DictionaryAI

leg

LEG/lɛɡ/

Plurallegs

28 meanings of leg

Practice

  1. 1
    whole human limbnouncountable
    One of the limbs that a person or animal stands and walks on; in people, the part from the hip to the foot.

    He injured his right leg during the marathon.

    The dancer's legs were strong from years of training.

    UsageSet phrases: stretch your legs, on its last legs; pull someone's leg means tease them.

  2. 2
    journey stagenouncountable
    One stage or section of a journey, race, or course, including one stretch of a sailing course.

    The final leg of the relay decided the championship.

    Their flight had three legs, with stops in two countries.

    UsageOften the first leg or the final leg of a trip or race.

    Similarstage, section, stretch, part

  3. 3
    furniture supportnouncountable
    A rod-like support extending downward from a piece of furniture or similar object to hold it up.

    A wooden leg snapped off the old desk during the move.

    The stool's legs were carved with intricate patterns.

    UsageOften as a compound: table leg, chair leg.

    Similarsupport

  4. 4
    nouncountable
    A limb that an animal or bird stands on, cooked and eaten as meat, or a cut of meat taken from one.

    The butcher boned and rolled the leg so it would roast evenly.

    Brown the duck legs in a hot pan before putting them in the oven.

    UsageLeg of lamb, with of; for poultry the animal usually comes first: chicken legs, duck legs.

    Note

    A whole poultry leg is the thigh and drumstick together, which butchers often separate for sale. Pork adds a twist: a cured hind leg is ham, while an uncured one is sold as leg of pork or, in the US, sometimes fresh ham.

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

  5. 5
    part of pantsnouncountable
    The section of a garment, such as a pair of pants, that covers a leg.

    She tore the left leg of her pants on a nail.

    The tailor shortened both legs of the suit.

  6. 6
    one matchnouncountable
    A single game or match played as one part of a tournament or larger contest.

    The home side dominated the opening leg but collapsed in the return match.

    Away goals from the two legs decided the tie.

    UsageCommon phrases include first leg, second leg, and return leg. In two-legged ties, the combined score usually decides the winner.

    Similarmatch, game

    Note

    Two-legged ties are where this word does most of its work. Each side plays once at home and once away, and the aggregate score across both legs decides who advances, hence first leg, second leg and return leg. Rory Houston's 2011 report for RTE Sport has Ireland crushing Estonia 4-0 in the first leg of a Euro 2012 qualifying play-off. That result all but settled the tie before the second match was played.

    Checked 30 Oct 2026 · 5 facts

    • Each side plays twice, once at home and once away. documents.uefa.com
    • The aggregate score across the two legs determines the winner, subject to tiebreaking rules. en.wikipedia.org
    • Rory Houston wrote the cited RTÉ Sport report in 2011. en.wikipedia.org
    • Ireland beat Estonia 4-0 in the first leg of their Euro 2012 qualifying play-off. uefa.com
    • The first-leg result left Estonia with very little prospect of recovering in the second match. uefa.com
  7. 7
    noun
    Enough physical strength and endurance to go on walking, running, or playing, especially in sports, as in "fresh legs".

    At thirty-six, the striker no longer has the legs to play a full ninety minutes every week.

    With fresh legs off the bench, the Hawks outran their tired opponents in the fourth quarter.

    UsageOften fresh legs, or have the legs to do something: no longer has the legs.

    Similarstamina, energy

    Note

    Fresh legs can even mean the substitutes themselves. When a story or product has legs, that is staying power over time, a separate figure of speech.

  8. 8
    knee to anklenouncountable
    The portion of the human lower limb that extends from the knee down to the ankle.

    Anatomists separate the thigh, which holds the femur, from the leg, which holds the tibia and fibula.

    Strictly speaking, the calf muscles are in the leg, while the hamstrings are in the thigh.

    Note

    Anatomy draws a tighter line than everyday speech. In anatomical usage the leg runs only from knee to ankle, and the thigh above and the foot below count as separate regions. A fracture of the leg in this strict sense means a break below the knee, while the everyday sense would take in the thigh as well. Context, not the word, tells you which is meant.

    Checked 30 Oct 2026 · 3 facts

    • Anatomy distinguishes the leg from the broader lower limb. openstax.org
    • The thigh and foot are separate anatomical regions from the leg. openstax.org
    • The strict anatomical definition excludes the thigh, but medical usage can also include it. A reference to a leg fracture does not by itself establish that the break is below the knee. medlineplus.gov

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Origin

Old Norse leggr meant "leg, calf, stalk" and also a bone of the arm or leg. Going back to Proto-Germanic, it was borrowed into Middle English as leg, and once borrowed it largely pushed out the native Old English sċanca (modern shank). Icelandic leggur, Swedish lägg and Danish læg are related.

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 7 facts