lease

lease

I

lease¹ /liːs/ noun [countable]
1. a legal agreement which allows you to use a building, car etc for a period of time, in return for rent
    lease on
    They took out a lease on a seven-acre field.
    The landlord refused to renew his lease.
    The 99-year lease expired in 1999.
    Do you understand all the terms of the lease?
2. a new lease of life especially British English, a new lease on life American English
  a. if something has a new lease of life, it is changed or repaired so that it can continue:
    Historic buildings can have a new lease of life through conversion.
  b. if someone has a new lease of life, they become healthy, active, or happy again after being weak, ill, or tired:
    an operation to give her a new lease of life
     

COLLOCATIONS

■ verbs
   ▪ have/hold a lease Who has the lease on the flat?
   ▪ take (out) a lease (=start having a lease) He took a seven-year lease on the place.
   ▪ renew a lease (=keep a lease for a longer period of time) The company decided not to renew the lease on the office.
   ▪ grant somebody a lease (=let someone have a lease) The landlord may grant a lease for a short or long period.
   ▪ sign a lease (=agree to the legal details of a lease by signing it) He refused to sign the new lease because the rent was too high.
   ▪ a lease runs (=continues for a period of time) The lease will run for 21 years.
   ▪ a lease runs out (also a lease expires formal) (=it stops) Their lease runs out in June.
■ adjectives
   ▪ a short/short-term lease These flats are let on short leases to students.
   ▪ a long/long-term lease We’re negotiating a long-term lease on the building.
   ▪ a 20/30/40 etc year lease The company has acquired the building on a 30-year lease.
   ▪ the current/existing lease The current lease still has 12 years to run.
■ lease + NOUN
   ▪ a lease agreement The organization has signed a lease agreement on a 50-acre site.
   ▪ a lease payment He is struggling to afford the lease payments on the office.
■ phrases
   ▪ the terms of a lease (=the legal details of it) Under the terms of the lease, the tenants have to pay for any repairs.

II

lease² verb [transitive]1. to use a building, car etc under a lease:
    I’m interested in leasing your cottage.
    lease something from somebody
    They lease the site from the council.
2. (also lease out) to let someone use a building, car etc under a lease
    lease something to somebody
    The building was leased to a health club.
     

THESAURUS

■ to pay money to use something
   ▪ rent to pay money to use a house, room, vehicle, piece of equipment, area of land etc: He rented a room in a house on the Old Kent Road. | They flew out to New York and rented a car at the airport.
   ▪ hire British English to pay money to use a car or a piece of clothing or equipment for a short period of time: Why don't we hire a van for the day? | You can hire suits for weddings.
   ▪ lease to have a legal agreement under which you pay money to a person or company in order to use a building, area of land, vehicle, piece of equipment etc for a fixed period of time : They leased the offices from an American company. | The car is leased from BMW.