Definition of "leach" []

• To remove soluble or other constituents from by the action of a percolating liquid. (verb-transitive)
• To empty; drain: "a world leached of pleasure, voided of meaning” ( Marilynne Robinson). (verb-transitive)
• To be dissolved or passed out by a percolating liquid. (verb-intransitive)
• The act or process of leaching. (noun)
• A porous, perforated, or sievelike vessel that holds material to be leached. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Trees on top of or even near septic tanks, sewer lines or in leach fields are to be avoided."
• "My understanding of the BPA issue is that BPA may leach from the polycarbonate after long use or repeated exposure to high and low temps."
• "[133] The origin of the word leach (physician), which has puzzled some inquirers, is from lids or leac, a body."