1 (also hog especially in AmE) an animal with pink, black or brown skin, short legs, a broad nose and a short curly tail. Pigs are kept on farms for their meat (called PORK) or live in the wild:
a pig farmer * Pigs were grunting and squealing in the yard.
seealsoBOAR, SOW, PIGLET, SWINE, GUINEAPIG
2 (informal, disapproving) an unpleasant or offensive person; a person who is dirty or GREEDY:
Arrogant pig! * Don't be such a pig! * The greedy pig's eaten all the biscuits! * She made a pig of herself with the ice cream (= ate too much). * He's a real male chauvinist pig (= a man who does not think women are equal to men).
3 (slang) an offensive word for a police officer
IDIOMS
make a pig's ear (out) of sth (BrE, informal) to do sth badly; to make a MESS of sth
(buy) a pig in a poke if you buy a pig in a poke, you buy sth without seeing it or knowing if it is satisfactory:
Buying from a catalogue can mean buying a pig in a poke.
a pig of a sth (BrE, informal) a difficult or unpleasant thing or task:
I've had a pig of a day.
pig / piggy in the middle
1 a children's game where two people throw a ball to each other over the head of another person who tries to catch it
2 a person who is caught between two people or groups who are fighting or arguing
pigs might fly (BrE) (AmE when pigs fly) (ironic, saying) used to show that you do not believe sth will ever happen:
'With a bit of luck, we'll be finished by the end of the year.' 'Yes, and pigs might fly!'
verb (-gg-) [VN] ~ sth
