How to Use leggy in a Sentence

leggy

adjective
  • The bush has gotten leggy and needs to be pruned.
  • Too much shade can lead to leggy growth.
    — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 12 Sep. 2025
  • If the long trails get too leggy, give the vines a quick trim.
    — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 1 May 2026
  • For stems that are too leggy, cut the stem at the soil line.
    — Sj McShane, Martha Stewart, 10 Mar. 2026
  • Leaves that are leggy or pale are also signs your plant needs more light.
    — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 22 Feb. 2026
  • Plants grown in too much shade will grow leggy and produce fewer blooms.
    — Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 12 Sep. 2024
  • Too much shade leads to leggy growth and fewer flower buds.
    — Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 30 Sep. 2025
  • However, the new shoots fill in so that the plant does not look too leggy.
    — Brian Kemble, The Mercury News, 11 May 2017
  • If stems get leggy in the heat of summer, cutting them back can boost blooms.
    — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 5 June 2026
  • Trim any branches that are starting to look leggy, so the tree can look its best.
    — Helena Madden, Martha Stewart, 30 Dec. 2025
  • He was caught out for Martinez’s goal and looked a bit leggy as the game wore on.
    — Jack Lang, New York Times, 18 June 2025
  • Putting full-sun plants in shade — or vice versa — leads to small, leggy growth or scorched, crispy leaves.
    — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Miami Herald, 29 Apr. 2026
  • If the plant gets leggy, move it to brighter light and pinch it back to encourage fuller growth.
    — Sheryl Geerts, Better Homes & Gardens, 13 Jan. 2023
  • The actress has been known to rock a leggy moment, and this one was a total slay.
    — Emily Shiffer, Women's Health, 18 May 2023
  • In a room with lots of leggy furniture, a few skirted pieces can be a nice break.
    — Catie Parrish, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 Apr. 2023
  • Provide plenty of light and warmth to keep them from being too leggy.
    — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 14 Feb. 2026
  • Light is the single biggest factor in whether your plants thrive or get leggy and weak.
    — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Kansas City Star, 27 May 2026
  • Cut the stems back by half if the plant becomes leggy to encourage a new flush of blooms.
    — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 9 May 2026
  • If your petunias and coleus look spindly and leggy, use pruning shears to cut them back by about one-half.
    — Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 5 Sep. 2025
  • By the end of the awards show, Jolie's leggy display had gone viral.
    — Catherine Santino, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025
  • Over-fertilization can cause plants to grow leggy and can even kill them.
    — Molly Marquand, Good Housekeeping, 15 Aug. 2016
  • If stems get leggy in late summer, clip them back to maintain a mounded shape.
    — Teresa Woodard, Midwest Living, 14 Apr. 2026
  • To get rid of leggy limbs, remove select branches all the way to the ground or the main stem.
    — Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 19 July 2025
  • Scoring points here—the leggy little black dress outlined with white.
    — Arthur Elgort, Vogue, 21 June 2024
  • Ugly, leggy stems can be pruned to the ground, which will encourage a new flush of bushy growth.
    — Steve Bender, Southern Living, 11 Sep. 2024
  • Ugly, leggy stems can be pruned to the ground, which will encourage a new flush of bushy growth.
    — Steve Bender, Southern Living, 19 Oct. 2023
  • Seedlings will have strong stems that aren’t too leggy to survive transplanting and light frosts.
    — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 14 Feb. 2026
  • Are your tomato seedlings getting leggy?
    — Heather Zidack, Hartford Courant, 26 Apr. 2026
  • Your marigolds and zinnias are leggy, dahlias have fewer blooms, and coleus are forming seed spikes.
    — Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 15 Aug. 2025
  • If your plant starts getting leggy, cut it all the way back to rejuvenate it.
    — Kerry Michaels, The Spruce, 9 Mar. 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'leggy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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