three-legged race

noun

|Updated on: 14 Jun 2018

Definition of three-legged race

: a race between pairs of competitors with each pair having their adjacent legs bound together

See three-legged race defined for English-language learners

See three-legged race defined for kids

Recent Examples of three-legged race from the Web

Kim and Leno, in fact, have run a kind of three-legged race, urging their supporters to list the other candidate as their second choice.

— trapper byrne, San Francisco Chronicle, "Election 2018: Bay Area voters, this is your guide to a jam-packed primary," 4 June 2018
At some summer camps, the boys and girls will be skipping the campfire songs and three-legged races.

— jane hodges, WSJ, "What I Did at Summer Camp: Stocks and Personal Finance!," 3 June 2018
Instead, there’s a three-legged race, a water balloon toss, impromptu dance-offs.

— catherine rentz, baltimoresun.com, "'Agents of change:' A year with the UMBC program shaping some of the nation's best and most diverse scientists," 18 May 2018
Make both subtle and overt jokes about the perks of threesomes—more people to high five afterward, how fun three-legged races are, and so on.

— anna pulley, RedEye Chicago, "Ask Anna: All the bisexual questions," 29 May 2017
Set up a relay course around trees, pair up for three-legged races, or draw out a hopscotch court on the pavement.

— amy roberts, Good Housekeeping, "3 Cheap Ways to Have Fun on the Holiday Weekend," 25 May 2011
North Carolina’s Luke Maye launched it in desperation and off-balance, with all of the grace of a grandpa galumphing through a three-legged race.

— tim sullivan, The Courier-Journal, "Louisville basketball is finding its level, and it's lower | Tim Sullivan," 18 Feb. 2018
Games for kids include a straw pillow fight, candy in the straw scramble, three-legged race, sack race, dizzy stick race, barrel race and water balloon toss.

— staff report, Daily Southtown, "Gaelic Park heritage event puts Irish arts, sports on display," 6 Sep. 2017
All the classics are there like Slip 'N Slide, a talent show, and the three-legged race, plus some adult add-ons like SUP yoga.

— meg lappe, SELF, "5 Adult Adventure Camps You Can Sign Up for Right Now," 1 Sep. 2017

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