Link Centre Dictionary

leverage

le·ve·rage

UK/ˈlɛv.(ə.)ɹɪd͡ʒ/ US/ˈliːv.(ə.)ɹɪd͡ʒ/ fairly common slang us
noun (3) verb (2)

noun

1.

the mechanical advantage gained by being in a position to use a lever

Synonyms
2.

strategic advantage; power to act effectively

  • “relatively small groups can sometimes exert immense political leverage”
3.

concealing the source of illegally gotten money

Synonyms

verb

1.

supplement with leverage

  • “leverage the money that is already available”
2.

provide with leverage

  • “We need to leverage this company”

Origin

From lever + -age. The verb likely comes from martial arts/judo usage, where one would "use an opponent's leverage (i.e. their weight, height, centre of balance, etc.)" against them in order to defeat them.

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.