Etymology 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”) (see it for more). 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).
This observation is an important leg of my argument.
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A stage of a journey, race etc.
After six days, we're finally in the last leg of our cross-country trip.
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Nautical, Transport A distance that a sailing vessel does without changing the sails from one side to the other.
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Nautical, Transport One side of a multiple-sided (often triangular) course in a sailing race.
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Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports A single game or match played in a tournament or other sporting contest.
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.2011 November 11, Rory Houston, “Estonia 0-4 Republic of Ireland”, in RTE Sport:
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Geometry, Mathematics, Sciences One of the two sides of a right triangle that is not the hypotenuse.
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Geometry, Mathematics, Sciences One of the two equal sides of an isosceles triangle.
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Geometry, Mathematics, Sciences One of the branches of a hyperbola or other curve which extend outward indefinitely.
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Plural normally The ability of something to persist or succeed over a long period of time.
This proposal has no legs. Almost everyone opposes it.
I’m trying to go with my head and focus on the first guy, because this could be a relationship with legs.2020 February 2, “One is a great guy; the other is good in bed. So who do I choose?”, in The Guardian:
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UK, Archaic, Slang A disreputable sporting character; a blackleg.
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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.
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In a grain elevator, the case containing the lower part of the belt which carries the buckets.
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Ball games, Cricket, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports Denotes the half of the field on the same side as the batsman's legs; the left side for a right-handed batsman.
;
Ponsonby-Smythe hit a thumping drive through the leg fielders.
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:
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Archaic A gesture of submission; a bow or curtsey. Chiefly in phrase make a leg.
Hickman came in, making his legs, and stroking his cravat and ruffles.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; [a]nd sold by John Osborn, […], →OCLC:
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Journalism, Media A column, as a unit of length of text as laid out.
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:
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Synonym of leg up (“forming a step for a person's feet with one's hands”).
The street was deserted. We acted quickly. Josiah gave me a leg. I threw my jacket over the broken glass […]1902, The Idler: An Illustrated Monthly Magazine, volume 21, page 737:
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Gambling, Games An individual bet in a parlay (a series of bets where the stake and winnings are cumulatively carried forward).
If one leg from your 2-way parlay pushes and the other wins, your parlay bet wins and is paid off as if it's a straight bet (paying -110 or whatever the odds were).2020, Swain Scheps, Sports Betting For Dummies, Hoboken, N.J.: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., →ISBN, page 265:
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Archaic, Slang Synonym of blackleg (“a gambling cheat”).
Etymology 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”) (see it for more). 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).
1
To remove the legs from an animal carcass.
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To build legs onto a platform or stage for support.
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To put a series of three or more options strikes into the stock market.
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To apply force using the leg (as in 'to leg a horse').