1
: coming or ranking first : foremost
2
: exercising leadership
3
: providing direction or guidance
a leading question
4
: given most prominent display
the leading story
plural leadings
1
: a covering or framework of lead
repaired the leading in the church's stained-glass windows
2
typography
: the distance between a pair of adjacent lines in composed text
increased the leading after the header
a leading of 6 points
Examples of leading in a Sentence
Adjective
a leading topic of conversation
Their family played a leading part in the settlement of the town.
the leading role in a major Hollywood movie
a leading citizen of the town
She's one of the leading authorities on the stock market.
Recent Examples on the Web
Joseph Wilkins, CNBC, 3 June 2026
Breast cancer is also the second leading cause of cancer deaths among women, behind lung cancer, according to the American Cancer Society, although death rates have been decreasing over the last three decades.
—ABC News, 3 June 2026
Luca Evans, Denver Post, 20 May 2026
Not when Daniss Jenkins, in his first playoff start, was the Pistons’ second leading scorer with 19 points on 17 shots.
—Hunter Patterson, New York Times, 14 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for leading
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Adjective
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images SoftBank's plan to invest 75 billion euros in building AI infrastructure in France underscored the nation's status as a leading hub, but Big Tech's lofty energy demands will put the wider continent's grid to the test, analysts say.
—Joseph Wilkins, CNBC, 3 June 2026
Breast cancer is also the second leading cause of cancer deaths among women, behind lung cancer, according to the American Cancer Society, although death rates have been decreasing over the last three decades.
—ABC News, 3 June 2026
Noun
Colorado Academy’s captain and leading scorer deposited two goals within the span of 2 second-half minutes to completely flip the momentum.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 20 May 2026
Not when Daniss Jenkins, in his first playoff start, was the Pistons’ second leading scorer with 19 points on 17 shots.
—Hunter Patterson, New York Times, 14 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for leading
Cite this Entry
“Leading.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/leading. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.
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