Calf - the lower part of your leg? (2025)

Well, medically the lower part of your leg is called calf. But what I want to know is what do you call it in your daily or casual English.

What do you call it? Still calf?

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Your calves refer to the lower part of your leg. A calf muscle is made up of two separate muscles. The larger gastrocnemius has two heads or sections. These parts create a diamond shape.

Source: Skin Answer
Painful, Small or Hard Lump in Calf Muscle – Causes, Symptoms, Treatment, Pictures.

NewAmerica said:

Well, medically the lower part of your leg is called the calf

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NewAmerica said:

What do you call it? Still the calf?

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Yes.

I only really refer to the muscles/back of the lower leg as the calf; the front is the shin. If I had to refer to the whole thing I would probably call it my lower leg.

However, if you are asking whether "calf" is in common use, the answer is yes.

NewAmerica said:

medically the lower part of your leg is called calf.

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No it isn't. The lower limb between the knee and the ankle is called the "leg". The calf is the rear, muscular part of the leg, in both medical and everyday English.

Andygc said:

The "thigh".

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I separate the thigh into "femoral quadriceps" and "femoral biceps" when I workout at the gym. Otherwise it is "thigh".

Do you guys mean that your thigh isn't part of your leg?

I use "leg" when I'm talking about my lower limb, all of it from crotch to ankle. If I need to be more precise, I may specify: "calf", "knee", "thigh", "foot".

Often, this is not necessary. If I say "My legs ache", my listener knows I need to sit down and have a rest.

velisarius said:

Do you guys mean that your thigh isn't part of your leg?

I use "leg" when I'm talking about my lower limb, all of it from crotch to ankle. If I need to be more precise, I may specify: "calf", "knee", "thigh", "foot".

Often, this is not necessary. If I say "My legs ache", my listener knows I need to sit down and have a rest.

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If you work out at a gym "leg" does not work.

I'm blitzing my calves today.
I'm working my quads on Friday. ("Quads" is the shortened form of "quadriceps".)

"Femoral biceps is a term that few use. But it describes the muscle at the rear of the upper leg (where the femoral bone is located). When people describe "leg cramps" it is usually the femoral biceps that are cramping.

Packard said:

If you work out at a gym "leg" does not work.

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You don't exercise your thighs on "leg day"? I don't recall reading any exercise schedule with a "thigh day."

Leg can have many meanings in everyday use. Calf only has one - the back part of the lower leg. It is a common everyday word.

If you have your leg amputated at the hip then "leg" includes everything from the hip down. If you have your leg amputated below the knee then the part amputated includes everything from below the knee downward. If you say your leg fell asleep, the tingling could include anywhere in your leg, and extend into your ankle or your foot. If you say one of your legs is shorter than the other you know that the distance from your hip to the ground on one side is shorter than the other, but it doesn't tell you which part is shorter. Saying "my leg hurts" doesn't tell you which part of your leg, but would generally exclude your foot and ankle as the source of the pain.

Myridon said:

You don't exercise your thighs on "leg day"? I don't recall reading any exercise schedule with a "thigh day."

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You can. Or you can exercise "push" exercises on the "push" day and "pull" exercises on the "pull day", which can make much more sense in a total workout program.

velisarius said:

Do you guys mean that your thigh isn't part of your leg?

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I was responding to two specific points

NewAmerica said:

medically the lower part of your leg is called calf.

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It's not.

NewAmerica said:

But what do you call the top part of the leg if you called the lower part of the leg as the "leg"?

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To that specific question, the answer is "thigh".

What everyday man calls "the leg", medical man and anatomy man call "the lower limb". Except when they are talking to everyday man, when they call it "the leg".

The answer to you, veli, is that it depends on whose "leg" you are talking about.

Thigh, knee, shin, calf, are all in daily use. We would use them to discuss the fit of clothing or boots, or fitness or weight loss goals, or location of injury or tattoo.

The muscle group names are used by many athletes or body builders.