Meaning & use
leer
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Meanings
verbintransitivedisapproving
To look at someone in an unpleasant, sly way that shows sexual interest or ill intent.
Grammar: Takes at: he leered at the waitress, not 'he leered the waitress'.
Patterns
- leer at someone
A man at the bar leered at her until she left.
The villain leered at the hero and laughed.
Don't leer at people; it makes them uncomfortable.
nouncountabledisapproving
An unpleasant, sly or suggestive look.
Grammar: Often used with a: a leer, an evil leer.
Patterns
- a leer on someone's face
There was a nasty leer on his face as he spoke.
She ignored his leer and walked on.
The cartoon wolf gave a wide, toothy leer.
Word forms
| third person singular | leers |
|---|---|
| past tense | leered |
| past participle | leered |
| -ing form | leering |
| plural | leers |
Common combinations
- leer at
- The stranger leered at the passers-by.
- evil leer
- The pirate flashed an evil leer.
- lecherous leer
- The director's lecherous leer made her uneasy.
- leering smile
- A leering smile spread across his face.
- leering grin
- He answered with a leering grin.
Synonyms and how they differ
- ogle
- Ogle is nearly the same but emphasizes openly staring with sexual interest, while leer can also mean a sly, menacing look.
- stare
- Stare is neutral and only means looking for a long time, with no unpleasant meaning.
- smirk
- Smirk is a smug smile and is not necessarily sexual or threatening.
- gawk
- Gawk means staring stupidly with the mouth open, and is not sexual.
Word family
- leering adjective
- giving an unpleasant, sly look
- leeringly adverb
- in a leering way
- leerer noun
- a person who leers, rare
Commonly confused: leer or lear? leer or leery?
leer vs lear
Lear is a proper name, as in King Lear, and the word is not a spelling of leer.
leer vs leery
Leery means wary or suspicious, as in leery of strangers, and is a different word from leer.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'leer' correctly?
Choose one answer.
Leer is intransitive and takes the preposition at. The other options use the wrong structure.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “leer”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.