lead-ins

noun

plural of lead-in
as in preliminaries

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for lead-ins
  1. preliminaries
  2. overtures
  3. preambles
  4. preludes
  5. warm-ups
Noun
  • This year’s Miss World competition recently made headlines during the preliminaries when Ugandan delegate Elle Muhoza made a powerful fashion statement.
    — Tabitha Parent, PEOPLE, 5 Sep. 2026
  • But all of that was just the preliminaries for Grady Emerson.
    — John Romano, The Orlando Sentinel, 26 July 2026
Definition of preliminaries
Noun
  • The Saudi overtures come at a sensitive time for the kingdom.
    — Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Hardliners in Iran initially criticized Pezeshkian and Araghchi’s diplomatic overtures to Washington, deeming a decision to visit the country actively waging war against them as a sign of surrender.
    — Mostafa Salem, CNN Money, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of overtures
Noun
  • The rest were preambles or dead ends.
    — Dan Turello, New Yorker, 10 Jan. 2026
  • Unless needed for clarity, avoid long preambles.
    — Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2025
Definition of preambles
Noun
  • By her own admission, the preludes and parallels of a musical composition are woven into the very structure of the novel.
    — Sky Davis, Christian Science Monitor, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of preludes
Noun
  • These runners don't expect to get those warm-ups back either.
    — Jack Springgate, CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Use the following four-part framework to customize your warm-ups to best meet your needs.
    — Dana Santas, CNN Money, 24 Sep. 2026
Definition of warm-ups
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

leading one down the garden path
lead-ins
leadman
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Cite this Entry

“Lead-ins.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lead-ins. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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