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  1. leaven love

Definitions

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

  1. n. An agent, such as yeast, that causes batter or dough to rise, especially by fermentation.
  2. n. An element, influence, or agent that works subtly to lighten, enliven, or modify a whole.
  3. v. To add a rising agent to.
  4. v. To cause to rise, especially by fermentation.
  5. v. To pervade with a lightening, enlivening, or modifying influence.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

  1. n. See leven.
  2. n. A substance that produces or is designed to produce fermentation, especially in dough; specifically, a mass of fermenting dough, which, mixed with a larger quantity of dough or paste, produces fermentation in it and renders it light.
  3. n. Something that resembles leaven in its effects, as some secret or impalpable influence working a general change, especially a change for the worse.
  4. To excite fermentation in; raise and make light, as dough or paste.
  5. To imbue; work upon by some invisible or powerful influence.
  6. To ripen; mature.

Wiktionary

  1. n. Any agent used to make dough rise or to have a similar effect on baked goods.
  2. v. transitive To add a leavening agent.
  3. v. transitive To cause to rise by fermentation.
  4. v. transitive, figuratively To temper an action or decision.
  5. v. To imbue; to infect; to vitiate.

GNU Webster's 1913

  1. n. Any substance that produces, or is designed to produce, fermentation, as in dough or liquids; esp., a portion of fermenting dough, which, mixed with a larger quantity of dough, produces a general change in the mass, and renders it light; yeast; barm.
  2. n. Anything which makes a general assimilating (especially a corrupting) change in the mass.
  3. v. To make light by the action of leaven; to cause to ferment.
  4. v. To imbue; to infect; to vitiate.

WordNet 3.0

  1. n. an influence that works subtly to lighten or modify something
  2. v. cause to puff up with a leaven
  3. n. a substance used to produce fermentation in dough or a liquid

Etymologies

  1. Middle English levain, from Old French, from Late Latin levamen, instead of levamentum, ultimately from Latin levō ("I raise"). (Wiktionary)
  2. Middle English, from Old French levain, from Vulgar Latin *levāmen, from Latin levāre, to raise; see legwh- in Indo-European roots. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)

Examples

  • “We are leaven, in heaven. leaven-# a substance used to produce fermentation in dough or a liquid”

    Propeller Most Popular Stories

  • “_But_," he resumed, with renewed seriousness -- "_But ef Christians on'y knowed it_, dey kin put a _little leaven o 'solid Christianity_ in all de charity flour dey gi'es away, an' hit'll _leaven de whole lot_ so strong dat _too much water can't spile it_, nur _too much fire can't scorch it_, nur _too much fore-sight_ (ur whatever dis heah is de”

    Moriah's Mourning and Other Half-Hour Sketches

  • “So "leaven" is used of false doctrine (Mt 16: 12: compare Mt 13: 33).”

    Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

  • “The disciples did not understand him as referring to their doctrine, because the word leaven was not often used among the”

    Barnes New Testament Notes

  • “Apostle Paul also makes clear, saying: Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us, and That ye may be unleavened, not having any leaven (for he calls leaven wickedness), but that ye may be a new dough.”

    A Source Book for Ancient Church History

  • “But whether we call the leaven a good or evil thing makes little difference.”

    Essays in Rebellion

  • “The disciples, whose minds were occupied with their lack of provisions, the moment they heard the word leaven, thought of bread, concluded it must be because of its absence that he spoke of leaven, and imagined perhaps a warning against some danger of defilement from”

    Unspoken Sermons Second Series

  • “Jews in searching every corner of their houses, and "purging out" every particle of leaven from the time of killing the lamb before the”

    Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

  • “For even -- an additional reason, besides that in 1Co 5: 6, and a more cogent one for purging out every leaven of evil; namely, that Christ has been already sacrificed, whereas the old leaven is yet unremoved, which ought to have been long ago purged out.”

    Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

  • “The exclusion of leaven for seven days would not be attended with inconvenience in the East, where the usual leaven is dough kept till it becomes sour, and it is kept from one day to another for the purpose of preserving leaven in readiness.”

    Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

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synonyms (9)

Words with the same meaning

  1. yeast
  1. barm
  1. imbue
  1. infect
  1. vitiate
  1. depart
  1. cease
  1. ferment
  1. admixture

hypernyms (6)

Words that are more generic or abstract

  1. imponderable
  1. elevate
  1. raise
  1. bring up
  1. getup
  1. lift

same context (3)

Words that are found in similar contexts

  1. semblance
  1. tinge
  1. impress

rhymes (8)

Words with the same terminal sound

  1. Bevan
  1. Devon
  1. Evan
  1. Heaven
  1. devon
  1. eleven
  1. heaven
  1. seven

reverse dictionary (25)

Words that contain this word in their definition

  1. barm
  2. sourdough
  3. Leven
  4. levin
  5. fermentate
  1. leavenous
  2. leaven
  3. leavening
  4. zymic
  5. yahourth
  1. unleavened
  2. overleaven
  3. salt-rising
  4. raised
  5. raise
  1. saccharomyces cerevisiae
  2. rising
  3. prove
  4. baker's yeast
  5. brewer's yeast
  1. sponge
  2. to set a sponge
  3. meat-offering
  4. raising
  5. bedikah

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  • Louises Somewhere in the back of our minds had been the belief that my being in drag would leaven the horror. And if I laugh at any mortal thing. 'Tis that I may not weep. It had failed in the way that comic music at a funeral can fail. From "The Last Werewolf" by Glen Duncan. Feb 28, 2012

  • yarb I shall pass over in silence the description of a thousand ceremonies, necessary to be gone through, in order to my return into the bosom of the church; suffice it to say, that I forswore Mahometanism with much more sincerity than I had pledged myself to it. After having entirely purged myself from my Algerine leaven, I sold my ship, and set all my slaves at liberty.

    - Lesage, The Adventures of Gil Blas of Santillane, tr. Smollett, bk 5 ch. 1 Sep 19, 2008

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‘leaven’ has been looked up 2359 times, loved by 2 people, added to 22 lists, commented on 2 times, and has a Scrabble score of 9.