leak

/liːk/

noun

  1. 1

    A crack, crevice, fissure, or hole which admits water or other fluid, or lets it escape.

    a leak in a boat
  2. 2

    The entrance or escape of a fluid through a crack, fissure, or other aperture.

    The babies' diapers had big leaks.
  3. 3

    A divulgation, or disclosure, of information previously held secret.

    The leaks by Chelsea Manning showed the secrets of the US military.
  4. 4

    The person through whom such divulgation, or disclosure, occurs.

    The press must have learned about the plan through a leak.
  5. 5

    A loss of electricity through imperfect insulation, or the point where it occurs.

  6. 6

    The gradual loss of a system resource caused by failure to deallocate previously reserved portions.

    memory leak
  7. 7

    (especially with the verb "take") An act of urination.

    I have to take a leak.

verb

  1. 1

    To allow fluid or gas to pass through an opening that should be sealed.

    The faucet has been leaking since last month.
  2. 2

    (of a fluid or gas) To pass through an opening that should be sealed.

    No one realized that propane gas was leaking from a rusty tank in the concession area, slowly filling the unventilated room.
  3. 3

    To disclose secret information surreptitiously or anonymously.

    Someone must have leaked it to our competitors that the new product will be out soon.

adjective

  1. 1

    Leaky.

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