the back and sides of the hog, salted and dried or smoked, usually sliced thin and fried for food.
Also called white bacon. South Midland and Southern U.S. pork cured in brine; salt pork.
bring home the bacon,
to provide for material needs; earn a living.
to accomplish a task; be successful or victorious.
Our governor went to Washington to appeal for disaster relief and brought home the bacon—$40 million.
save one's bacon, to allow one to accomplish a desired end; spare one from injury or loss.
Quick thinking saved our bacon.
Francis Baron Verulam, Viscount St. Albans, 1561–1626, English essayist, philosopher, and statesman.
Francis, 1910–92, English painter, born in Ireland.
Henry, 1866–1924, U.S. architect.
Nathaniel, 1647–76, American colonist, born in England: leader of a rebellion in Virginia 1676.
Roger The Admirable Doctor, 1214?–94?, English philosopher and scientist.
meat from the back and sides of a pig, dried, salted, and usually smoked
informal
to achieve success
to provide material support
informal to help someone to escape from danger
Francis , Baron Verulam, Viscount St Albans. 1561–1626, English philosopher, statesman, and essayist; described the inductive method of reasoning: his works include Essays (1625), The Advancement of Learning (1605), and Novum Organum (1620)
Francis . 1909–92, British painter, born in Dublin, noted for his distorted, richly coloured human figures, dogs, and carcasses
Roger . ?1214–92, English Franciscan monk, scholar, and scientist: stressed the importance of experiment, demonstrated that air is required for combustion, and first used lenses to correct vision. His Opus Majus (1266) is a compendium of all the sciences of his age
1300–50; Middle English bacoun < Anglo-French; Old French bacon < Germanic *bakōn- ( Old High German bacho back, ham, bacon) derivative of *baka- back 1; compare Middle Dutch bake bacon
Bacon is a thin, salty meat product that's often served beside eggs at breakfast. Some people like their bacon cooked until it's crispy. If you're a vegetarian, you might order a BLT and say, "Hold the bacon, please." Bacon comes from the belly or the sides of a pig, and it's typically swirled with fat, cured or smoked, and very flavorful. The word and the food have been around since at least the early 14th century, from a Proto-Germanic root, bakkon, or "back meat." Since the early 1900s, "bringing home the bacon" has been slang for earning a living.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
One is a thick cut of bacon with salad, the other smoked chicken and coleslaw.
From BBC • May 15, 2026
A single sandwich from upmarket bakery Gail's has more salt than nearly five McDonald's cheeseburgers or 10 rashers of bacon, say campaigners.
From BBC • May 13, 2026
I was also parmesan-less, so I pivoted toward other salty pleasures instead: crushed bacon and a pan of toasted breadcrumbs made from the heel of a sourdough loaf.
From Salon • May 12, 2026
The next day is deep-clean Monday, when First Watch dishwashers scrub coffee urns and the greasy grates where bacon sizzles.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 12, 2026
Aunt Florentine would sneak a piece of bacon from the paper-toweled plate on the stove and say with surprise, “My heavenly bed’s not ready yet!”
From Each Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles
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.
