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Words, grammatical forms and meanings linked to the ontology.

leaven en · NOUN

Pronunciation

  • /ˈlev.ən/ (Australia, New-Zealand)
  • [ˈlevn̩] (Australia, New-Zealand)
  • (California) audio
  • [ˈlɛvn̩] (Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation)
  • /ˈlɛv.ən/ (Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₁lengʷʰ- Proto-Indo-European *-us Proto-Indo-European *h₁léngʰusder. ▲ Proto-Italic *breɣʷisinflu.? Proto-Italic *leɣʷis Latin levis Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu. Proto-Italic *-ājō Proto-Italic *-āō Latin -ō Latin levō Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥ Proto-Italic *-mn̥ Latin -men Vulgar Latin *levāmender. Old French levainbor. Middle English levayn English leaven From Middle English levayn, borrowed from Old French levain, from Vulgar Latin *levāmen, a noun based on Latin levō (“raise”).

Meanings

  1. (countable, uncountable) Any agent used to make dough rise or to have a similar effect on baked goods.
  2. (countable, figuratively, uncountable) Anything that induces change, especially a corrupting or vitiating change.
    • On the far side was reflected a single red and meteoric cloud, which had treasured one last crimson ray from the sunset, or perhaps nursed within it the fiery leaven. 1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XXXVI, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume III, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 299:
    • Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod. 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Mark 8:15:
    • The leaven of insincerity worked through all the fibres of his being. 1926, T.E. Lawrence, Seven Pillars of Wisdom, New York: Anchor, published 1991, page 213:
  3. (Judaism, countable, uncountable) Chametz.
    • On the fourteenth day of Nisan men search for leaven by candlelight. 1878, “On The Passover”, in Joseph Barclay, transl., The Talmud, page 95:

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
leavens Number=Plur lexicographic

Deriveds

of the same leaven · natural leaven · leavenous · leavenless

Hypernyms

agent (any agent used to make dough rise) · substance (any agent used to make dough rise)

Hyponyms

baking powder (any agent used to make dough rise) · yeast (any agent used to make dough rise)

Synonyms

leavening agent (any agent used to make dough rise) · raising agent (any agent used to make dough rise)

Translations (84)

enm levayn (any agent used to make dough rise) · tr maya (any agent used to make dough rise) · zza amîn (any agent used to make dough rise) · cmn 麵肥 /面肥 (any agent used to make dough rise) · bg набухвател (any agent used to make dough rise) · eo fermentilo (any agent used to make dough rise) · cs kvásek (any agent used to make dough rise) · rm alvamaint (any agent used to make dough rise) · zza ameyn (any agent used to make dough rise) · ja 膨張剤 (any agent used to make dough rise) · ms bahan penaik (any agent used to make dough rise) · ka საფუარი (any agent used to make dough rise) · az maya (any agent used to make dough rise) · pt fermento (any agent used to make dough rise) · ro covoseală (any agent used to make dough rise) · rm lavamaint (any agent used to make dough rise) · hu kovász (any agent used to make dough rise) · ro maia (any agent used to make dough rise) · ota خامور (any agent used to make dough rise) · zza amên (diq) (any agent used to make dough rise) · de Ferment (any agent used to make dough rise) · gv soorid (any agent used to make dough rise) · gv jiastyn (any agent used to make dough rise) · hu élesztő (any agent used to make dough rise) · cu квасъ (any agent used to make dough rise) · pl drożdże (any agent used to make dough rise) · es polvos de hornear (any agent used to make dough rise) · lt raugas (any agent used to make dough rise) · gl fermento (any agent used to make dough rise) · ja パン種 (any agent used to make dough rise) · wa lewin (any agent used to make dough rise) · fr levain (any agent used to make dough rise) · he שאור (any agent used to make dough rise) · io hefo (any agent used to make dough rise) · hy թթխմոր (any agent used to make dough rise) · kmr havên (any agent used to make dough rise) · grc ζύμη (any agent used to make dough rise) · cy lefain (any agent used to make dough rise) · rm tschadamaint (any agent used to make dough rise) · gl lévedo (any agent used to make dough rise) · de Treibmittel (any agent used to make dough rise) · ru разрыхли́тель (any agent used to make dough rise) · kw gwel (any agent used to make dough rise) · enm sour dogh (any agent used to make dough rise) · pl zaczyn (any agent used to make dough rise) · fr ferment (any agent used to make dough rise) · gv jastee (any agent used to make dough rise) · nl rijsmiddel (any agent used to make dough rise) · ca llevat (any agent used to make dough rise) · fa مایه (any agent used to make dough rise) · vec levà (any agent used to make dough rise) · no hevingsmiddel (any agent used to make dough rise) · sw hamira (any agent used to make dough rise) · cy surdoes (any agent used to make dough rise) · rm levànt (any agent used to make dough rise) · fi nostatusaine (any agent used to make dough rise) · ru заква́ска (any agent used to make dough rise) · pt levedura (any agent used to make dough rise) · pl zakwas (any agent used to make dough rise) · rm alvo (any agent used to make dough rise) · scn criscenti (any agent used to make dough rise) · ckb ھەوێن (any agent used to make dough rise) · ota مایه (any agent used to make dough rise) · es levadura (any agent used to make dough rise) · fur levan (any agent used to make dough rise) · sw chachu (any agent used to make dough rise) · ar خَمِيرَة (any agent used to make dough rise) · mi rēwena (any agent used to make dough rise) · hac ئامیان (any agent used to make dough rise) · it lievito (any agent used to make dough rise) · ro plămădeală (any agent used to make dough rise) · gl isco (any agent used to make dough rise) · ga gabháil (any agent used to make dough rise) · nci xocotextli (any agent used to make dough rise) · de Triebmittel (any agent used to make dough rise) · lv rauga (any agent used to make dough rise) · cmn 酵母 (any agent used to make dough rise) · fa برازده (any agent used to make dough rise) · got 𐌱𐌴𐌹𐍃𐍄 (any agent used to make dough rise) · rm levon (any agent used to make dough rise) · cy eples (any agent used to make dough rise) · oc levam (any agent used to make dough rise) · ro plămadă (any agent used to make dough rise) · tl lebadura (any agent used to make dough rise)

leaven en · VERB

Pronunciation

  • /ˈlev.ən/ (Australia, New-Zealand)
  • [ˈlevn̩] (Australia, New-Zealand)
  • (California) audio
  • [ˈlɛvn̩] (Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation)
  • /ˈlɛv.ən/ (Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₁lengʷʰ- Proto-Indo-European *-us Proto-Indo-European *h₁léngʰusder. ▲ Proto-Italic *breɣʷisinflu.? Proto-Italic *leɣʷis Latin levis Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂ Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu. Proto-Italic *-ājō Proto-Italic *-āō Latin -ō Latin levō Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥ Proto-Italic *-mn̥ Latin -men Vulgar Latin *levāmender. Old French levainbor. Middle English levayn English leaven From Middle English levayn, borrowed from Old French levain, from Vulgar Latin *levāmen, a noun based on Latin levō (“raise”).

Meanings

  1. (transitive) To add a leavening agent.
    • Yeast is used to leaven bread, making it rise during baking.
  2. (transitive) To cause to rise by fermentation.
  3. (figuratively, transitive) To temper an action, decision, attitude, characteristic, etc.
    • Duke. No more euasion: We haue with a leauen'd, and prepared choice Proceeded to you; therefore take your honors:[...] c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “Measure for Measure”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:
    • With fresh material, taxonomic conclusions are leavened by recognition that the material examined reflects the site it occupied; a herbarium packet gives one only a small fraction of the data desirable for sound conclusions. Herbarium material does not, indeed, allow one to extrapolate safely: what you see is what you get[…] 1992, Rudolf M[athias] Schuster, The Hepaticae and Anthocerotae of North America: East of the Hundredth Meridian, volume V, Chicago, Ill.: Field Museum of Natural History, →ISBN, page vii:
    • “A tinge of Jewish blood is not a bad thing. It leavens the”—she looked at him—“stolid stupidity of the ordinary Englishman.” 1920, Agatha Christie, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, London: Pan Books, published 1954, page 125:
  4. (figuratively, transitive) To imbue; to infect; to vitiate.
    • Her optimism seemed to leaven the otherwise tense environment.
    • With these and the like deceivable doctrines, he levens also his prayer. 1649, John Milton, Eikonoklastes, London, published 1756, page 30:
    • […] pursue virtue virtuously: leven not good actions, nor render virtues disputable. Stain not fair acts with foul intentions […] 1716, Thomas Browne, edited by Samuel Johnson, Christian Morals, 2nd edition, London: J. Payne, published 1756, Part I, p. 7:
    • The comedian's jokes helped leaven the atmosphere during the serious meeting.
  5. To rise or become larger; to prove.

Forms

SpellingFeaturesLabelsSource
leven alternative lexicographic
leavens Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres lexicographic
leavening Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part lexicographic
leavened Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part lexicographic
leavened Tense=Past lexicographic

Deriveds

leavening · overleaven · leavened · unleavened · leavener · unleavenable

Relateds

yeast

Translations (22)

fr faire lever (to cause to rise by fermentation) · ty hōpue (to cause to rise by fermentation) · no heve (to cause to rise by fermentation) · hu megkeleszt (to cause to rise by fermentation) · fi kohottaa (to cause to rise by fermentation) · es leudar (to cause to rise by fermentation) · gl levedar (to cause to rise by fermentation) · it lievitare (to add leavening) · it lievitare (to cause to rise by fermentation) · fi nostattaa (to add leavening) · es leudar (to add leavening) · fr faire fermenter (to cause to rise by fermentation) · he הֶחְמִיץ (to cause to rise by fermentation) · haw(to cause to rise by fermentation) · fa وراوردن (to cause to rise by fermentation) · cmn 膨鬆 /膨松 (to cause to rise by fermentation) · hu keleszt (to cause to rise by fermentation) · mi rēwena (to cause to rise by fermentation) · hu erjeszt (to cause to rise by fermentation) · io hefizar (to add leavening) · ro plămădi (to add leavening) · fi nostattaa (to cause to rise by fermentation)