, to leave off a bad habit.
{To leave out}, to omit; as, to leave out a word or name in
writing.
{To leave to one's self}, to let (one) be alone; to cease
caring for (one).
Syn: Syn>- To quit; depart from; forsake; abandon;
relinquish; deliver; bequeath; give up; forego; resign;
surrender; forbear. See {Quit}.
{Left bank of a river}, that which is on the left hand of a
person whose face is turned downstream.
{Left bower}. See under 2d {Bower}.
{Left center}, the members whose sympathies are, in the main,
with the members of the Left, but who do not favor extreme
courses, and on occasions vote with the government. They
sit between the Center and the extreme Left.
{Over the left shoulder}, or {Over the left}, an old but
still current colloquialism, or slang expression, used as
an aside to indicate insincerity, negation, or disbelief;
as, he said it, and it is true, -- over the left.
Put that rose a little more to the left. --Ld.
Lytton.
2. Those members of a legislative assembly (as in France) who
are in the opposition; the advanced republicans and
extreme radicals. They have their seats at the left-hand
side of the presiding officer. See {Center}, and {Right}.