leg up

noun

1

: a helping hand : boost

2

: head start

Synonyms of leg up

• assistance
• assist
• support
• help
• boost
• aid

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

Our strategy is focused on ‘fair play’, giving the next generation fair access and a leg up in life. — Kamal Ahmed, Fortune, 15 Sep. 2026

Apple hopes these functions will give it a leg up over rivals like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini. — Lisa Eadicicco, CNN Money, 14 Sep. 2026

While Sunday Night Football has a bit of a leg up over the massive Sunday afternoon windows on CBS/Fox, NBC’s advantage may not hold up in the fall scatter market. — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 9 Sep. 2026

The criminals have essentially taken advantage of new, quick but quiet transport technology to get a leg up on police. — Emmet Lyons, CBS News, 8 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1871, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for leg up

• backup
• blowup
• breakup
• buildup
• checkup
• cleanup
• holdup
• hookup
• lineup
• lockup
• makeup
• markup