Meaning & use
a leaf
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Meanings
nouncountable
One of the flat, usually green parts that grow from a plant's stem or branch.
Grammar: Countable: one leaf, two leaves. Use 'a leaf' for a single one.
Patterns
- a leaf on a tree
- a leaf falls
A leaf fell from the tree and landed on my shoulder.
She picked up a leaf and looked at its veins.
In autumn, every leaf on the maple turns red.
nouncountableformal
A single sheet of paper in a book or notebook, especially one page.
Grammar: Countable: one leaf, several leaves. Often used in formal or old-fashioned writing.
Patterns
- a leaf of a book
- turn a leaf
He carefully turned a leaf of the old manuscript.
A leaf was missing from the middle of the book.
Word forms
| plural | leaves |
|---|
Common combinations
- a fallen leaf
- The children jumped into a pile of fallen leaves.
- a green leaf
- A green leaf uses sunlight to make food for the plant.
- a leaf blower
- He used a leaf blower to clear the driveway.
- turn over a new leaf
- After the accident, he decided to turn over a new leaf and stop drinking.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
- leafy adjective
- Having many leaves; covered with leaves.
- leaflet noun
- A small leaf; also a printed sheet of paper.
- leafless adjective
- Having no leaves.
Commonly confused: a leaf or leave?
a leaf vs leave
As a verb, 'leave' means to go away from a place. As a noun, 'leave' means time off work. 'Leaf' is the plant part; the plural of 'leaf' is 'leaves', which sounds like 'leave' but is spelled differently.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence.
Choose one answer.
The subject 'a leaf' is singular, so the verb must be 'is falling'. Option 1 uses 'are' with a singular subject; option 3 has no verb; option 4 uses the base form 'fall' with a singular subject.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “a leaf”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.