Etymology
Diagrams showing doglegs
(sense 1.2) in
holes in
golf courses. The one on the left is called a dogleg left, and the other a dogleg right.
The noun is derived from dog + leg, referring to the shape of the hind leg of a dog.[1] The verb is derived from the noun.[2]
Noun
dogleg (plural doglegs)
- (also attributively) Something (such as a canyon or road) with a sharp bend or turn in it.
- (architecture) A configuration of stairs where a flight ascends to a half-landing before turning 180 degrees and continuing upwards.
- (golf, disc golf) A sharp bend in the fairway before reaching a hole.
- (US, also attributively) A single intersection consisting of two opposing T-junctions in close proximity; an intersection with a staggered cross street.
1962 May, Arthur A., Jr. Carter, Increasing the Traffic-Carrying Capability of Urban Arterial Streets: The Wisconsin Avenue Study, Washington, D.C.: Bureau of Public Roads, page 39:The Q Street crossing of Wisconsin Avenue is an extreme example of such a location, the dog-leg itself being so long, about 150 feet, that in reality two T intersections exist.
2009 July, Gateway Boulevard Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement, Washington, D.C.: Federal Highway Administration, page 3-6:At 4th Avenue and Korean Veterans Boulevard, the completion of Gateway Boulevard would correct the existing dog-leg intersection with Franklin Street.
2022, Liam McIlvanney, The Heretic, page 15:McCormack had been stalking its corridors for months, turning down its dog-legs and dead ends, doubling back on himself.
Synonyms
- (intersection consisting of two opposing T-intersections): staggered crossroads, staggered junction
Translations
something with a sharp bend or turn in it
configuration of stairs where a flight ascends to a half landing before turning 180 degrees and continuing upwards
(golf, disc golf) sharp bend in a fairway before reaching a hole
Verb
dogleg (third-person singular simple present doglegs, present participle doglegging, simple past and past participle doglegged)
- (intransitive) To bend in the shape of the hind leg of a dog, especially to turn and then turn back sharply to the original direction.
2004 August 30, The New Yorker, New York, N.Y.: New Yorker Magazine Inc., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 48, column 2:When the causeway doglegs and all of a sudden you spot sixteen roller coasters in the same place, it can take your breath away.
Translations
to bend in the shape of the hind leg of a dog