This very common word is used over 150 times in the work, but on my way to finding this very raw fact for you, friends, I had the most wonderful adventure!

Just for delight, I opened the OED to check any cool obsolete forms of “leave” that I might have forgotten in my pre-coffee haze. What happens when we open the OED, friends? Yes. Treasure.

Beleave – obsolete. To abandon.

Belive – obsolete. To remain.

Yes, I’m weeping over these two and hereby reclaim them from the compost.

• 1.051 I hope there is something left
• 1.065 Leave the bones on the bedroom mat!
• 1.070 that they had left among the walking-sticks.
• 1.070 I left mine
• 1.123 After that there were no dwarves left alive inside,
• 2.003 They left you the message,
• 2.014 “That leaves you just ten minutes.
• 2.019 leaving his second breakfast half-finished
• 2.024 and I have left my pocket-handkerchief behind,
• 2.028 where there were no people left,
• 2.034 the wind shook the rain off the leaves,
• 2.035 and there was mighty little left for supper,
• 2.050 as it left the pocket;
• 2.070 Bilbo had just enough wits left,
• 2.071 for Bilbo to have left.
• 3.031 and they found it hard to leave.
• 4.002 and left the Last Homely House miles behind,
• 4.002 Now they could look back over the lands they had left,
• 4.045 “Why, O why did I ever leave my hobbit-hole!”
• 5.003 or why he had been left behind;
• 5.003 if he had been left behind,
• 5.087 He still had a bone or two left to gnaw,
• 5.104 and feeling it with his left hand.
• 5.105 He put his left hand
• 5.121 One left, yes.
• 5.121 Two left, yes, yes.’
• 5.122 for he was leaving the water further
• 5.122 on their left as they went up.
• 5.123 Six left,
• 5.128 while he had any strength left.
• 5.135 was left standing open.
• 5.138 in his left pocket,
• 6.004 with a rocky wall on the left hand;
• 6.006 leaving Mr. Baggins
• 6.009 and leave you here
• 6.024 at the part of his tale that he had left out.
• 6.049 then by another not far away to the left.
• 6.054 You’ve left the burglar behind again!’
• 6.060 They left guards at the foot of the tree
• 6.062 there would have been none left there next day;
• 6.070 But the wolf-guards did not leave the trees.
• 6.072 That fire they fed with leaves
• 6.083 was very nearly left behind again!
• 6.092 and flew away with him into the night leaving Bilbo all alone.
• 7.012 if we had not left the mountain pass
• 7.013 They begged him not to leave them.
• 7.079 There were only fourteen of us left!’
• 7.080 That’s the first time I’ve heard one from ten leave fourteen.
• 7.087 and also angry at being left till last.
• 7.094 since they left the Last Homely House
• 7.099 and leaves were laid upon the mould.
• 7.103 It left the world and took its flight
• 7.105 but I warn you all not to forget what Beorn said before he left us:
• 7.109 or there will be no breakfast left for you.’
• 7.111 but what is left is out on the veranda.
• 7.130 As soon as they left his high hedges
• 7.130 and would have left them still with a long
• 7.132 with the mountains dark on their left,
• 7.133 or to the left,
• 7.134 their leaves were dark
• 7.141 that Gandalf was going to leave them
• 7.143 So now there was nothing left to do
• 7.145 that a thing like a bear left the shadow of the trees
• 7.153 and DON’T LEAVE THE PATH!’
• 8.001 to bear more than a few blackened leaves.
• 8.002 in the leaves far above,
• 8.003 and among the leaves that lay piled endlessly thick
• 8.008 and fallen leaving only the broken posts near the bank.
• 8.036 there was practically nothing left to eat or to drink.
• 8.036 and herbs with pale leaves
• 8.037 A few leaves came rustling down
• 8.037 among the dead leaves
• 8.038 from those parts with what strength they had left.
• 8.041 the climber must get his head above the topmost leaves,
• 8.042 above the roof of leaves,
• 8.043 and the leaves
• 8.048 A woodland king was there with a crown of leaves,
• 8.049 we should have left you to your idiotic dreams
• 8.054 and to the left of the path,
• 8.057 so they all left the path
• 8.071 sat a woodland king with a crown of leaves upon his golden hair,
• 8.073 and he was left alone
• 8.074 Something like a strong sticky string was against his left hand,
• 8.104 if a spider had not luckily left a rope hanging down;
• 8.108 fortunately on to leaves,
• 8.110 and leave your bones
• 8.112 and left Bombur to Bilbo.
• 8.117 To the left there,
• 8.119 they drove at the spiders on the left,
• 8.129 and there we must leave them for the present,
• 8.144 and left him.
• 9.005 and red leaves,
• 9.008 who was the eldest left.
• 9.009 in my realm without leave.
• 9.011 and was left to wander miserably
• 9.016 and leaving them.
• 9.022 and leaving everything
• 9.038 and now he was left alone again,
• 9.039 They had left a merry feast
• 9.051 and get utterly left behind
• 9.053 Leave the halls and caverns deep,
• 9.053 Leave the northern mountains steep,
• 9.062 and left them till the morning.
• 9.063 and the trail of drippings that he left wherever he went or sat;
• 9.063 and he actually dozed a little on some dry leaves,
• 10.001 that came down upon their left.
• 10.009 In the meanwhile the barrels were left afloat
• 10.018 so leaving the others Thorin
• 10.045 and leaves were falling fast,
• 10.045 three large boats left Lake-town,
• 11.001 in to the left or western bank
• 11.002 So their escort left them,
• 11.007 There lies all that is left of Dale,’
• 11.012 None of them had much spirit left.
• 11.016 Only Bofur and Bombur were left behind
• 11.027 at least since the wizard left.
• 11.029 as if the light caught the last pale leaves.
• 12.004 he meant last spring before he left his own house,
• 12.015 There are no words left to express his staggerment,
• 12.020 It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations,
• 12.026 We cannot leave them.
• 12.029 and drove in through the crack they had left
• 12.044 from under the drooping lid of Smaug’s left eye.
• 12.077 in the hollow of his left breast
• 12.084 Leave him alone!’
• 12.084 and is maybe the last left of the ancient breed
• 12.085 though I don’t suppose there are any people left there
• 12.100 No trace of a keyhole was there left on the inside.
• 12.102 Smaug had left his lair
• 13.015 just where he had left them at the end of the tunnel.
• 13.055 The road from the Gate along the left edge of the stream seems all broken up.
• 13.055 a path that left the road
• 13.064 on the left side of the river,
• 13.065 and left the river,
• 14.018 His companions were leaving him.
• 14.020 Look for the hollow of the left breast
• 14.023 straight for the hollow by the left breast
• 14.026 who had left the town so soon,
• 14.040 Leaves rustled
• 15.027 not far from where the rest of their stores had been left.
• 15.058 but we leave you to your gold.
• 15.059 and the dwarves were left to consider their case.
• 16.014 in the inner chamber to the left,
• 16.017 when he left the newly made path
• 16.041 But I don’t think I ought to leave my friends like this,
• 16.046 it was still where he had left it.
• 17.061 I would rather old Smaug had been left
• 18.017 Since I leave now all gold
• 18.019 I must leave it now.
• 18.024 But weariness left their enemies
• 18.052 and Gandalf took their leave at last of Beorn,
• 18.052 Bilbo left with regret,
• 19.001 as if they had not stopped since he left;
• 19.002 And leaves are yet swinging,
• 19.013 Wind him in slumber and there let us leave him!
• 19.019 Even as they left the valley

“beleave | beleve, v.” OED Online, Oxford University Press, June 2019, http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/17344. Accessed 30 August 2019.

“belive, v.1.” OED Online, Oxford University Press, June 2019, http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/17396. Accessed 30 August 2019.