as in to like
to show partiality toward
I'm leaning toward sausage on our pizza tonight—we got pepperoni the last three times
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lean (toward or towards)
Verb
-
There’s a lot to like about the way the Sabres have played, though.—
Matthew Fairburn,
New York Times,
25 Oct. 2025 -
Choi likes to precut carrots, celery, onions and fennel.—
Malaka Gharib,
NPR,
25 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Gaming executives much prefer the latter category of client (comping them suites and steak house dinners to encourage their patronage) because, with enough time at a table, the house’s statistical edge wins out.—
Gary Baum,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Nov. 2025
-
In a previous short interview alongside mayoral candidates Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Silwa, Mamdani said remote work positions should continue for workers, a policy preferred by younger generations.—
Jessica Coacci,
Fortune,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
As a childless person who doesn’t teach I’ve been happily unaware that, due to standardized testing requirements that favor close reads of excerpts over whole books, there’s an entire generation of students who have very little contextual framework for the literature they’re being taught in school.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Buyers fought over a limited supply, with those offering higher down payments and higher offers ultimately being favored by the market.—
Giulia Carbonaro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 Nov. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Lean (toward or towards).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lean%20%28toward%20or%20towards%29. Accessed 8 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share