Sound-alike words
Lead vs. Led
Led is the past tense and past participle of the verb lead (rhymes with bead). Lead, rhyming with bed, is a soft gray metal. Today you lead the group; yesterday you led it.
| Word | Part of speech | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| lead | verb | to guide, direct or go first; pronounced to rhyme with bead |
| noun | a soft, heavy gray metal, pronounced to rhyme with bed; also the gray core of a pencil | |
| led | verb | past tense and past participle of the verb lead |
Lead
verb: to guide, direct or go first; pronounced to rhyme with bead
- Maya will lead the hiking group up the north trail.
- The coach leads practice every morning at six.
noun: a soft, heavy gray metal, pronounced to rhyme with bed; also the gray core of a pencil
- Old houses sometimes have water pipes made of lead.
- The lead in my pencil keeps breaking during tests.
Led
verb: past tense and past participle of the verb lead
- The guide led us through the caves.
- Heavy rain led to flooding on Main Street.
How to remember the difference
Feed becomes fed, bleed becomes bled, and lead becomes led. When you mean the past, drop the A.
Good to know
Lead also has a noun sense for first place or a main role, as in she has the lead in the play, pronounced like bead. The mix-up happens because the metal lead sounds exactly like led.
Spot the mistake
She
leadled the team to a win last season.Correct: She led the team to a win last season.
Our tour guide had
leadled groups there many times.Correct: Our tour guide had led groups there many times.
Check yourself
Pick the word that fits each sentence.
1. Last night Ben the meeting because the boss was sick.
Answer: led. The action happened last night, so the past tense led fits.
2. Paint made before 1978 may contain , so test it first.
Answer: lead. This is the metal, which is spelled lead.