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lead

 
/lid/ v [I/T] (past tense and past participle led /led/) (CAUSE)

Definition

to prepare the way for something to happen; cause: [I] Ten years of scientific research led to the development of the new drug. [T] Discussions with lawyers led him to believe that the company would not sue him.
(Definition of lead v (CAUSE) from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

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