v., leaked, leak·ing, leaks. v.intr.
- To permit the escape, entry, or passage of something through a breach or flaw: rusted pipes that were beginning to leak; a boat leaking at the seams.
- To escape or pass through a breach or flaw: helium leaking slowly from the balloon.
- Informal. To become publicly known through a breach of secrecy: The news has leaked.
- To permit (a substance) to escape or pass through a breach or flaw: a damaged reactor leaking radioactivity into the atmosphere.
- Informal. To disclose without authorization or official sanction: leaked classified information to a reporter.
- A crack or flaw that permits something to escape from or enter a container or conduit: fixed the leak in the roof.
- The act or instance of leaking.
- An amount leaked: equipment used in cleaning up oil leaks.
- Informal. An unauthorized or a deliberate disclosure of confidential information: "Sometimes we can't respond to stories based on leaks" (Ronald Reagan).
- Loss of electric current as a result of faulty insulation.
- The path or place at which this loss takes place.
take a leak Vulgar Slang.
- To urinate.
[Middle English leken, probably from Middle Dutch lēken.]
leaker leak'er n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
