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'Leek' is the vegetable; 'leak' is a hole that lets liquid or gas escape, or the verb to drip or escape.
Side-by-side comparison
"Leek" is the vegetable of the onion family with long green and white stems and a mild flavour. It is the national emblem of Wales.
Add sliced leek to the soup for a mild, sweet flavour.
The leek is the national vegetable and emblem of Wales.
She sautéed leek and garlic as the base for the pasta sauce.
"Leak" is a hole or crack through which liquid or gas escapes. Also the verb to reveal confidential information. "A news leak" = the unauthorized release of information.
There is a slow leak in the office roof that appears every time it rains.
Someone leaked the confidential report to the press.
The data leak exposed thousands of customer records.
Common mistake
- •"There was a leek in the pipe" when meaning a hole is wrong (correct: leak).
- •"She added leak to the stew" when meaning the vegetable is wrong (correct: leek).
Trick to remember it
- •"Leek" has double E like "seed" and "peel": vegetable words with EE.
- •"Leak" has EA like "drip" and "stream": something slipping through the EA.
Quick rule
- •Is it the vegetable? "Leek".
- •Is it the hole, drip, or information leak? "Leak".
Did you know?
The leek is the national emblem of Wales and appears on the Welsh coat of arms alongside the red dragon. According to legend, King Cadwaladr ordered his soldiers to wear leeks in their helmets during a 7th-century battle to distinguish themselves from the Saxons. The story may be apocryphal, but the leek remains Wales's official symbol, worn on St David's Day (March 1). In modern digital and journalistic English, "leak" is constantly used for the disclosure of confidential information: "a security leak", "a press leak", "the leaked documents", making LEAK one of the most frequent words in journalistic and cybersecurity vocabulary.
Practise what you learned
Exercise 1 · Pick the right one
There is a _____ in the ceiling. Water is dripping onto the floor.
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
She made a delicious soup with potato and _____.
Exercise 3 · Form the word
Related word pairs
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'Advice' is the guidance you receive (noun); 'advise' is the act of giving that guidance (verb).
'Affect' is the verb meaning to influence something; 'effect' is the noun meaning result or consequence.
'Aisle' is the walkway between rows of seats or shelves; 'isle' is a small island.
Bryan López
Founder of SpeakUP Academy