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Showing results for ankle-deep. Search instead for ankle+reflex.

ankle-deep

American  
[ang-kuhl-deep] / ˈæŋ kəlˈdip /

adjective

  1. high enough to reach or cover the ankles.

    ankle-deep mud.

  2. deeply involved or entangled.

    He is ankle-deep in financial troubles.

adverb

  1. as high as the ankles.

    Rainwater ran ankle-deep.

Etymology

Origin of ankle-deep

First recorded in 1755–65

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Holmes’ feed is a babbling stream of self-help epigrams, ankle-deep reflections and many, many photos of herself.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 7, 2025

Shopowner Chayaphol Promkleng thought at first that his business would be spared because flooding was "only ankle-deep".

From Barron's • Nov. 28, 2025

The man rolled up his pants before dropping down into ankle-deep waste to to pull the bucket out.

From New York Times • Feb. 2, 2024

North Wales Fire and Rescue Service said flood waters were waist-deep in one house on Almere Ferry Road, while several others were ankle-deep in water.

From BBC • Oct. 22, 2023

But Robin was already a hundred feet away now, standing ankle-deep in the surf.

From "Dragonwings" by Laurence Yep

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.