leave behind

verb

"leave-behind" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“leave behind” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
12
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To abandon.

Corpus desk

Index EN-leave-behind · leave behind · English

leave behind · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "L" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for leave behind
PropertyValue
Headwordleave behind
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
Letters12
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “leave behind” in English

leave behindsits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

leave behind is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 7 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for leave behind, suggesting the orthography follows predictable English patterns. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct English form is leave behind, spelled L-E-A-V-E- -B-E-H-I-N-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    To abandon.
  2. 2
    To forget about.
  3. 3
    To not live longer than; to be survived by.
  4. 4
    To leave (a trace of something).
  5. 5
    To outdo; to progress faster than (someone or something else).
  6. 6
    To pass.
  7. 7
    Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see leave, behind.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how leave behind appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. We left behind our luggage at the hotel.
  2. How could you leave me behind like that?

This word in other languages

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "leave behind"?
"leave behind" is spelled L-E-A-V-E- -B-E-H-I-N-D.
What does "leave behind" mean?
As a verb, "leave behind" means: To abandon.
What language does "leave behind" come from?
"leave behind" is a English word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list