men of light and leading
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
Men capable of illuminating the way and guiding the steps of others.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “men of light and leading” mean?
Men capable of illuminating the way and guiding the steps of others.
Is “men of light and leading” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.