Dictionary
leech
Pronunciation: (lēch), [key]—
n.
1. any bloodsucking or carnivorous aquatic or terrestrial worm of the class Hirudinea, certain freshwater species of which were formerly much used in medicine for bloodletting.
2. a person who clings to another for personal gain, esp. without giving anything in return, and usually with the implication or effect of exhausting the other's resources; parasite.
3. Archaic.an instrument used for drawing blood.
—
v.t.
1. to apply leeches to, so as to bleed.
2. to cling to and feed upon or drain, as a leech:
His relatives leeched him until his entire fortune was exhausted.
3. Archaic.to cure; heal.
—
v.i.
to hang on to a person in the manner of a leech:
She leeched on to him for dear life. leech
Pronunciation: (lēch), [key]—
n. Archaic.
a physician.
leech
Pronunciation: (lēch), [key]—
n. Naut.
1. either of the lateral edges of a square sail.
2. the after edge of a fore-and-aft sail. See diag. under
sail. Also,leach.Leech
Pronunciation: (lēch), [key]—
n.
Margaret, 1893–1974, U.S. historian, novelist, and biographer.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
