leg
EnglishEdit
Etymology 1Edit
From Middle English leg, legge, from Old Norse leggr (“leg, calf, bone of the arm or leg, hollow tube, stalk”), from Proto-Germanic *lagjaz, *lagwijaz (“leg, thigh”), perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *(ǝ)lak-, *lēk- (“leg; the main muscle of the arm or leg”).
Cognate with Scots leg (“leg”), Icelandic leggur (“leg, limb”), Norwegian Bokmål legg (“leg”), Norwegian Nynorsk legg (“leg”), Swedish lägg (“leg, shank, shaft”), Danish læg (“leg”), Lombardic lagi (“thigh, shank, leg”), Latin lacertus (“limb, arm”), Persian لنگ (leng). Upon borrowing, mostly displaced the native Old English term sċanca (Modern English shank).
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PronunciationEdit
- (UK, US) IPA(key): /lɛɡ/
- (some US dialects) IPA(key): /leɪɡ/[1]
Audio (UK) (file) Audio (US) (file) Audio (AU) (file) - Rhymes: -ɛɡ
NounEdit
leg (plural legs)
- A limb or appendage that an animal uses for support or locomotion on land.
- Insects have six legs.
- In humans, the lower limb extending from the groin to the ankle.
- Dan won't be able to come to the party, since he broke his leg last week and is now on crutches.
- (anatomy) The portion of the lower limb of a human that extends from the knee to the ankle.
- A part of garment, such as a pair of trousers/pants, that covers a leg.
- The left leg of these jeans has a tear.
- A rod-like protrusion from an inanimate object, such as a piece of furniture, supporting it from underneath.
- the legs of a chair or table
- (figurative) Something that supports.
- This observation is an important leg of my argument.
- A stage of a journey, race etc.
- After six days, we're finally in the last leg of our cross-country trip.
- (nautical) A distance that a sailing vessel does without changing the sails from one side to the other.
- (nautical) One side of a multiple-sided (often triangular) course in a sailing race.
- (sports) A single game or match played in a tournament or other sporting contest.
- 2011 November 11, Rory Houston, “Estonia 0-4 Republic of Ireland”, in RTE Sport[1]:
- A stunning performance from the Republic of Ireland all but sealed progress to Euro 2012 as they crushed nine-man Estonia 4-0 in the first leg of the qualifying play-off tie in A Le Coq Arena in Tallinn.
- (geometry) One of the two sides of a right triangle that is not the hypotenuse.
- (geometry) One of the branches of a hyperbola or other curve which extend outward indefinitely.
- (usually in the plural) The ability of something to persist or succeed over a long period of time.
- This proposal has no legs. Almost everyone opposes it.
- 2020 February 2, “One is a great guy; the other is good in bed. So who do I choose?”, in The Guardian[2]:
- I’m trying to go with my head and focus on the first guy, because this could be a relationship with legs.
- (UK, slang, archaic) A disreputable sporting character; a blackleg.
- An extension of a steam boiler downward, in the form of a narrow space between vertical plates, sometimes nearly surrounding the furnace and ash pit, and serving to support the boiler; called also water leg.
- In a grain elevator, the case containing the lower part of the belt which carries the buckets.
- (cricket, attributive) Denotes the half of the field on the same side as the batsman's legs; the left side for a right-handed batsman.
- (telephony) A branch or lateral circuit connecting an instrument with the main line.
- (electrical) A branch circuit; one phase of a polyphase system.
- (finance) An underlying instrument of a derivatives strategy.
- (US, slang, military) An army soldier assigned to a paratrooper unit who has not yet been qualified as a paratrooper.
- 2019, Elliot Murphy, A Vietnam Story (page 94)
- Which was lower than whale shit in the eyes of any paratrooper; it would have been a disgrace to be a leg.
- 2019, Elliot Murphy, A Vietnam Story (page 94)
- (archaic) A gesture of submission; a bow or curtsey. Chiefly in phrase make a leg.
- 1748, [Samuel Richardson], “Letter LXXIV”, in Clarissa. Or, The History of a Young Lady: […], volume (please specify |volume=I to VII), London: […] S[amuel] Richardson; […], OCLC 13631815:
- Hickman came in, making his legs, and stroking his cravat and ruffles.
- (journalism) A column, as a unit of length of text as laid out.
- 2015, Homer L. Hall, Megan Fromm, Aaron Manfull, Student Journalism & Media Literacy (page 266)
- A leg is one column of a story. It has two legs if it is set in two columns and three legs if it is set in three columns. Avoid legs longer than 10 inches and shorter than 1 inch.
- 2015, Homer L. Hall, Megan Fromm, Aaron Manfull, Student Journalism & Media Literacy (page 266)
Alternative formsEdit
- legge (obsolete)
SynonymsEdit
- (part of garment that covers a leg): pant leg, pantleg (Canada, US)
- (side of a right triangle): cathetus
Derived termsEdit
DescendantsEdit
TranslationsEdit
See alsoEdit
VerbEdit
leg (third-person singular simple present legs, present participle legging, simple past and past participle legged)
- To remove the legs from an animal carcass.
- To build legs onto a platform or stage for support.
- To put a series of three or more options strikes into the stock market.
- To apply force using the leg (as in 'to leg a horse').
Derived termsEdit
ReferencesEdit
Etymology 2Edit
NounEdit
leg (plural not attested)
- Alternative spelling of leg.
AdjectiveEdit
leg (not comparable)
- Alternative spelling of leg.
Further readingEdit
- “leg”, in Collins English Dictionary.
- “leg”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
- “leg”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
- “leg” in the Cambridge English Dictionary, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
AnagramsEdit
AromanianEdit
Alternative formsEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Latin ligō. Compare Romanian lega, leg.
VerbEdit
leg (second-person singular present indicative ledz, third-person singular present indicative leadzi or leadze, second-person plural present indicative ligats, past participle ligatã)
Related termsEdit
See alsoEdit
DanishEdit
PronunciationEdit
Etymology 1Edit
From Old Norse leikr, from Proto-Germanic *laikaz.
NounEdit
leg c (singular definite legen, plural indefinite lege)
InflectionEdit
Etymology 2Edit
See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.
VerbEdit
leg
- imperative of lege
Dupaningan AgtaEdit
NounEdit
leg
DutchEdit
PronunciationEdit
VerbEdit
leg
AnagramsEdit
GermanEdit
Alternative formsEdit
PronunciationEdit
VerbEdit
leg
HungarianEdit
PronunciationEdit
Etymology 1Edit
Back-formation from leg- (prefix forming superlative adjectives).
NounEdit
leg (plural legek)
- (chiefly in the plural, informal) best, most (record-setting achievement, property or amount)
- a labdarúgás legjei ― the best [achievements] of football
- a legek legje (singular) ― the best of the best
DeclensionEdit
Inflection (stem in -e-, front unrounded harmony) | ||
---|---|---|
singular | plural | |
nominative | leg | legek |
accusative | leget | legeket |
dative | legnek | legeknek |
instrumental | leggel | legekkel |
causal-final | legért | legekért |
translative | leggé | legekké |
terminative | legig | legekig |
essive-formal | legként | legekként |
essive-modal | — | — |
inessive | legben | legekben |
superessive | legen | legeken |
adessive | legnél | legeknél |
illative | legbe | legekbe |
sublative | legre | legekre |
allative | leghez | legekhez |
elative | legből | legekből |
delative | legről | legekről |
ablative | legtől | legektől |
non-attributive possessive - singular |
legé | legeké |
non-attributive possessive - plural |
legéi | legekéi |
Possessive forms of leg | ||
---|---|---|
possessor | single possession | multiple possessions |
1st person sing. | legem | legjeim |
2nd person sing. | leged | legjeid |
3rd person sing. | legje | legjei |
1st person plural | legünk | legjeink |
2nd person plural | legetek | legjeitek |
3rd person plural | legjük | legjeik |
Etymology 2Edit
From English leg (“single game or match played in a tournament”).
NounEdit
leg (plural legek)
DeclensionEdit
Inflection (stem in -e-, front unrounded harmony) | ||
---|---|---|
singular | plural | |
nominative | leg | legek |
accusative | leget | legeket |
dative | legnek | legeknek |
instrumental | leggel | legekkel |
causal-final | legért | legekért |
translative | leggé | legekké |
terminative | legig | legekig |
essive-formal | legként | legekként |
essive-modal | — | — |
inessive | legben | legekben |
superessive | legen | legeken |
adessive | legnél | legeknél |
illative | legbe | legekbe |
sublative | legre | legekre |
allative | leghez | legekhez |
elative | legből | legekből |
delative | legről | legekről |
ablative | legtől | legektől |
non-attributive possessive - singular |
legé | legeké |
non-attributive possessive - plural |
legéi | legekéi |
Possessive forms of leg | ||
---|---|---|
possessor | single possession | multiple possessions |
1st person sing. | legem | legjeim |
2nd person sing. | leged | legjeid |
3rd person sing. | legje | legjei |
1st person plural | legünk | legjeink |
2nd person plural | legetek | legjeitek |
3rd person plural | legjük | legjeik |
IcelandicEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
leg n (genitive singular legs, nominative plural leg)
DeclensionEdit
Derived termsEdit
LombardEdit
Etymology 1Edit
Akin to Italian legge, from Latin lex.
NounEdit
leg
Etymology 2Edit
Akin to Italian leggere, from Latin legere.
VerbEdit
leg
- to read
Middle EnglishEdit
Alternative formsEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Old Norse leggr, from Proto-Germanic *lagjaz.
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
leg (plural legges)
DescendantsEdit
ReferencesEdit
- “leg, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-04-05.
Norwegian BokmålEdit
VerbEdit
leg
- imperative of lege
Old NorseEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Proto-Indo-European *legʰ-.
NounEdit
leg n
- burial place
DeclensionEdit
Derived termsEdit
ReferencesEdit
- “leg”, in Geir T. Zoëga (1910) A Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic, Oxford: Clarendon Press
PolishEdit
PronunciationEdit
NounEdit
leg
RomanianEdit
PronunciationEdit
VerbEdit
leg
SwedishEdit
Alternative formsEdit
AdjectiveEdit
leg
- certified, authorized; indicating an authorized medical doctor, not a quack. Abbreviation of legitimerad.
NounEdit
leg n
- (colloquial) an ID card or other means of identification showing the owner's age; an ID; abbreviation of legitimation.
- Jag fick visa leg på systemet.
- I was carded at Systembolaget.
DeclensionEdit
Declension of leg | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Singular | Plural | |||
Indefinite | Definite | Indefinite | Definite | |
Nominative | leg | legget | leg | leggen |
Genitive | legs | leggets | legs | leggens |
Derived termsEdit
- falskleg (“fake ID”)
See alsoEdit
AnagramsEdit
Torres Strait CreoleEdit
EtymologyEdit
NounEdit
leg
SynonymsEdit
- ngar (western dialect)
WestrobothnianEdit
EtymologyEdit
NounEdit
leg n (definite leje, dative lejen)
- afterbirth from calving