leaf

noun

ADJECTIVE

▪ new, young

▪ autumn, fall (AmE)

▪ dead, dry, fallen, falling, rotting

▪

The ground was thick with dead leaves.

▪ broad (esp. technical), heart-shaped, oval

▪

broad-leaf plants

▪ green, yellow, etc.

▪ glossy, hairy, leathery, shiny, variegated

▪ bay, lettuce, maple, oak, tea, etc.

▪

Stop trying to read tea leaves (= predict the future).

VERB + LEAF

▪ have

▪

This plant has beautifully variegated leaves.

▪ come into (esp. BrE), grow, produce, sprout

▪

It was spring and the trees were coming into leaf.

▪

In the spring the plant began to put out new leaves.

▪ shed

▪

Deciduous trees shed their leaves annually.

▪ pick, pluck

▪

He picked a leaf from the basil plant and started to chew it.

▪ rake

▪

The boys helped by raking the leaves in the yard.

LEAF + VERB

▪ appear, emerge

▪

Spring arrived and the first green leaves began to appear.

▪ grow

▪ turn, yellow

▪

The summer was over and the leaves were beginning to turn.

▪ drop, fall

▪ blow

▪

dry leaves blowing in the wind

▪ rustle

▪

The leaves rustled in the light breeze.

LEAF + NOUN

▪ litter, mould/mold

▪

the leaf litter on the forest floor

PHRASES

▪ in full leaf

▪

The corn was already ripening and the trees in full leaf.