Lean vs. Mean — What's the Difference?

Difference Between Lean and Mean
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Compare with Definitions
Lean
Be in or move into a sloping position
He leaned back in his chair
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
There are several kinds of mean in mathematics, especially in statistics: For a data set, the arithmetic mean, also known as average or arithmetic average, is a central value of a finite set of numbers: specifically, the sum of the values divided by the number of values. The arithmetic mean of a set of numbers x1, x2, ..., xn is typically denoted by x ¯ {\displaystyle {\bar {x}}} .
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
A deviation from the perpendicular; an inclination
The vehicle has a definite lean to the left
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Intend to convey or refer to (a particular thing); signify
I don't know what you mean
I meant you, not Jones
He was asked to clarify what his remarks meant
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
The lean part of meat
The man who eats no fat and the wife who eats no lean
Mar 19, 2023
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Mean
Intend (something) to occur or be the case
It was meant to be a secret
They mean no harm
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
(of a person or animal) thin, especially healthily so; having no superfluous fat
His lean, muscular body
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Have as a consequence or result
The proposals are likely to mean another hundred closures
Heavy rain meant that the pitch was waterlogged
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Offering little reward, substance, or nourishment; meagre
The lean winter months
Keep a small reserve to tide you over the lean years
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Unwilling to give or share things, especially money; not generous
They're not mean with the garlic
She felt mean not giving a tip
Mar 19, 2023
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Lean
(of a vaporized fuel mixture) having a high proportion of air
Lean air-to-fuel ratios
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Unkind, spiteful, or unfair
I was mean to them over the festive season
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To bend or slant away from the vertical.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(especially of a place) poor in quality and appearance; shabby
Her home was mean and small
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To incline the weight of the body so as to be supported
Leaning against the doorpost.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Very skilful or effective; excellent
She dances a mean tango
He's a mean cook
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To rely for assistance or support
Lean on me for help.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(of a quantity) calculated as a mean; average
Participants in the study had a mean age of 35 years
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To have a tendency or preference
A government that leans toward fascism.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Equally far from two extremes
Hope is the mean virtue between despair and presumption
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
(Informal) To exert pressure
The boss is leaning on us to meet the deadline.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
The value obtained by dividing the sum of several quantities by their number; an average
Acid output was calculated by taking the mean of all three samples
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To set or place so as to be resting or supported
Leaned the ladder against the wall.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
A condition, quality, or course of action equally removed from two opposite extremes
The measure expresses a mean between saving and splashing out
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To cause to incline
Leaned the boards so the rain would run off.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To be used to convey; denote
"'The question is,' said Alice, 'whether you can make words mean so many different things'" (Lewis Carroll).
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
A tilt or an inclination away from the vertical.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To act as a symbol of; signify or represent
In this poem, the budding flower means youth.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Meat with little or no fat.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To intend to convey or indicate
"No one means all he says, and yet very few say all they mean, for words are slippery and thought is viscous" (Henry Adams).
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Not fleshy or fat; thin.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To have as a purpose or an intention; intend
I meant to go running this morning, but I overslept.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Containing little fat or less fat relative to a standard
Lean hamburger.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To design, intend, or destine for a certain purpose or end
A building that was meant for storage.
A student who was meant to be a scientist.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Not productive or prosperous; meager
Lean years.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To have as a consequence; bring about
Friction means heat.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Containing little excess or waste; spare
A lean budget.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To have the importance or value of
The opinions of the critics meant nothing to him. She meant so much to me.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Thrifty in management, especially by employing just enough people to accomplish a task or do business
"Company leaders know their industries must be lean to survive" (Christian Science Monitor).
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To have intentions of a specified kind; be disposed
They mean well but lack tact.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
(Metallurgy) Low in mineral contents
Lean ore.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Lacking in kindness; unkind
The teacher was not being mean in asking you to be quiet.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
(Chemistry) Lacking in combustible material
Lean fuel.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Cruel, spiteful, or malicious
A mean boy who liked to make fun of others.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To incline, deviate, or bend, from a vertical position; to be in a position thus inclining or deviating.
A leaning column
She leaned out of the window.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Expressing spite or malice
Gave me a mean look.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
(copulative) To incline in opinion or desire; to conform in conduct; often with to, toward, etc.
I’m leaning towards voting Conservative in the next election.
The Hispanic vote leans Democratic.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Tending toward or characterized by cruelty or violence
Mean streets.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Followed by against, on, or upon: to rest or rely, for support, comfort, etc.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Extremely unpleasant or disagreeable
The meanest storm in years.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To hang outwards.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Ignoble; base
A mean motive. ].
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To press against.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Occupying a middle or intermediate position between two extremes.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To thin out (a fuel-air mixture): to reduce the fuel flow into the mixture so that there is more air or oxygen.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Intermediate in size, extent, quality, time, or degree; medium.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To conceal.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Something having a position, quality, or condition midway between extremes; a medium.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
(of an object taller than its width and depth) An inclination away from the vertical.
The trees had various leans toward gaps in the canopy.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
A number that typifies a set of numbers, such as a geometric mean or an arithmetic mean.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
(uncountable) Meat with no fat on it.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
The average value of a set of numbers.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
An organism that is lean in stature.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(Logic) The middle term in a syllogism.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
A recreational drug based on codeine-laced promethazine cough syrup, especially popular in the hip hop community in the southeastern United States.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Means (used with a sing. or pl. verb) A method, a course of action, or an instrument by which an act can be accomplished or an end achieved.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
(of a person or animal) Slim; not fleshy.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Money, property, or other wealth
You ought to live within your means.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
(of meat) Having little fat.
Lean steak cuts
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Great wealth
A woman of means.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Having little extra or little to spare; scanty; meagre.
A lean budget
A lean harvest
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To intend.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Having a low proportion or concentration of a desired substance or ingredient.
A lean ore hardly worth mining.
Running on too lean a fuel-air mixture will cause, among other problems, your internal combustion engine to heat up too much.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(transitive) To intend, to plan (to do); to have as one's intention.
I didn't mean to knock your tooth out.
I mean to go to Baddeck this summer.
I meant to take the car in for a smog check, but it slipped my mind.
The authors meant a challenge to the status quo.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Of a character which prevents the compositor from earning the usual wages; opposed to fat.
Lean copy, matter, or type
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(intransitive) To have as intentions of a given kind.
Don't be angry; she meant well.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
(business) Efficient, economic, frugal, agile, slimmed-down; pertaining to the modern industrial principles of "lean manufacturing".
Lean management
Lean manufacturing
Alcoa is now a lean and agile enterprise, after having split last year into two entities.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To intend (something) for a given purpose or fate; to predestine.
Actually this desk was meant for the subeditor.
Man was not meant to question such things.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To conceal.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(transitive) To intend an ensuing comment or statement as an explanation.[https://www.lexico.com/en/definition/i_mean%20I%20mean]
Your reasoning seems needlessly abstruse, complex, and verbose for me. I mean, could you dumb it down for my sake?
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To incline, deviate, or bend, from a vertical position; to be in a position thus inclining or deviating; as, she leaned out at the window; a leaning column.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To convey (a meaning).
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To incline in opinion or desire; to conform in conduct; - with to, toward, etc.
They delight rather to lean to their old customs.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(transitive) To convey (a given sense); to signify, or indicate (an object or idea).
The sky is red this morning—does that mean we're in for a storm?
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To rest or rely, for support, comfort, and the like; - with on, upon, or against.
He leaned not on his fathers but himself.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(transitive) Of a word, symbol etc: to have reference to, to signify.
What does this hieroglyph mean?
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To cause to lean; to incline; to support or rest.
His fainting limbs against an oak he leant.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(transitive) Of a person (or animal etc): to intend to express, to imply, to hint at, to allude.
I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean.
He is a little different, if you know what I mean.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Wanting flesh; destitute of or deficient in fat; slim; not plump; slender; meager; thin; lank; as, a lean body; a lean cattle.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(transitive) To have conviction in (something said or expressed); to be sincere in (what one says).
Does she really mean what she said to him last night?
Say what you mean and mean what you say.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Wanting fullness, richness, sufficiency, or productiveness; deficient in quality or contents; slender; scant; barren; bare; mean; - used literally and figuratively; as, the lean harvest; a lean purse; a lean discourse; lean wages.
Their lean and flashy songs.
What the land is, whether it be fat or lean.
Out of my lean and low abilityI'll lend you something.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(transitive) To cause or produce (a given result); to bring about (a given result).
One faltering step means certain death.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Of a character which prevents the compositor from earning the usual wages; - opposed to fat; as, lean copy, matter, or type.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(usually with to) To be of some level of importance.
That little dog meant everything to me.
Formality and titles mean nothing in their circle.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
That part of flesh which consists principally of muscle without the fat.
The fat was so white and the lean was so ruddy.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To lament.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Unremunerative copy or work.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(obsolete) Common; general.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
The property possessed by a line or surface that departs from the vertical;
The tower had a pronounced tilt
The ship developed a list to starboard
He walked with a heavy inclination to the right
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Of a common or low origin, grade, or quality; common; humble.
A man of mean parentage
A mean abode
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
To incline or bend from a vertical position;
She leaned over the banister
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Low in quality or degree; inferior; poor; shabby.
A mean appearance
A mean dress
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Cause to lean or incline;
He leaned his rifle against the wall
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Without dignity of mind; destitute of honour; low-minded; spiritless; base.
A mean motive
It was mean of you to steal that little girl's piggy bank.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Have a tendency or disposition to do or be something; be inclined;
She tends to be nervous before her lectures
These dresses run small
He inclined to corpulence
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Of little value or worth; worthy of little or no regard; contemptible; despicable.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Rely on for support;
We can lean on this man
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Ungenerous; stingy; tight-fisted.
He's so mean. I've never seen him spend so much as five pounds on presents for his children.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Cause to lean to the side;
Erosion listed the old tree
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Disobliging; pettily offensive or unaccommodating.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Lacking excess flesh;
You can't be too rich or too thin
Yon Cassius has a lean and hungry look
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Intending to cause harm, successfully or otherwise; bearing ill will towards another.
Watch out for her, she's mean. I said good morning to her, and she punched me in the nose.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Lacking in mineral content or combustible material;
Lean ore
Lean fuel
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Powerful; fierce; strong.
It must have been a mean typhoon that levelled this town.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Containing little excess;
A lean budget
A skimpy allowance
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(colloquial) Accomplished with great skill; deft; hard to compete with.
Your mother can roll a mean cigarette.
He hits a mean backhand.
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Low in mineral content;
A lean ore
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Difficult, tricky.
This problem is mean!
Mar 19, 2023
Lean
Not profitable or prosperous;
A lean year
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Having the mean (see noun below) as its value; average.
The mean family has 2.4 children.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(obsolete) Middling; intermediate; moderately good, tolerable.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
A method or course of action used to achieve some result.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
An intermediate step or intermediate steps.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Something which is intermediate or in the middle; an intermediate value or range of values; a medium.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
The middle part of three-part polyphonic music; now specifically, the alto part in polyphonic music; an alto instrument.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(statistics) The average of a set of values, calculated by summing them together and dividing by the number of terms; the arithmetic mean.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(mathematics) Any function of multiple variables that satisfies certain properties and yields a number representative of its arguments; or, the number so yielded; a measure of central tendency.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
(mathematics) Either of the two numbers in the middle of a conventionally presented proportion, as 2 and 3 in 1:2=3:6.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To have in the mind, as a purpose, intention, etc.; to intend; to purpose; to design; as, what do you mean to do?
What mean ye by this service ?
Ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good.
I am not a SpaniardTo say that it is yours and not to mean it.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To signify; to indicate; to import; to denote.
What mean these seven ewe lambs ?
Go ye, and learn what that meaneth.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
To have a purpose or intention.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Destitute of distinction or eminence; common; low; vulgar; humble.
The mean man boweth down, and the great man humbleth himself.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Wanting dignity of mind; low-minded; base; destitute of honor; spiritless; as, a mean motive.
Can you imagine I so mean could prove,To save my life by changing of my love ?
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Of little value or account; worthy of little or no regard; contemptible; despicable.
The Roman legions and great Cæsar foundOur fathers no mean foes.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Of poor quality; as, mean fare.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Penurious; stingy; close-fisted; illiberal; as, mean hospitality.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Occupying a middle position; middle; being about midway between extremes.
Being of middle age and a mean stature.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Intermediate in excellence of any kind.
According to the fittest style of lofty, mean, or lowly.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Average; having an intermediate value between two extremes, or between the several successive values of a variable quantity during one cycle of variation; as, mean distance; mean motion; mean solar day.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
That which is mean, or intermediate, between two extremes of place, time, or number; the middle point or place; middle rate or degree; mediocrity; medium; absence of extremes or excess; moderation; measure.
But to speak in a mean, the virtue of prosperity is temperance; the virtue of adversity is fortitude.
There is a mean in all things.
The extremes we have mentioned, between which the wellinstracted Christian holds the mean, are correlatives.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
A quantity having an intermediate value between several others, from which it is derived, and of which it expresses the resultant value; usually, unless otherwise specified, it is the simple average, formed by adding the quantities together and dividing by their number, which is called an arithmetical mean. A geometrical mean is the nth root of the product of the n quantities being averaged.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
That through which, or by the help of which, an end is attained; something tending to an object desired; intermediate agency or measure; necessary condition or coagent; instrument.
Their virtuous conversation was a mean to work the conversion of the heathen to Christ.
You may be able, by this mean, to review your own scientific acquirements.
Philosophical doubt is not an end, but a mean.
By this means he had them more at vantage.
What other means is left unto us.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Resources; property, revenue, or the like, considered as the condition of easy livelihood, or an instrumentality at command for effecting any purpose; disposable force or substance.
Your means are very slender, and your waste is great.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
A part, whether alto or tenor, intermediate between the soprano and base; a middle part.
The mean is drowned with your unruly base.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Meantime; meanwhile.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
A mediator; a go-between.
He wooeth her by means and by brokage.
If by any means I might attain to the resurrection of the dead.
The wine on this side of the lake is by no means so good as that on the other.
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
An average of n numbers computed by adding some function of the numbers and dividing by some function of n
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Mean or intend to express or convey;
You never understand what I mean!
What do his words intend?
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Have as a logical consequence;
The water shortage means that we have to stop taking long showers
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Denote or connote;
`maison' means `house' in French
An example sentence would show what this word means
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Have in mind as a purpose;
I mean no harm
I only meant to help you
She didn't think to harm me
We thought to return early that night
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Have a specified degree of importance;
My ex-husband means nothing to me
Happiness means everything
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Intend to refer to;
I'm thinking of good food when I talk about France
Yes, I meant you when I complained about people who gossip!
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Destine or designate for a certain purpose;
These flowers were meant for you
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Approximating the statistical norm or average or expected value;
The average income in New England is below that of the nation
Of average height for his age
The mean annual rainfall
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Characterized by malice;
A hateful thing to do
In a mean mood
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Having or showing an ignoble lack of honor or morality;
That liberal obedience without which your army would be a base rabble
Taking a mean advantage
Chok'd with ambition of the meaner sort
Something essentially vulgar and meanspirited in politics
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Excellent;
Famous for a mean backhand
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Marked by poverty befitting a beggar;
A beggarly existence in the slums
A mean hut
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Used of persons or behavior; characterized by or indicative of lack of generosity;
A mean person
He left a miserly tip
Mar 19, 2023
Mean
Used of sums of money; so small in amount as to deserve contempt
Mar 19, 2023
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