Nominal Forms
Infinitive: to leaven
Participle: leavened
Gerund: leavening
Cognates
-
Indicative
Present
| I | leaven |
| you | leaven |
| he;she;it | leavens |
| we | leaven |
| you | leaven |
| they | leaven |
Perfect
| I | have leavened |
| you | have leavened |
| he;she;it | has leavened |
| we | have leavened |
| you | have leavened |
| they | have leavened |
Past
| I | leavened |
| you | leavened |
| he;she;it | leavened |
| we | leavened |
| you | leavened |
| they | leavened |
Pluperfect
| I | had leavened |
| you | had leavened |
| he;she;it | had leavened |
| we | had leavened |
| you | had leavened |
| they | had leavened |
Future
| I | will leaven |
| you | will leaven |
| he;she;it | will leaven |
| we | will leaven |
| you | will leaven |
| they | will leaven |
Future Perfect
| I | will have leavened |
| you | will have leavened |
| he;she;it | will have leavened |
| we | will have leavened |
| you | will have leavened |
| they | will have leavened |
Subjunctive
Present
| I | leaven |
| you | leaven |
| he;she;it | leaven |
| we | leaven |
| you | leaven |
| they | leaven |
Perfect
| I | have leavened |
| you | have leavened |
| he;she;it | have leavened |
| we | have leavened |
| you | have leavened |
| they | have leavened |
Imperfect
| I | leavened |
| you | leavened |
| he;she;it | leavened |
| we | leavened |
| you | leavened |
| they | leavened |
Pluperfect
| I | had leavened |
| you | had leavened |
| he;she;it | had leavened |
| we | had leavened |
| you | had leavened |
| they | had leavened |
Conditional
Present
| I | would leaven |
| you | would leaven |
| he;she;it | would leaven |
| we | would leaven |
| you | would leaven |
| they | would leaven |
Perfect
| I | would have leavened |
| you | would have leavened |
| he;she;it | would have leavened |
| we | would have leavened |
| you | would have leavened |
| they | would have leavened |
Imperative
| you | leaven |
| we | Let's leaven |
| you | leaven |
Verbs conjugated like 'leaven'
abandon,
abduct,
abear,
aberr,
abject,
abord,
abort,
abound,
abraid,
abray,
abrook,
abscind,
abscond,
absist,
absorb,
abstain,
abstract,
accend,
accent,
accept, etc. (List truncated at 20 verbs)
Verbs similar to 'leaven'
heaven,
leaden,
leave,
leven,
bleaken,
braven,
cleave,
craven,
daven,
deaden,
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms
- infect or vitiate
- aggravate
Additional Information
Phrasal Verbs
Etymology
1. 1340, from O.Fr.
levain (12c.), from L.
levamen "alleviation, mitigation," but used in V.L. in its literal sense of "a means of lifting, something that raises," from
levare "to raise" (see lever). The verb is attested from 1422.
2. Etymology tree
3. Proto-Indo-European *h₁lengʷʰ-
4. Proto-Indo-European *-us
5. Proto-Indo-European *h₁léngʰusder.
6. ▲
7. Proto-Italic *breɣʷisinflu.?
8. Proto-Italic *leɣʷis
9. Latin levis
10. Proto-Indo-European *-h₂
11. Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂
12. Proto-Indo-European *-yéti
13. Proto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti
14. Proto-Indo-European *-h₂tiinflu.
15. Proto-Italic *-ājō
16. Proto-Italic *-āō
17. Latin -ō
18. Latin levō
19. Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥
20. Proto-Italic *-mn̥
21. Latin -men
22. Vulgar Latin *levāmender.
23. Old French levainbor.
24. Middle English levayn
25. English leaven
26. From Middle English levayn, borrowed from Old French levain, from Vulgar Latin *levāmen, a noun based on Latin levō (“raise”). See: Latin '
levō'.
Sample Sentences
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Yeast is used to leaven bread, making it rise during baking.
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Duke. No more euasion:
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We haue with a leauen'd, and prepared choice
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Proceeded to you; therefore take your honors:[...] [c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “Measure for Measure”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:]
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“A tinge of Jewish blood is not a bad thing. It leavens the”—she looked at him—“stolid stupidity of the ordinary Englishman.” [1920, Agatha Christie, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, London: Pan Books, published 1954, page 125:]
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With fresh material, taxonomic conclusions are leavened by recognition that the material examined reflects the site it occupied; a herbarium packet gives one only a small fraction of the data desirable for sound conclusions. Herbarium material does not, indeed, allow one to extrapolate safely: what you see is what you get[…] [1992, Rudolf M[athias] Schuster, The Hepaticae and Anthocerotae of North America: East of the Hundredth Meridian, volume V, Chicago, Ill.: Field Museum of Natural History, →ISBN, page vii:]
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The comedian's jokes helped leaven the atmosphere during the serious meeting.
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Her optimism seemed to leaven the otherwise tense environment.
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With these and the like deceivable doctrines, he levens also his prayer. [1649, John Milton, Eikonoklastes, London, published 1756, page 30:]
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[…] pursue virtue virtuously: leven not good actions, nor render virtues disputable. Stain not fair acts with foul intentions […] [1716, Thomas Browne, edited by Samuel Johnson, Christian Morals, 2nd edition, London: J. Payne, published 1756, Part I, p. 7:]