Word: pig Part of Speech: noun Etymology: From Middle English pigge (“pig, piglet”) (originally a term for a young pig, with adult pigs being swyn (“swine”)), from Old English *picga, *pycga (attested in picgbrēad (“mast, pig-fodder”)), perhaps a diminutive of Proto-West Germanic *puk, *pūk (“pig”), which also gave rise to Middle Low German pûke, puyke (“pig, piglet”). Pokorny suggests this root might be somehow related to *bū-, *bew- (“to blow; swell”), which could account for the alternation between "pig" and "big". Compare Middle Dutch pogge, puggen, pigge, pegsken (> dialectal Dutch pogge (“piglet”)), Middle Low German pugge (> Westphalian German Low German Pogge, Pugge, Püggsken (“pig, piglet”)). A connection to early modern Dutch bigge (modern Dutch big (“piglet”)), West Frisian bigge (“piglet”), German Low German Bigge, Bigg (“piglet”), and Saterland Frisian Bikkie (“piggy”) is sometimes proposed, "but the phonology is difficult". Some sources say the words are "almost certainly not" related, others consider a relation "probable, but not certain". The slang sense of "police officer" is attested since at least 1785. Pronunciation: /pɪɡ/, [pʰɪɡ] 1. Any of several mammalian species of the family Suidae, having cloven hooves, bristles and a snout adapted for digging; especially the domesticated animal Sus domesticus. Labels: countable Example: The man kept a pen with two pigs that he fed everything from carrots to cabbage. Example: […]and at the back a rambling courtledge of barns and walls, around which pigs and bare-foot children grunted in loving communion of dirt. 2. Any of several mammalian species of the family Suidae, having cloven hooves, bristles and a snout adapted for digging; especially the domesticated animal Sus domesticus. Labels: countable, specifically, uncountable Example: Weanlings grow into feeder pigs, and feeder pigs grow into slaughter hogs. […] Ultimately the end use for virtually all pigs and hogs is to be slaughtered for the production of pork and other products. 3. The edible meat of such an animal; pork. Labels: uncountable Example: Some religions prohibit their adherents from eating pig. Example: "Miss Chastene, could you fetch me out an extra plate of pig and biscuit. My partner can't do without your marvelous cooking." 4. A light pinkish-red colour, like that of a pig (also called pig pink). Labels: uncountable Example: So far on the streets there's been a lot of metallic pink (the kind of pink as in the shade of pig you get, and this is exactly the shade of the diary I've been writing in) […] 5. A person: Labels: countable, derogatory, figuratively, uncountable Example: You gluttonous pig! Now that you've eaten all the cupcakes, there will be none for the party! Example: When you figure out the maze and get to the middle, that's when you get your free cocoa. It's on a table in two big thermos jugs, and there's cups and a ladle, and the sign says, "One cup per customer, PLEASE!" because some people are pigs. 6. A person: Labels: countable, derogatory, figuratively, uncountable Example: She considered him a pig, as he invariably stared at her bosom when they talked. 7. A person: Labels: countable, derogatory, figuratively, uncountable Example: He was a pig and his apartment a pigpen; take-away containers and pizza boxes in a long, moldy stream lined his counter tops. 8. A person: Labels: countable, derogatory, figuratively, uncountable 9. A person: Labels: countable, derogatory, figuratively, slang, uncountable Example: The protester shouted, “Don't give in to the pigs!” as he was arrested. Example: There will be no pictures of pigs shooting down brothers on the instant replay 10. A difficult problem. Labels: countable, informal, uncountable Example: Hrm... this one's a real pig: I've been banging my head against the wall over it for hours! Example: Chewing-gum is a pig to get out of your hair. 11. An oblong block of cast metal (now only iron or lead). Labels: countable, uncountable Example: The conveyor carried the pigs from the smelter to the freight cars. Example: Standing near the side, he had observed Rex and Fair bring up a great pig of iron, erst used as part of the ballast of the brig, and poise it on the rail. 12. The mold in which a block of metal is cast. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: The pig was cracked, and molten metal was oozing from the side. 13. A lead container used for radioactive waste. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: Taylor also bought a pig—a radiation-shielding container made of thick lead—to stash the most radioactive materials in. Example: Forceps and a lead container (called a pig) that are routinely placed in the room are used to retrieve and contain the source. 14. A device for cleaning or inspecting the inside of an oil or gas pipeline, or for separating different substances within the pipeline. Named for the pig-like squealing noise made by their progress. Labels: countable, uncountable Example: Unfortunately, the pig sent to clear the obstruction got lodged in a tight bend, adding to the problem. 15. The general-purpose M60 machine gun, considered to be heavy and bulky. Labels: US, countable, slang, uncountable Example: Unfortunately, the M60 is about twenty-four pounds and is very unbalanced. You try carrying the pig around the jungle and see how you feel. 16. A simple dice game in which players roll the dice as many times as they like, either accumulating a greater score or losing previous points gained. Labels: uncountable 17. A sixpence. Labels: UK, countable, obsolete, slang, uncountable 18. A Cadillac car. Labels: US, countable, slang, uncountable 19. A Harley-Davidson motorcycle. Labels: US, countable, slang, uncountable 20. The victim of a pig butchering scam. Labels: countable, slang, uncountable