Walon Manning

The noun "lead" (rhymes with "red") refers to the metal (as in "a lead pipe"). The noun "lead" (which rhymes with "deed") refers to an initiative, an example, or a position at the front ("in the lead"). The verb "lead" and the noun "lead" are homographs: words that have the same spelling but differ in meaning and (sometimes) pronunciation.

Use the verb "lead" to indicate that someone is directing or at the front of others, as in:

To use "lead" as a noun or adjective when you mean the metal, you can craft a sentence such as:

You might also have read a sentence such as:

This sentence uses "lead" in the sense of having a position in front of.

To use "led," simply use it as the past tense or past participle for "lead," as in:

Merriam-Webster suggests that if you aren’t sure whether to write "led" or "lead" as the verb in your sentence, try reading it aloud to yourself. If the verb is pronounced "led" (with a short "e"), write "led."

To determine when to use "lead" or "led," it's simplest to first discuss the term "led," which is always either the past tense or the past participle of the verb "lead." So, you might say:

The word "lead," however, can have a number of meanings. If you want to use the word in terms of being in the front position, you might say:

This means that the Cubs are, at present, ahead of their opponents. Up to this point in the game, they have scored more runs. You can also use "lead" in the same sentence in a couple of different ways:

In this sentence, the first use of "lead" (rhymes with "head") refers to the metal, which has been found to have many unhealthful properties. In the second use, "lead" (rhymes with "bead") means to tend toward or to have a result.

John Emsley, in "The Elements of Murder," uses both "lead" and "led" in the same sentence and adjacent to each other:

In this case, Emsley uses "lead" referring to the metal, and "led" as the past tense of "lead." You can also use "lead" in a few other ways, including:

In this use, "lead" means to guide or cause a person to get into trouble. You can also say: "The runner was in the 'lead' for most of the race," meaning the runner was in front of his competitors, or, "He took the 'lead' in fighting the measure," indicating that he directed the fight against the measure. By contrast, if you say, "His 'lead' was the ace of spades," you are saying that he played that particular card first.

A few memory tricks can help you keep the various meanings straight. You might remember:

Or you might try another memory trick like:

This may help you remember that "lead," meaning a leadership position, is pronounced with a long "e," while "led" as the past tense of "lead," as well as "lead" the metal, is pronounced with a short "e."

"Lead" has a myriad of other uses. It can mean a clue, as in:

In this case, it's often used as a plural. "Lead" can also be used as an idiom, as in:

Of course, a human being does not have a foot made of "lead." Rather, "lead" is a heavy metal, so the idiom is using the term to indicate that the person has a tendency to step on the gas pedal too hard and drive too fast. Some dictionaries even list the term "leadfoot," meaning a person who drives too fast, as in:

In this use, clearly Joe does not have a "leadfoot" or a "lead-foot"—that is, a foot that simply weighs more than the average foot and therefore pushes harder on the gas pedal. Instead, Joe chooses to disobey the law, put the pedal to the metal (fully depress the gas pedal), and drive much faster than the posted speed limit, possibly "leading" to speeding tickets and other moving violations.

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