ENGLISH
REFERENCE

thigh

n. countable
B1 Intermediate US //ˈθaɪ// UK //θˈaɪ// thigh

n. the top part of your leg between your hip and your knee.

n. the part of the human leg between the hip and the knee, supported by the femur.


SIMPLE

My thigh muscles feel sore after the long run.

CONTEXTUAL

The athlete wore a compression sleeve on her left thigh to support a minor muscle strain during the race.

COMPLEX

The femur is the longest and strongest bone in the human body, extending through the thigh to provide structural support for the entire upper frame.

Origin

From Middle English thigh, thegh, thiȝ, theȝhe, þigh, þyȝh, from Old English þēoh, þīoh, from Proto-West Germanic þeuh, from Proto-Germanic þeuhą, from Proto-Indo-European *tewk-. See also West Frisian tsjea, Dutch dij, Middle High German diech, Icelandic þjó; also Irish tóin (“hind, rump”), Lithuanian táukas (“fat”), Russian тук (tuk, “animal fat”).

Usage

Commonly used in medical and athletic contexts to refer to the quadriceps and hamstring muscle groups.

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