cross-legged

[ kraws-leg-id, -legd, kros- ]

/ ˈkrɔsˈlɛg ɪd, -ˈlɛgd, ˈkrɒs- /

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adjective

having the legs crossed; having one leg placed across the other.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of cross-legged

First recorded in 1520–30

OTHER WORDS FROM cross-legged

cross-leg·ged·ly, adverbcross-leg·ged·ness, noun

Words nearby cross-legged

cross index, crossing, crossing guard, crossing over, crossjack, cross-legged, crosslet, crosslight, crossline, cross-link, cross-linker

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use cross-legged in a sentence

I often sit on the floor and work cross-legged with my laptop.
Lumo Lift Vibrates You Into Better Posture|Gregory Ferenstein|August 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I remember the carpet in the room in the house in the farm where I was sitting, cross-legged.
What If the Iraq War Never Happened?|Michael Ware|March 20, 2013|DAILY BEAST
When the line was done, he climbed on the stage and sat cross-legged behind a podium, surveying his rapt audience.
Buddhist Retreat’s Death Saga|Lizzie Crocker|July 10, 2012|DAILY BEAST
He sat up, sat cross-legged, very dignified, as if I were a history major doing a thesis on him.
A Sleepover With Saddam|Elise Jordan|December 13, 2009|DAILY BEAST

Freddy, who has not said anything so far, sits cross-legged, now stirring the beans on the fire.
Who Killed the Horror Film?|Tom Shone|March 13, 2009|DAILY BEAST
"No," she exclaimed with dainty aplomb to the man who sat cross-legged in muslin draperies on the table.
Hilda|Sarah Jeanette Duncan
Jack found Mr. Figgins in his cabin, squatting on a cushion cross-legged.
Jack Harkaway's Boy Tinker Among The Turks|Bracebridge Hemyng
They either sit down on the carpet cross-legged, or loll on a sofa.
The Expeditions of Zebulon Montgomery Pike, Volume II (of 3)|Elliott Coues
Taking it, Orme seated himself cross-legged on a white blanket, which he spread out on the sandy soil.
The Way of a Man|Emerson Hough
A few feet beyond there is the goldsmith, squatting cross-legged on the ground outside the door of his shanty.
Gardens of the Caribbees, v. 1/2|Ida May Hill Starr

British Dictionary definitions for cross-legged

cross-legged

/ (ˈkrɒsˈlɛɡɪd, -ˈlɛɡd) /

adjective

sitting with the legs bent and the knees pointing outwards

standing or sitting with one leg crossed over the other

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012