dogleg

Etymology

The noun is derived from dog + leg, referring to the shape of the hind leg of a dog. The verb is derived from the noun.

noun

1. (also attributively) Something (such as a canyon or road) with a sharp bend or turn in it.
   1. (architecture) A configuration of stairs where a flight ascends to a half-landing before turning 180 degrees and continuing upwards.
   2. (golf, disc golf) A sharp bend in the fairway before reaching a hole.
2. (US, also attributively) A single intersection consisting of two opposing T-junctions in close proximity; an intersection with a staggered cross street.
   The Q Street crossing of Wisconsin Avenue is an extreme example of such a location, the dog-leg itself being so long, about 150 feet, that in reality two T intersections exist. May 1962, Arthur A., Jr. Carter, Increasing the Traffic-Carrying Capability of Urban Arterial Streets: The Wisconsin Avenue Study, Washington, D.C.: Bureau of Public Roads, page 39
   At 4th Avenue and Korean Veterans Boulevard, the completion of Gateway Boulevard would correct the existing dog-leg intersection with Franklin Street. July 2009, Gateway Boulevard Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement, Washington, D.C.: Federal Highway Administration, page 3-6
   McCormack had been stalking its corridors for months, turning down its dog-legs and dead ends, doubling back on himself. 2022, Liam McIlvanney, The Heretic, page 15

verb

1. (intransitive) To bend in the shape of the hind leg of a dog, especially to turn and then turn back sharply to the original direction.
   When the causeway doglegs and all of a sudden you spot sixteen roller coasters in the same place, it can take your breath away. 30 August 2004, The New Yorker, New York, N.Y.: New Yorker Magazine Inc., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 48, column 2