DictionaryRoot: -ing
English
-ing
doing, causing, or undergoing something
Forms
- -ing
Origin
The modern action-describing ending replaced older English forms in -ende, coming to share the spelling of the action-noun ending -ing.
Note
It can describe an ongoing action or an enduring characteristic.
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adjective
leading
Most important, prominent, or successful.
Etymology
Lead supplies the image of being at the front. The participial adjective applies that position to prominence, importance, or success rather than only physical order.