LEAP Leap, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Leaped, rarely Leapt; p. pr. & vb. n. Leaping.] Etym: [OE. lepen, leapen, AS. hleápan to leap, jump, run; akin to OS. ahl, OFries. hlapa, D. loopen, G. laufen, OHG. louffan, hlauffan, Icel. hlaupa, Sw. löpa, Dan. löbe, Goth. ushlaupan. Cf. Elope, Lope, Lapwing, Loaf to loiter.]
1. To spring clear of the ground, with the feet; to jump; to vault; as, a man leaps over a fence, or leaps upon a horse. Bacon. Leap in with me into this angry flood. Shak.
2. To spring or move suddenly, as by a jump or by jumps; to bound; to move swiftly. Also Fig. My heart leaps up when I behold A rainbow in the sky. Wordsworth.
LEAP
Leap, v. t.
1. To pass over by a leap or jump; as, to leap a wall, or a ditch.
2. To copulate with (a female beast); to cover.
3. To cause to leap; as, to leap a horse across a ditch.
LEAP
Leap, n.
1. The act of leaping, or the space passed by leaping; a jump; a spring; a bound. Wickedness comes on by degrees, . . . and sudden leaps from one extreme to another are unnatural. L'Estrange. Changes of tone may proceed either by leaps or glides. H. Sweet.
2. Copulation with, or coverture of, a female beast.