Cover vs. Lead — What's the Difference?

To place something upon or over, so as to protect or conceal

Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin plumbum) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials.

To overlay or spread with something

Cause (a person or animal) to go with one by holding them by the hand, a halter, a rope, etc. while moving forward

To put a cover or covering on

Be a route or means of access to a particular place or in a particular direction

To hide or screen from view or knowledge; conceal. Often used with up

Be in charge or command of

To do something that gains for (oneself) a quality or association

Have the advantage over competitors in a race or game

To be spread over the surface of

Have or experience (a particular way of life)

To lie over or adhere to so as to protect or conceal

The initiative in an action; an example for others to follow

To extend over

A position of advantage in a contest; first place

To travel or pass over

The chief part in a play or film

To have as one's territory or sphere of work

A strap or cord for restraining and guiding a dog or other domestic animal

To protect from loss. Used of insurance

A wire that conveys electric current from a source to an appliance, or that connects two points of a circuit together.

To take measures to prevent (oneself) from being held responsible for something

The distance advanced by a screw in one turn.

To be enough to pay for or make up for

An artificial watercourse leading to a mill.

To have as a subject; deal with

A soft, heavy, ductile bluish-grey metal, the chemical element of atomic number 82. It has been used in roofing, plumbing, ammunition, storage batteries, radiation shields, etc., and its compounds have been used in crystal glass, as an anti-knock agent in petrol, and (formerly) in paints.

To be responsible for reporting the details of (an event or situation)

An item or implement made of lead.

To apply to or take into account

Graphite used as the part of a pencil that makes a mark

To protect by having within range or by firing a weapon

A blank space between lines of print.

To aim a firearm at

To show the way to by going in advance

To guard (an opponent playing offense).

To guide or direct in a course

To defend (a position or area)

To serve as a route for; take

To match (an opponent's stake) in a wager.

To be a channel or conduit for (water or electricity, for example).

To purchase (stock that one has shorted).

To guide the behavior or opinion of; induce

(Games) To play a higher-ranking card than (the one previously played).

To direct the performance or activities of

To perform or record (music previously recorded or popularized by another)

To inspire the conduct of

To perform or record music first recorded or popularized by (another)

To play a principal or guiding role in

To copulate with (a female). Used especially of horses.

To go or be at the head of

To spread over a surface to protect or conceal something

To be ahead of

To act as a substitute or replacement during someone's absence

To be foremost in or among

To hide something in order to save someone from censure or punishment

To pass or go through; live

(Games) To play a higher card than the one previously played.

To begin or open with, as in games

A lid or top.

To guide (a partner) in dancing.

A binding or outer part for a book or magazine.

To aim in front of (a moving target).

A bedcover.

(Sports) To pass a ball or puck ahead of (a moving teammate) so that the player can receive the pass without changing direction or losing speed.

A protective overlay, as for a mattress or furniture.

To be first; be ahead.

Shelter or protection

To go first as a guide.

Strategic protection given by armed units during hostile action

To act as commander, director, or guide.

Something, such as vegetation, covering the surface of the ground.

To afford a passage, course, or route

Vegetation, such as underbrush, serving as protective concealment for wild animals.

To tend toward a certain goal or result

Something, such as darkness, that screens, conceals, or disguises.

To make the initial play, as in a game or contest.

A false identity, especially for a spy.

To begin a presentation or account in a given way

An activity or organization that is used to conceal an illegal or secret activity

To guide a dance partner.

A layer of clouds obscuring the sky or ground.

To start a dance step on a specified foot.

A table setting for one person

(Baseball) To advance or stand a few paces away from one's base toward the next while the pitcher prepares to deliver a pitch. Used of a base runner.

A cover charge.

(Sports) To begin an attack in boxing with a specified hand or punch

An envelope or wrapper for mail.

To cover, line, weight, or fill with lead.

Funds sufficient to meet an obligation or secure against loss.

(Printing) To provide space between (lines of type) with leads.

One who substitutes for another

To secure (window glass) with leads.

(Music) A recording or performance of a song that was previously recorded or popularized by another.

To treat with lead or a lead compound

A lid.

The first or foremost position

(uncountable) Area or situation which screens a person or thing from view.

One occupying such a position; a leader.

The front and back of a book, magazine, CD package, etc.

The initiative

The top sheet of a bed.

The margin by which one holds a position of advantage or superiority

A cloth or similar material, often fitted, placed over an item such as a car or sofa or food to protect it from dust, rain, insects, etc. when not being used.

Information pointing toward a possible solution; a clue

A cover charge.

An indication of potential opportunity; a tip

A setting at a restaurant table or formal dinner.

Command; leadership

(music) A new performance or rerecording of a previously recorded song; a cover version; a cover song.

An example; a precedent

(cricket) A fielding position on the off side, between point and mid off, about 30° forward of square; a fielder in this position.

The principal role in a film, play, show, or other scripted production.

A collection (or family) of subsets of a given set, whose union contains every element of said original set.

The person playing such a role.

(philately) An envelope complete with stamps and postmarks etc.

The introductory portion of a news story, especially the first sentence.

(military) A solid object, including terrain, that provides protection from enemy fire.

An important, usually prominently displayed news story.

(legal) In commercial law, a buyer’s purchase on the open market of goods similar or identical to the goods contracted for after a seller has breached a contract of sale by failure to deliver the goods contracted for.

The first play.

(insurance) An insurance contract; coverage by an insurance contract.

The prerogative or turn to make the first play

(espionage) A persona maintained by a spy or undercover operative; cover story.

A card played first in a round.

(dated) A swindler's confederate.

(Baseball) An amount of space that a base runner moves or stands away from one base in the direction of the next while the pitcher prepares to deliver a pitch.

The portion of a slate, tile, or shingle that is hidden by the overlap of the course above.

(Sports) A blow in boxing that begins a series or exchange of punches.

In a steam engine, the lap of a slide valve.

A leash.

(construction) The distance between reinforcing steel and the exterior of concrete.

A deposit of gold ore in an old riverbed.

Of or pertaining to the front cover of a book or magazine.

See lode.

(music) Of, pertaining to, or consisting of cover versions.

(Electronics) A conductor by which one circuit element is electrically connected to another.

(transitive) To place something over or upon, as to conceal or protect.

(Nautical) The direction in which a line runs.

(transitive) To be over or upon, as to conceal or protect.

The distance aimed in front of a moving target.

(transitive) To be upon all of, so as to completely conceal.

A channel of open water created by a break in a mass of ice.

(transitive) To set upon all of, so as to completely conceal.

Symbol Pb A soft, malleable, ductile, bluish-white, dense metallic element, extracted chiefly from galena and used in containers and pipes for corrosives, solder and type metal, bullets, radiation shielding, paints, glass, storage batteries, and antiknock compounds. Atomic number 82; atomic weight 207.2; melting point 327.5°C; boiling point 1,749°C; specific gravity 11.35; valence 2, 4. See Periodic Table.

To put on one's hat.

Any of various, often graphitic compositions used as the writing substance in pencils.

(transitive) To invest (oneself with something); to bring upon (oneself).

A thin stick of such material.

(of a publication) To discuss thoroughly; to provide coverage of.

Bullets from or for firearms; shot

To deal with or include someone or something.

A lead weight suspended by a line, used to make soundings.

To be enough money for.

(Printing) A thin strip of metal used to separate lines of type.

(intransitive) To act as a replacement.

Strips of lead used to hold the panes of a window.

(transitive) To have as an assignment or responsibility.

Chiefly British A flat roof covered with sheets of lead.

(music) To make a cover version of (a song that was originally recorded by another artist).

First or foremost

To protect using an aimed firearm and the threat of firing; or to protect using continuous, heaving fire at or in the direction of the enemy so as to force the enemy to remain in cover; or to threaten using an aimed firearm.

Most important

To provide insurance coverage for.

(uncountable) A heavy, pliable, inelastic metal element, having a bright, bluish color, but easily tarnished; both malleable and ductile, though with little tenacity. It is easily fusible, forms alloys with other metals, and is an ingredient of solder and type metal. Atomic number 82, symbol Pb (from Latin plumbum).

To copulate with (said of certain male animals such as dogs and horses).

A plummet or mass of lead attached to a line, used in sounding depth at sea or (dated) to estimate velocity in knots.

To protect or control (a piece or square).

A thin strip of type metal, used to separate lines of type in printing.

To extend over a given period of time or range, to occupy, to stretch over a given area.

Vertical space in advance of a row or between rows of text. Also known as leading.

To traverse or put behind a certain distance.

Sheets or plates of lead used as a covering for roofs.

(sports) To defend (mark) a particular player or area.

(plural leads) A roof covered with lead sheets or terne plates.

To overspread the surface of (one thing) with another; as, to cover wood with paint or lacquer; to cover a table with a cloth.

(countable) A thin cylinder of graphite used in pencils. Category:en:Carbon

To envelop; to clothe, as with a mantle or cloak.

(slang) bullets; ammunition.

To invest (one's self with something); to bring upon (one's self); as, he covered himself with glory.

(countable) The act of leading or conducting; guidance; direction, course

To hide sight; to conceal; to cloak; as, the enemy were covered from our sight by the woods.

(countable) Precedence; advance position; also, the measure of precedence; the state of being ahead in a race; the highest score in a game in an incomplete game.

To brood or sit on; to incubate.

An insulated metallic wire for electrical devices and equipment.

To shelter, as from evil or danger; to protect; to defend; as, the cavalry covered the retreat.

(baseball) The situation where a runner steps away from a base while waiting for the pitch to be thrown.

To remove from remembrance; to put away; to remit.

The act or right of playing first in a game or round; the card suit, or piece, so played

To extend over; to be sufficient for; to comprehend, include, or embrace; to account for or solve; to counterbalance; as, a mortgage which fully covers a sum loaned on it; a law which covers all possible cases of a crime; receipts than do not cover expenses.

The main role in a play or film; the lead role.

To put the usual covering or headdress on.

(acting) The actor who plays the main role; lead actor.

To copulate with (a female); to serve; as, a horse covers a mare; - said of the male.

(business) The person in charge of a project or a work shift etc.

To spread a table for a meal; to prepare a banquet.

(countable) A channel of open water in an ice field.

Anything which is laid, set, or spread, upon, about, or over, another thing; an envelope; a lid; as, the cover of a book.

A lode.

Anything which veils or conceals; a screen; disguise; a cloak.

(nautical) The course of a rope from end to end.

Shelter; protection; as, the troops fought under cover of the batteries; the woods afforded a good cover.

A rope, leather strap, or similar device with which to lead an animal; a leash

The woods, underbrush, etc., which shelter and conceal game; covert; as, to beat a cover; to ride to cover.

In a steam engine, the width of port opening which is uncovered by the valve, for the admission or release of steam, at the instant when the piston is at end of its stroke.

The lap of a slide valve.

(civil engineering) The distance of haul, as from a cutting to an embankment.

A tablecloth, and the other table furniture; esp., the table furniture for the use of one person at a meal; as, covers were laid for fifty guests.

(horology) The action of a tooth, such as a tooth of a wheel, in impelling another tooth or a pallet.

A covering that serves to conceal or shelter something;

Hypothesis that has not been pursued

Bedding that keeps a person warm in bed;

Information obtained by a detective or police officer that allows him or her to discover further details about a crime or incident.

The act of concealing the existence of something by obstructing the view of it;

(marketing) Potential opportunity for a sale or transaction, a potential customer.

The front and back covering of a book;

Information obtained by a news reporter about an issue or subject that allows him or her to discover more details.

A natural object that covers or envelops;

(curling) The player who throws the first two rocks for a team.

Covering for a hole (especially a hole in the top of a container);

(newspapers) A teaser; a lead-in; the start of a newspaper column, telling who, what, when, where, why and how. (Sometimes spelled as lede for this usage to avoid ambiguity.)

Fire that makes it difficult for the enemy to fire on your own individuals or formations;

An important news story that appears on the front page of a newspaper or at the beginning of a news broadcast

A fixed charge by a restaurant or night club over and above the charge for food and drink

(engineering) The axial distance a screw thread travels in one revolution. It is equal to the pitch times the number of starts.

A recording of a song that was first recorded or made popular by somebody else;

(music) In a barbershop quartet, the person who sings the melody, usually the second tenor

A false identity and background (especially one created for an undercover agent);

(music) The announcement by one voice part of a theme to be repeated by the other parts.

Provide with a covering or cause to be covered;

(music) A mark or a short passage in one voice part, as of a canon, serving as a cue for the entrance of others.

Form a cover over;

(engineering) The excess above a right angle in the angle between two consecutive cranks, as of a compound engine, on the same shaft.

Span an interval of distance, space or time;

(electrical) The angle between the line joining the brushes of a continuous-current dynamo and the diameter symmetrical between the poles.

Provide for;

(electrical) The advance of the current phase in an alternating circuit beyond that of the electromotive force producing it.

Deal with verbally or in some form of artistic expression;

(transitive) To cover, fill, or affect with lead.

Include in scope; include as part of something broader; have as one's sphere or territory;

To place leads between the lines of.

Travel across or pass over;

To guide or conduct.

Be responsible for reporting the details of, as in journalism;

To guide or conduct with the hand, or by means of some physical contact connection.

Hold within range of an aimed firearm

To guide or conduct in a certain course, or to a certain place or end, by making the way known; to show the way, especially by going with or going in advance of, to lead a pupil; to guide somebody somewhere or to bring somebody somewhere by means of instructions.

To take an action to protect against future problems;

(figuratively): To direct; to counsel; to instruct

Hide from view or knowledge;

To conduct or direct with authority; to have direction or charge of; to command, especially a military or business unit.

Protect or defend (a position in a game);

To guide or conduct oneself in, through, or along (a certain course); hence, to proceed in the way of; to follow the path or course of; to pass; to spend. Also, to cause (one) to proceed or follow in (a certain course).

Maintain a check on; especially by patrolling;

(intransitive) To guide or conduct, as by accompanying, going before, showing, influencing, directing with authority, etc.; to have precedence or preeminence; to be first or chief; — used in most of the senses of the transitive verb.

Protect by insurance;

(heading) To begin, to be ahead.

Make up for shortcomings or a feeling of inferiority by exaggerating good qualities;

(transitive) To go or to be in advance of; to precede; hence, to be foremost or chief among.

Invest with a large or excessive amount of something;

(intransitive) To lead off or out, to go first; to begin.

Help out by taking someone's place and temporarily assuming his responsibilities;

(intransitive) To be more advanced in technology or business than others.

Be sufficient to meet, defray, or offset the charge or cost of;

(transitive) To draw or direct by influence, whether good or bad; to prevail on; to induce; to entice; to allure

Spread over a surface to conceal or protect;

(intransitive) To tend or reach in a certain direction, or to a certain place.

Cover as if with a shroud;

To produce (with to).

Copulate with a female, used especially of horses;

Misspelling of led

Put something on top of something else;

(transitive) To live or experience (a particular way of life).

Play a higher card than the one previously played;

(not comparable) Foremost.

Be responsible for guarding an opponent in a game

Main, principal, primary, first, chief, foremost.

Sit on (eggs);

One of the elements, a heavy, pliable, inelastic metal, having a bright, bluish color, but easily tarnished. It is both malleable and ductile, though with little tenacity, and is used for tubes, sheets, bullets, etc. Its specific gravity is 11.37. It is easily fusible (melting point 327.5° C), forms alloys with other metals, and is an ingredient of solder and type metal. Atomic number 82. Atomic weight, 207.2. Symbol Pb (L. Plumbum). It is chiefly obtained from the mineral galena, lead sulphide.

Clothe, as if for protection from the elements;

An article made of lead or an alloy of lead

A small cylinder of black lead or graphite, used in pencils.

The act of leading or conducting; guidance; direction; as, to take the lead; to be under the lead of another.

Precedence; advance position; also, the measure of precedence; as, the white horse had the lead; a lead of a boat's length, or of half a second.

The act or right of playing first in a game or round; the card suit, or piece, so played; as, your partner has the lead.

An open way in an ice field.

A lode.

The course of a rope from end to end.

The width of port opening which is uncovered by the valve, for the admission or release of steam, at the instant when the piston is at end of its stroke.

The distance of haul, as from a cutting to an embankment.

The action of a tooth, as a tooth of a wheel, in impelling another tooth or a pallet.

The announcement by one voice part of a theme to be repeated by the other parts.

In an internal-combustion engine, the distance, measured in actual length of piston stroke or the corresponding angular displacement of the crank, of the piston from the end of the compression stroke when ignition takes place; - called in full lead of the ignition. When ignition takes place during the working stroke the corresponding distance from the commencement of the stroke is called negative lead.

The excess above a right angle in the angle between two consecutive cranks, as of a compound engine, on the same shaft.

In spiral screw threads, worm wheels, or the like, the amount of advance of any point in the spiral for a complete turn.

The angle between the line joining the brushes of a continuous-current dynamo and the diameter symmetrical between the poles.

A role for a leading man or leading woman; also, one who plays such a role.

The first story in a newspaper or broadcast news program.

An electrical conductor, typically as an insulated wire or cable, connecting an electrical device to another device or to a power source, such as a conductor conveying electricity from a dynamo.

The distance a runner on base advances from one base toward the next before the pitch; as, the long lead he usually takes tends to distract the pitchers.

To cover, fill, or affect with lead; as, continuous firing leads the grooves of a rifle.

To place leads between the lines of; as, to lead a page; leaded matter.

To guide or conduct with the hand, or by means of some physical contact or connection; as, a father leads a child; a jockey leads a horse with a halter; a dog leads a blind man.

To guide or conduct in a certain course, or to a certain place or end, by making the way known; to show the way, esp. by going with or going in advance of.

To conduct or direct with authority; to have direction or charge of; as, to lead an army, an exploring party, or a search; to lead a political party.

To go or to be in advance of; to precede; hence, to be foremost or chief among; as, the big sloop led the fleet of yachts; the Guards led the attack; Demosthenes leads the orators of all ages.

To draw or direct by influence, whether good or bad; to prevail on; to induce; to entice; to allure; as, to lead one to espouse a righteous cause.

To guide or conduct one's self in, through, or along (a certain course); hence, to proceed in the way of; to follow the path or course of; to pass; to spend. Also, to cause (one) to proceed or follow in (a certain course).

To begin a game, round, or trick, with; as, to lead trumps; the double five was led.

To tend or reach in a certain direction, or to a certain place; as, the path leads to the mill; gambling leads to other vices.

A soft heavy toxic malleable metallic element; bluish white when freshly cut but tarnishes readily to dull gray;

An advantage held by a competitor in a race;

Evidence pointing to a possible solution;

A position of leadership (especially in the phrase `take the lead');

The angle between the direction a gun is aimed and the position of a moving target (correcting for the flight time of the missile)

The introductory section of a story;

An actor who plays a principal role

(baseball) the position taken by a base runner preparing to advance to the next base;

An indication of potential opportunity;

A news story of major importance

The timing of ignition relative to the position of the piston in an internal-combustion engine

Restraint consisting of a rope (or light chain) used to restrain an animal

Thin strip of metal used to separate lines of type in printing

Mixture of graphite with clay in different degrees of hardness; the marking substance in a pencil

A jumper that consists of a short piece of wire;

The playing of a card to start a trick in bridge;

Take somebody somewhere;

Result in;

Tend to or result in;

Travel in front of; go in advance of others;

Cause to undertake a certain action;

Stretch out over a distance, space, time, or scope; run or extend between two points or beyond a certain point;

Be in charge of;

Be ahead of others; be the first;

Be conducive to;

Lead, as in the performance of a composition;

Pass or spend;

Lead, extend, or afford access;

Move ahead (of others) in time or space

Cause something to pass or lead somewhere;

Preside over;