1
: coming or ranking first : foremost
2
: exercising leadership
3
: providing direction or guidance
a leading question
4
: given most prominent display
the leading story
plural leadings
1
: a covering or framework of lead
repaired the leading in the church's stained glass windows
2
typography
: the distance between a pair of adjacent lines in composed text
increased the leading after the header
a leading of 6 points
Synonyms
Adjective
Examples of leading in a Sentence
Adjective
a leading topic of conversation
Their family played a leading part in the settlement of the town.
the leading role in a major Hollywood movie
a leading citizen of the town
She's one of the leading authorities on the stock market.
Recent Examples on the Web
Angel Saunders, People.com, 2 Nov. 2024
Among the leading virtual influencers, Lil Miquela -a digital avatar with over 3 million Instagram followers- has collaborated with brands like Prada and Calvin Klein.
—Esade Business & Law School, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024
Curtis Bunn, NBC News, 6 Nov. 2024
Riley Greene concluded his pole-to-pole leading of the team’s offense with a .838 OPS in the last 30 games.
—Tyler Small, Forbes, 30 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for leading 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Adjective
The actress, who scored her first leading role as Zenon, has starred in the long-running soap opera since 2005.
—Angel Saunders, People.com, 2 Nov. 2024
Among the leading virtual influencers, Lil Miquela -a digital avatar with over 3 million Instagram followers- has collaborated with brands like Prada and Calvin Klein.
—Esade Business & Law School, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024
Noun
Any update that had Trump leading inspired vigorous boos.
—Curtis Bunn, NBC News, 6 Nov. 2024
Riley Greene concluded his pole-to-pole leading of the team’s offense with a .838 OPS in the last 30 games.
—Tyler Small, Forbes, 30 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for leading
Dictionary Entries Near leading
Cite this Entry
“Leading.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leading. Accessed 25 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share