Word.ws English Dictionary

taking the lead

taking the lead is the present participle and gerund of take the lead.

Meaning of take the lead

Verb

take the lead (third-person singular simple present takes the lead, present participle taking the lead, simple past took the lead, past participle taken the lead)

  1. (idiomatic) To become the leader, to advance into first place.
    • At 0-0, United will take the lead if they score the penalty.
  2. (idiomatic) To assume leadership over a group.

Questions about taking the lead

What is taking the lead the present participle and gerund of?
Taking the lead is the present participle and gerund of take the lead.

Words near taking the lead in the dictionary

  1. taking the initiative
  2. taking the knee
  3. taking the l
  4. taking the law into one's hands
  5. taking the law into one's own hands
  6. taking the lead
  7. taking the liberty
  8. taking the long view
  9. taking the mask off
  10. taking the meaning
  11. taking the Michael

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: taking the lead (page history and authors); take the lead (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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