lean in

verb

leaned in; leaning in; leans in

intransitive verb

: to persevere in spite of risk or difficulty
Then there's the racial justice crisis and making sure that we are leaning in during this time of recovery and crisis into the very important conversations around diversity and inclusion.Laura Fuentes, quoted in Washington (D.C.) Business Journal
Attending college began as a time of "leaning in," because it took courage to attend a large campus without much parental support and no friends attending with me.Sue Nokes

Examples of lean in in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Other California lawmakers leaned in, too. Andre Mouchard, Oc Register, 19 Apr. 2026 The actress, producer and book club founder took to social media to speak out about leaning in to artificial intelligence, rankling some of her followers in the process. Anika Reed, USA Today, 17 Apr. 2026 The man walks right past Sarati — and instead leans in to hug a woman seated at the table behind him. Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 17 Apr. 2026 Investors have leaned in to optimism about the US-Iran ceasefire, albeit fragile. John Towfighi, CNN Money, 15 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for lean in

Word History

First Known Use

2001, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of lean in was in 2001

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Cite this Entry

“Lean in.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lean%20in. Accessed 23 Apr. 2026.

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