as in preferred
to show partiality toward
I'm leaning toward sausage on our pizza tonight—we got pepperoni the last three times
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for leaned (toward or towards)
Verb
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In 1847, Henri-Clément Sanson, who preferred gambling to guillotining, pawned off the family apparatus.—
Lauren Collins,
New Yorker,
1 Apr. 2026 -
Of the 2,400 who participated in the study, mostly preferred being flattered.—
Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez,
Fortune,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Hana liked it enough to take some home, which in the Test Kitchen is a ringing endorsement!—
Shilpa Uskokovic,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
1 Apr. 2026
-
The Moore move was made to bring in a player the Eagles liked coming out of college, but who has not yet capitalized on his traits in the NFL.—
Zach Berman,
New York Times,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Despite being bothered by his elbow throughout the 2025 campaign, Rodón enjoyed his best season with the Yankees last year.—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
1 Apr. 2026
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Bencoglu also enjoyed the warmth of the home supporters on Tuesday.—
Greg O'Keeffe,
New York Times,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Jews who were unaffiliated or who attended Reform synagogues largely favored the process, which created areas of limited Palestinian self-governance, whereas a majority of Orthodox Jews, who lean conservative, opposed it.—
Eyal Press,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
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Asked about their preferred candidate in a 2028 GOP primary for president, 53% of those polled favored Vance and 35% favored Secretary of State Marco Rubio.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
29 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Leaned (toward or towards).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/leaned%20%28toward%20or%20towards%29. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.
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