Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “leader” come from?

Leader comes from Middle English leder, from Old English lǣdere, meaning one who leads.

leader (English): any person that leads or directs; an animal that...

Definitions

  1. any person that leads or directs; an animal that...

Ancestry of “leader”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishledere—
2Old Englishlǣdereleader

Words derived from “leader”

  • leadership
  • cheerleader
  • ringleader
  • bandleader
  • leaderless
  • multileader
  • coleader
  • leaderboard
  • leaderly
  • leaderful
  • leaderette
  • subleader
  • leaderlike
  • leaderlessness
  • cheerleaderish
  • playleader
  • subleadership
  • leaderene
  • e-leadership
  • e-leader
  • fairleader
  • leaderlessly
  • leaderfag
  • leaderish
Every word from Old English lǣdere →