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• leg
  leg

  noun

  either of the two lower limbs of a biped, as a human being, or any of the paired limbs of an animal, arthropod, etc., that support and move the body.
• leg.
  leg.

  abbreviation

  legal.

leg

¹ American  

[leg] / lɛg /

noun

• legs
  plural

1. either of the two lower limbs of a biped, as a human being, or any of the paired limbs of an animal, arthropod, etc., that support and move the body.

2. Anatomy. the lower limb of a human being from the knee to the ankle.

3. something resembling or suggesting a leg in use, position, or appearance.

4. the part of a garment that covers the leg.

   the legs of pantyhose;

   his trouser leg.

5. one of usually several, relatively tall, slender supports for a piece of furniture.

   sturdy piano legs.

6. one of the sides of a forked object, as of a compass or pair of dividers.

7. one of the sides of a triangle other than the base or hypotenuse.

8. a timber, bar, or the like, serving to prop or shore up a structure.

9. one of the flanges of an angle iron.

10. one of the distinct sections of any course.

    the last leg of a trip.

11. Nautical.

    1. one of the series of straight runs that make up the zigzag course of a sailing ship.

    2. one straight or nearly straight part of a multiple-sided course in a sailing race.

12. Sports.

    1. one of a designated number of contests that must be successfully completed in order to determine the winner.

    2. one of the stretches or sections of a relay race.

13. Slang. legs, staying power, especially the capacity to draw large audiences steadily over a long period.

    I had hoped for a bestseller, but my second novel had no legs.

14. legs, (in wine tasting) the rivulets of wine that slowly descend along the inside of a glass after the wine has been swirled, sometimes regarded as an indication that the wine is full-bodied.

15. Cricket.

    1. the part of the field to the left of and behind the batsman as he faces the bowler or to the right of and behind him if he is left-handed.

    2. the fielder playing this part of the field.

    3. the position of this fielder.

16. Electricity. a component or branch of a circuit, network, antenna, etc.

17. Radio and Television. a connecting link between stations in a network, as the microwave relays used in transmitting a show from one geographical area to another.

18. bride.

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verb (used with object)

• legs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• legged,
  past participle,  past
• legging
  present participle

1. to move or propel (a boat) with the legs.

   They legged the boat through the tunnel.

verb phrase

1. leg up to help (someone) to mount a horse.

idioms

1. pull someone's leg,

   1. to make fun of someone; tease.

   2. to deceive someone; trick someone.

      She thought someone was pulling her leg when she got the call from the Nobel Committee.

2. not have a leg to stand on, to lack a valid or logical basis for one's argument or attitude.

   Without evidence, the prosecutor doesn't have a leg to stand on.

3. leg it, to walk rapidly or run.

   We'd better leg it or we'll be late for class.

4. stretch one's legs, to take a walk; get some needed exercise after prolonged sitting.

   He got up during the intermission to stretch his legs.

5. on one's / its last legs, just short of exhaustion, breakdown, failure, etc..

   The aristocracy was on its last legs.

6. leg up,

   1. a means of help or encouragement; assist; boost.

      Studying the material with a tutor will give you a leg up on passing the exam.

   2. advantage; edge.

7. break a leg. break.

8. shake a leg,

   1. to hurry up.

      If you don't shake a leg, we'll miss the opening number.

   2. Older Use. to dance.

      The dance floor was flooded with couples shaking a leg to the loud and lively music.

leg. ² American  

abbreviation

1. legal.

2. legate.

3. legato.

4. legend.

5. legislation.

6. legislative.

7. legislature.

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leg ¹ British  

/ lɛɡ /

noun

1. 1. either of the two lower limbs, including the bones and fleshy covering of the femur, tibia, fibula, and patella

   2. ( as modifier )

      leg guard

      leg rest

2. any similar or analogous structure in animals that is used for locomotion or support

3. this part of an animal, esp the thigh, used for food

   leg of lamb

4. something similar to a leg in appearance or function, such as one of the four supporting members of a chair

5. a branch, limb, or part of a forked or jointed object

6. the part of a garment that covers the leg

7. a section or part of a journey or course

8. a single stage, lap, length, etc, in a relay race

9. either one of two races on which a cumulative bet has been placed

10. either the opposite or adjacent side of a right-angled triangle

11. nautical

    1. the distance travelled without tacking

    2. (in yacht racing) the course between any two marks

12. one of a series of games, matches, or parts of games

13. cricket

    1. the side of the field to the left of a right-handed batsman as he faces the bowler

    2. ( as modifier )

       a leg slip

       leg stump

14. 1. to help someone to climb an obstacle by pushing upwards

    2. to help someone to advance

15. informal to be successful or show the potential to succeed

16. to have no reasonable or logical basis for an opinion or argument

17. worn out; exhausted

18. informal to tease, fool, or make fun of someone

19. informal

    1. to hurry up: usually used in the imperative

    2. to dance

20. informal to get up in the morning

21. See stretch

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verb

1. obsolete (tr) to propel (a canal boat) through a tunnel by lying on one's back and walking one's feet along the tunnel roof

2. informal to walk, run, or hurry

leg. ² British  

abbreviation

1. legato

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leg More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing leg

• arm and a leg
• break a leg
• on one's last legs
• pull someone's leg
• shake a leg
• stretch one's legs
• tail between one's legs
• without a leg to stand on

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• legless
  adjective
• leglike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• legs
  plural

Participles

• legging
  present
• legged
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• leg
  simple
• legs
  simple
• have legged
  perfect
• has legged
  perfect
• am legging
  progressive
• are legging
  progressive
• is legging
  progressive
• have been legging
  perfect progressive
• has been legging
  perfect progressive

Past

• legged
  simple
• had legged
  perfect
• was legging
  progressive
• were legging
  progressive
• had been legging
  perfect progressive

Future

• will leg
  simple
• will have legged
  perfect
• will be legging
  progressive
• will have been legging
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of leg

First recorded in 1225–75; Middle English, from Old Norse leggr, akin to Greek láx, lágdēn “with the foot”

Explanation

A leg is the part of a person's body that they use to walk around. All legs, including those of humans and tables alike, are meant to support. Your leg is the appendage that stretches from your hip to your ankle, bending handily at the knee so you can run, walk, jump, sit, and skip. You probably also use the word leg to refer to one side of your pants; a support holding a table up; and one separate section of a long trip: "I'm stopping for coffee on the next leg of my journey." Leg probably comes from a Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to bend."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

leg leg. legs legged legging

The post said Yeo was "in his 70s and has previous leg and hip injuries", but "did not want to pursue the matter further".

From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026

It’s best to start on firm ground first, aiming to stand on each leg for 30 seconds.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026

Teenage athlete Dennis Castillo spent 28 excruciating hours trapped under the rubble in quake-hit Venezuela, with a beam crushing her left leg as she waited to be rescued.

From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026

She ran outside as the shaking began, receiving only a wound on her leg.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

Her good leg scrabbled at the bank; then, finding no traction, she tumbled back into the mud.

From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman

This will allow time for moving averages to catch up in price and give the stock a rest and help it rebuild stamina for the potential next leg. up.

From Barron's ● May 5, 2026

“I’ve battled through a lot in my career, to be honest. I mean, my first game in my career I broke my leg. I’ve been through a lot,” Randle said.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2025

“I’d been feeling a lot of pain in my left leg. Then one night, while I was moving around in bed, I heard what sounded like a Kit Kat crunch, followed by severe pain.”

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2024

"There was a branch around my leg. It was sheer darkness, I couldn't see anything. I was really fearful for my life at this point."

From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2023

“Ah. Let me see your leg. Broken like the tree’s limb, I’ll be bound.”

From "The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman

The priciest options are designed especially for athletes, and Dos Santos -- who himself lost two legs in a car accident -- has visited this cohort following the quakes.

From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026

Should I adjust how I live to see if this has legs?

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026

But Peggy Johnson, CEO of Agility Robotics, wants people to know that today’s bipedal robots with powerful birdlike legs go way beyond “back flips and making coffee.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

Injuries to the arms and legs were the most common, followed by head or facial injuries.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

But they were slow, their pudgy human legs no match for the rushing current.

From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman

But other legged robot companies have drawn a line opposing weaponisation, citing risks of harm and ethical issues.

From BBC ● Jun. 8, 2026

Based on the skull's size and comparisons with related fossils, researchers estimate the animal was a sturdy four legged creature about a foot long.

From Science Daily ● Feb. 11, 2026

“It’s a horrible distance,” said Kaisa Larkas, 44, a mother of four who legged it past Eloise Kramer to capture the Olney title with a time of 63.37 seconds.

From Seattle Times ● Feb. 13, 2024

They scored another on heavy legged catcher Salvador Perez’s acrobatic head-first slide home and two when Dodgers center fielder James Outman got a late jump on a bloop hit to shallow center.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 2, 2023

I knowed that even with that it was gonna be a while afore he waren’t walking stiff legged.

From "Elijah of Buxton" by Christopher Paul Curtis

Her final piece is a neon legging and bra set made from stretch mesh.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 11, 2026

In 2024, Lululemon stopped selling a new type of legging called the Breezethrough after some buyers said they made their stomachs and back sides look too big.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 13, 2026

The Australian Workers Union said the miners had been performing a manual style of extraction known as "air legging".

From BBC ● Mar. 13, 2024

“This form of air legging should not be used to do this type of work,” he said.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 13, 2024

Trainer Conway stood on the sideline and watched his horse from afar as he circled around the course, legging up for the stout mile-and-three-sixteenths distance of the match.

From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand

Related Words

• lap
• limb
• part
• pole
• stage