thigh

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. The portion of the human leg between the hip and the knee.
2. n. The corresponding part of the hind leg of a quadruped or other vertebrate animal.
3. n. The second segment of a bird's leg, containing the tibia and fibula.
4. n. The femur of an insect's leg.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. That part of the leg which is between the hip and the knee in man, and the corresponding part of the hind limb of other animals; the femoral region, determined by the extent of the thigh-bone or femur; the femur. The fleshy mass of the thigh consists of three groups of muscles: the extensors of the leg, in front; the flexors of the leg, behind; the adductors of the thigh, on the inner side—together with a part of the gluteal muscles, extended on to the thigh from the buttocks. The line of the groin definitely separates the thigh from the belly in front; and the transverse fold of the buttocks (the gluteofemoral crease) similarly limits the thigh behind when the leg is extended. The inner or adductorial muscles are especially well developed in women. The thigh of most mammals and birds is buried in the flesh of what appears to be the trunk; so that the first joint of the hind leg which protrudes from the body is beyond the knee-joint. There are some exceptions to this rule, as the thigh of the camel and elephant. Many reptiles and batrachians have extensive thighs well marked from the trunk, as ordinary lizards, frogs, uewts, etc. No thigh is recognized as such in fishes. See cuts under muscle and Plantigrada.
2. n. In ornithology: The flank, or the feathers overlying this region of the body, corresponding to the thigh proper, which is deeply buried in the common integument of the body.
3. n. Loosely, the next joint of the leg; the crus; the drumstick: especially said when the feathers of this part are conspicuous in length or in color, as the “flag” of a hawk.
4. n. In entomology, the third joint or segment of any one of the six or eight legs of a true insect, or of an arachnidan; the femur, between the trochanter and the tibia or shank. In some insects, as grasshoppers, locusts, crickets, and such saltatorial forms, the thigh is much enlarged, and forms with the tibia a letter A, reaching high above the body; such thighs are technically called incrassate femora. The three pairs of thighs of a six-legged insect are distinguished as anterior, middle, and posterior. See cut under coxa.
5. n. The lower and larger part of the stalk of a plant; the stock or trunk.
6. To carve (a pigeon or other small bird).

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. (Anat.) The proximal segment of the hind limb between the knee and the trunk. See femur.
2. n. (Zoöl.) The coxa, or femur, of an insect.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. the upper joint of the leg of a fowl
2. n. the part of the leg between the hip and the knee