1 leg up | Definition of leg up

leg up

noun

Definition of leg up

1 : a helping hand : boost

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Synonyms & Antonyms for leg up

Synonyms

abetment, aid, assist, assistance, backing, boost, hand, help, helping hand, lift, support

Antonyms

hindrance

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Examples of leg up in a Sentence

a key endorsement that would give the struggling candidate a real leg up right now

Recent Examples on the Web

When done effectively, a forest fire gives sequoias a leg up over some other trees vying for space. Los Angeles Times, "California fire mystery: No major summer brush fires after years of record destruction," 22 Aug. 2019 Liam Welch, a junior, had the leg up by virtue of sitting behind Hodges the past the few seasons. Evan Dudley, al, "Samford looks forward as season opener looms Saturday," 21 Aug. 2019 Mattison has a leg up to be the backup behind Dalvin Cook, who was rested for a second straight preseason game. Chris Tomasson, Twin Cities, "Do Kyle Sloter’s preseason numbers add up to shot at Vikings’ No. 2 QB job?," 19 Aug. 2019 Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water, and get into a squatting position or put one leg up on the toilet seat. Yerin Kim, Seventeen, "What Happens If You Have 2 Tampons In At The Same Time?," 13 Aug. 2019 Ultimately, Blue Origin wants to change the structure of the procurement to give the company a leg up in the competition. Loren Grush, The Verge, "How Blue Origin is trying to rework the rules of the Air Force’s coveted rocket competition," 13 Aug. 2019 Now a new scheme described by ProPublica and The Wall Street Journal involves families seemingly machinating to get an unfair leg up in paying for a coveted seat at a university. Adam Harris, The Atlantic, "Trading Custody for Financial Aid," 30 July 2019 Pappoe was rated as the top outside linebacker in the country, and has been on the Plains since January, giving him an early leg up. Sam Blum | [email protected], al.com, "Auburn’s 10 potential breakout athletes for 2019-20," 14 July 2019 The alliance covers only specific areas of operation in which one side or the other needs a leg up. Stephen Wilmot, WSJ, "Ford-VW Learns From Renault-Nissan’s Mistakes," 12 July 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'leg up.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of leg up

1871, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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More from Merriam-Webster on leg up

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with leg up

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for leg up