What does leaf mean?
Leaf is the ordinary English word for the usually flat, green structures that grow from the stems and branches of plants. In its dominant botanical sense, a leaf is associated with photosynthesis, the process by which plants use light to make food, and with ideas of nature, growth, seasonal change, and renewal. The word can also refer to one page or sheet in a book or document, and to a thin sheet of a material such as metal or gold. Used as a verb, leaf means to turn pages, as in the familiar expression leaf through a book. These meanings extend beyond literal botany: the phrase turn over a new leaf, for example, suggests beginning again after a mistake or difficult period. The word is equally familiar in British and American English and is useful because it carries both ordinary physical meanings and a rich figurative associations with vegetation, time, and change.
A typically flat, usually green organ attached to a plant's stem or branch, usually responsible for photosynthesis; also a page or sheet in a book or document, or a thin sheet of a material.
"The book had a blank leaf at the back."
The plant-organ sense is dominant today. Foliage is preferred when referring to leaves collectively.
To turn the pages of a book or other document; also, of a plant, to put forth or produce leaves.
"They spent the afternoon leafing through old magazines."
The verb is especially established in the expression leaf through, meaning to read or examine a document casually and quickly.
The standard plural of the noun is leaves. The plural of the verb, meaning to turn pages or put forth leaves, is also leaves.
"Dead leaves covered the footpath after the storm."
Leaves are nature's solar panels, turning sunlight, water, and air into food for the plant.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does leaf come from?
The English word descends from Old English lēaf, used for the organ of a plant and also for a written page. Old English lēaf came from Proto-Germanic *laubaz, a form represented by cognates such as German Laub, Dutch loof, and Icelandic lauf. The modern verb developed partly from the older sense of turning or passing over the leaves, or pages, of a book.
Related word forms
How leaf is actually used
The noun is standard in both British and American English. For the plant organ, singular leaf contrasts with the collective nouns foliage and greenery. The verb leaf through is especially common in reference to books, reports, and other readable material. The expression turn over a new leaf means to make a fresh start.
Easily confused with leaf
A leaf is a plant organ or a page, whereas a leak is a place where liquid or gas escapes unintentionally.