“Leased” or “Least”—Which to use?

“Leased” or “Least”

Overview

leased / least are similar-sounding terms with different meanings (referred to as homophones). To better understand the differences, see below for definitions, pronunciation guides, and example sentences using each term. 👇

Definitions

leased: (verb) grant use or occupation of under a term of contract. (verb) engage for service under a term of contract.

least: (noun) something that is of no importance. (adjective) the superlative of `little' that can be used with mass nouns and is usually preceded by `the'; a quantifier meaning smallest in amount or extent or degree. (adverb) used to form the superlative.

Pronunciation

leased: l·IY·s·t

least: l·IY·s·t

Trends

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Examples in Context

Examples of “leased”

…5 including the facilities currently leased from DOTC.
The Southwestern was leased to the Central of Georgia…
…an older corn mill, was leased by Arkwright in 1777.
Norwegian Long Haul briefly leased Hi Fly Malta A380 in…
…the Cape Florida lighthouse was leased by the United States Secretary…
…the school site has been leased by Bedford College, who use…
…Bradford and Pittsburgh Railroad was leased to the Erie Railroad on…
…Tu-134 (registered RA-65691) had been leased by RusLine from RusAir and…
Peru leased five VT-1A from China for…
With four A380s leased to Singapore Airlines having been…

Examples of “least”

It has to be at least 50 years old or of…
…Cal freshman to have at least 200 rebounds.
…of 2013, there are at least 15 minor network affiliates or…
…than sugar, making it the least potent of the commercially used…
Outwardly at least, by 743 the Umayyad position…
…among the electorate, for at least trying to do what he
…that he achieved this at least partly by culling weaker students…
…Tyrophagus casei mites for at least three months.
…type engines require at the least, supplies to the cathode, anode…
…an archeological site, listed at least partially for its potential to…

(Examples are Wikipedia snippets under the CC ShareAlike 3.0 license. Definitions drawn from WordNet.)

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