pug
1 Americannoun
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one of a breed of small, short-haired dogs having a tightly curled tail, a deeply wrinkled face, and a smooth coat that is black or silver and fawn with black markings.
verb (used with object)
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to fill or stop with clay or the like.
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to knead (clay or the like) with water to make it plastic, as for brickmaking.
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to pack or cover with mortar or the like, as to deaden sound.
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to mix with water so as to form a paste.
noun
noun
verb (used with object)
verb
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to mix or knead (clay) with water to form a malleable mass or paste, often in a pug mill
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to fill or stop with clay or a similar substance
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(of cattle) to trample (the ground) into consolidated mud
noun
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Also called: carlin. a small compact breed of dog with a smooth coat, lightly curled tail, and a short wrinkled nose
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any of several small geometrid moths, mostly of the genus Eupithecia, with slim forewings held outstretched at rest
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of pug1
First recorded in 1560–70; origin uncertain
Origin of pug2
First recorded in 1800–10; origin uncertain
Origin of pug3
First recorded in 1855–60; short for pugilist
Origin of pug4
First recorded in 1860–65; from Hindi pag “footprint”
Explanation
A pug is a solid little dog with a wrinkly face and short muzzle. Bred to be companions, most pugs are content to hang out on the sofa with their owners. The origins of the pug go back to ancient China, where a similar dog was kept as a pet by royal families. These early pugs lived in luxury, and were even guarded by soldiers. Today's pugs tend to be nearly as coddled. The small dogs must wear sweaters or jackets in cooler weather, and they lack physical stamina because of their short legs and flat noses — a perfect excuse to pick up a pug and carry it.
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.
See Examples For:
This complete figurine of a seated pug dog in plain white-glazed porcelain with black details was found in the grave of an unnamed female at St James' Gardens in Euston.
From BBC ● Jan. 30, 2026
On the catwalk and in his own life, Valentino exuded luxury down to the last detail of his immaculate hairdo and caramel tan, often photographed with multiple pug dogs at his side.
From Barron's ● Jan. 19, 2026
I’d wager a wolf would sooner recognize a sheep as one of its own than a grinning pug.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 28, 2025
It also featured a picture of Reynolds with the 5-year-old pug Peggy, also known as “Dogpool.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2024
An overexcited pug snorted and gasped, shoving his short-muzzled face against the crisscross-prison-barred door of Fig’s cage.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
The machines most in use in this country are connected directly with the pug-mill, and as the clay is pugged, it at once passes into the box, and is pressed out as tiles.
From Draining for Profit, and Draining for Health by George E. (George Edwin) Waring
Several of them had it pugged up behind.
From Left on Labrador or, The cruise of the Schooner-yacht 'Curlew.' as Recorded by 'Wash.' by C. A. (Charles Asbury) Stephens
Below the eyes was a nose unmistakably pugged.
From The Rich Little Poor Boy by Eleanor Gates
Upon inspection, he turned out to be an exceedingly minute "cove," with a viciously pugged nose, and a decidedly thin pair of legs.
From Omoo by Herman Melville
His rather pugged nose seemed to revolt from contact with a bristling moustache of short, wire-like hairs.
From Maggie, a Girl of the Streets by Stephen Crane
You are also correct - "a welder, a painter, and a guy pugging holes" does not sound like a commitment to accepted historic preservation principles and techniques.
From New York Times ● Nov. 27, 2016
When cracks appear or96 joints open, they should be stopped with a pugging of fire clay and grog.
From Pottery, for Artists Craftsmen & Teachers by George J. Cox
Enamelled iron sheets are screwed to the ceiling joists in the hot rooms, and pugging placed over.
From The Turkish Bath Its Design and Construction by Robert Owen Allsop
Under both tiles and slates, but particularly under the latter, there should be some non-conducting substance, such as boarding, or felt, or pugging.
From Scientific American Supplement, No. 384, May 12, 1883 by Various
The drying and bleaching linen was an unceasing attraction to rascals like Autolycus, who had a "pugging tooth"—that is, a prigging tooth.
From Old-Time Gardens Newly Set Forth by Alice Morse Earle
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.
