Lead"er (?), n. 1.
One who, or that which, leads or conducts; a guide; a
conductor. Especially: (a) One who goes
first. (b) One having authority to direct;
a chief; a commander. (c) (Mus.) A
performer who leads a band or choir in music; also, in an orchestra,
the principal violinist; the one who plays at the head of the first
violins. (d) (Naut.) A block of
hard wood pierced with suitable holes for leading ropes in their
proper places. (e) (Mach.) The
principal wheel in any kind of machinery. [Obs. or R.] G.
Francis. (f) A horse placed in advance of
others; one of the forward pair of horses.
He forgot to pull in his leaders, and they
gallop away with him at times.
Hare.
(g) A pipe for conducting rain water from a
roof to a cistern or to the ground; a conductor.
(h) (Fishing) A net for leading fish into
a pound, weir, etc.; also, a line of gut, to which the snell of a fly
hook is attached. (i) (Mining) A
branch or small vein, not important in itself, but indicating the
proximity of a better one.
2. The first, or the principal, editorial
article in a newspaper; a leading or main editorial
article.
3. (Print.) (a) A type
having a dot or short row of dots upon its face.
(b) pl. a row of dots, periods, or
hyphens, used in tables of contents, etc., to lead the eye across a
space to the right word or number.
Syn. -- chief; chieftain; commander. See Chief.