leaf

/liːf/

noun

  1. one of the flat, usually green parts that grow from a plant’s stem or branches

    A1

    countable; plural: leaves

    • "A leaf fell from the tree."A1
    • "The leaves turn red and gold in autumn."A2
    • "The plant has large leaves that catch the sunlight."B1

  2. one of the separate sheets of paper in a book or similar object; a page

    C1

    countable; plural: leavesformal or literary

    • "He carefully turned a leaf of the old diary."B1
    • "She found the note between the leaves of the book."B1
    • "Several leaves are missing from the manuscript."B2

verb

  1. to turn pages quickly, especially to look briefly at a book or magazine

    B2

    intransitive; usually in 'leaf through something'; leafed, leafed

    • "He leafed through the magazine while he waited."B1
    • "She leafed through her notes to find the answer."B2
    • "I leafed through the archive, hoping to find the letter."C1

Common mistakes

  • leafs→leaves

    The plural of the noun 'leaf' is 'leaves', not 'leafs'.

Collocations

fallen leavesautumn leavesgreen leavesturn over a new leafleaf throughmaple leaf

Word family

leafyleafletleafedleafless