three-legged
Americanadjective
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having three legs.
a three-legged stool.
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Informal. (of a schooner) having three masts.
Etymology
Origin of three-legged
First recorded in 1590–1600
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Here’s why: Visualize your retirement as a three-legged stool.
From MarketWatch • Jan. 27, 2026
If racing becomes a three-legged stool, the chances of collapse are major.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 2, 2025
Then add in the role of the media—it’s a three-legged stool, as far as I’m concerned: legislatures responsive to majorities, independent courts, and a free press.
From Slate • Jul. 22, 2024
For Syburg, the way forward for farmers looks like a three-legged stool of a business plan: seed, animal feed and food.
From Salon • Jan. 18, 2024
Despite her common sense, which had withstood more than twenty years’ worth of the three-legged table and her mother’s prognostications, she was trembling as she crossed the threshold of the darkroom.
From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
