Verbs That Start With L

Updated August 11, 2021
Verbs That Start With L
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    Verbs That Start With L
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If asked, could you define a verb? Don't they just do "verby" things? Truth is, they're a little hard to define because they don't just perform the action of a sentence (although that's largely their purpose). Aside from lunging across sentences and leaping into depths of understanding, they also link subjects and predicates and serve as helpers to the almighty action verb. Read on to explore 50 verbs that start with "l" and enjoy a quick study of this part of speech.

50 Verbs Starting With L

Looking for a list of "l" verbs? Below, you'll find 50 of the most common verbs that start with "l." Each verb is paired with one of its definitions. You'll also find synonyms for each verb in this lovely list.

Verb

Definition

Synonyms

label

to mark something with its name or description

marker, tag, identfiy

lack

absence of something

dearth, shortfall, not there

lament

to feel loss, sorrow, or regret

bemoan, rue, mourn

land

to win or get something

achieve, acquire, secure

last

to go on or continue for a while

endure, linger, sustain

laugh

to express amusement with vocal sounds and facial movements

giggle, chuckle, snicker

launch

to set something in motion

catapult, propel, initiate

lay

to put or set something down

place, arrange, rest

lead

to inspire others to act

guide, motivate, pilot

leak

to let out by mistake or on purpose

seep, ooze, escape

lean

to incline or bend into a sloping position

cant, recline, tilt

leap

to jump up from the ground

spring, bound, hop

learn

to acquire knowledge or new information

mater, gain knowledge, become aware

leave

to depart

escape, flee, exit

legalize

to make legal or lawful

ratify, sanction, permit

lend

to allow someone to borrow

advance, give temporarily,

lessen

to diminish or reduce

lower, decrease, abate

let

to allow

permit, approve, authorize

leverage

to utilize something to your advantage

capitalize, utilize, exploit

liberate

to set free or emancipate someone or something

release, unshackle, unfetter

license

to give or yield permission to

authorize, permit, sanction

lick

to wet with the tongue

moisten, taste, lap

lie

to say something that knowingly isn't true

falsify, fabricate, deceive

lift

to raise something up

elevate, heave, hoist

lighten

to diminish a burden

ease, reduce, lessen

like

to enjoy something

fancy, admire, appreciate

limit

to confine or restrict

curb, apportion, ration

limp

to walk with difficulty, often dragging one leg

falter, hobble, shuffle

line-up

arrange items or people in a straight row

queue-up, align, put in rows

linger

to remain somewhere

stay, stick around, hang around

link

to join or connect together

attach, bind, combine

list

to write down a series of words or numbers

enumerate, itemize, index

listen

to pay close attention to the sounds made by someone or something

hear, tune-in, perceive noise

live

to have life

exist, survive, be alive

load

to put a lot of something into a container or other place

pack, cram, stuff

loathe

to dislike very strongly

abhor, detest, hate

locate

to find

detect, pinpoint, discover

lock

to secure, strap or fasten into place

clamp, seal, secure

lodge

to become embedded

get stuck, wedge, become caught

log

to record information

document, write down, make note of

look

to turn one's eyes toward something

view, peer, see

loom

to come into view as a massive, distorted image

threaten, emanate, tower above

loop

to form in a way that two sides fold on each other with an opening in the middle

coil, make a circle, twist

lose

to decline or be defeated

drop, fall, fail to win

lounge

to lay or sit in a comfortable chair

relax, laze, rest

love

to have a deep emotional attachment to a person, people, or thing

adore, cherish, treasure

lower

to bring down or lessen

reduce, let fall, drop

lubricate

to make smooth or slippery by applying a liquid or viscous substance

grease, oil, moisten

lure

to purposely tempt someone to do something

bait, entice, induce

lurk

to hang around a place and stay hidden

lie in wait, skulk, move in a furtive way

Types of Verbs

Verbs are an impressive and important part of speech, as they're essential to every sentence. While people usually think of action words when they think of verbs, there are actually some different kinds of verbs.

  • action verbs - It's true that action verbs are the most common type. They highlight things you can do. Several verbs that begin with "l" are action verbs. For example, in the table above, linger and leak are examples of action verbs.
  • helping verbs - Helping verbs are also used quite frequently. They assist the main verb by extending its meaning. Using an example from the above list, you could say, "Luiz is listening to the radio." In this sentence, "is" is the helping verb to the main (action) verb "listening."
  • linking verbs - Linking verbs also often find their way into writing and conversations. These verbs don't describe an action. Rather, they connect the subject of the sentence to additional information. Linking verbs are often "to be" verbs, including "am," "is," "are," and "were." An example would be, "Lily was late for school." In this example, "was" is the linking verb. What was she? Late. While late is an "l" word, it's an adjective rather than a verb.
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10 Example Sentences

Most simple sentences follow the same basic pattern: subject + verb + direct object. The verb's job is to put the subject of the sentence into motion. In the sentence, "Lindy listed 50 verbs," "Lindy" is the subject, "listed" is the verb, and "verbs" is the direct object. Loop back to some of the verbs that start with "l" from the list above and improve your understanding of the English language by reviewing a few example sentences.

  • Don't lament because he's gone; rejoice.
  • It felt good to laugh after the way this weekend went.
  • Please don't launch into a sermon on gossip; I know it's wrong.
  • The faulty gutters began to leak.
  • Slowly, he began to leverage his love of writing into a full-time profession.
  • Do you want the dog to lick your ice cream cone?
  • He seemed to linger by the pond all night.
  • All you have to do is live your best life.
  • Depression seemed to loom over him.
  • Don't let material possessions lure you into debt.
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Lively L-Verbs

Verbs are lively, indeed. They create momentum in our sentences. In short, they tell us who's doing what. Let's have some fun with alliteration. Do you know what part of speech "lively" is? It's an adjective. It modifies nouns, such as the lively lullaby. Why not see how many adjectives, nouns and verbs you can bring together to create a nice bit of alliteration? Explore 50 nouns that start with "l" to help you get started. Then, check out these laudable "l" adjectives as well. Next, use this list of words that start with "l" from WordFinder by YourDictonary to learn even more "l" words across several parts of speech. From there, turn your attention to verbs that start with "m" to travel to the next letter in the alphabet.